indyfabz

The portion of the AC's TransAm route I did (Missoula. MT to Fairplay, CO) was "crowded." I am pretty sure I encountered more people in that stretch than I did when I did the entire Northern Tier (did AC's group tour) west to east the year before. We did pick up a solo cyclist relatively early on and he joined our group for a week, which he was allowed to do under AC's rules as long as he paid the per diem for food and camping. I cannot remember crossing paths with more than maybe a handul of other people. Amazingly, one of them turned out to be a guy with whom I had done a one-day ride to Brooklyn with the year before and had dinner with afterwards. Small world.

The following year I did the NT to Glacier, NP. Same thing. Aside from crossing paths with AC's North Star and Northern Tier tours, I encountered only one person along the way. We never rode together as our schedules and speeds did not match, but we did end up camping at the same place three nights. The lack of people may have been due in part to the fact that both trips started during the 4th week May, when it's still quite cold and wet in the Cascades and you run the risk of Going to the Sun not being open.

On the TransAm, I encountered three people going in my direction on the second day alone. We were on varying schedules and they stayed inside as much as possible, so we never really rode together. In WY I met several going my way and some going in the opposite direction. I ended up riding with a couple on a tandemn off and on for about a week until we went out separate ways in Fairplay. Nice people. They were "modern" Menonites. The husband was keeping a record of all the bird calls he heard during the trip, and they would take turns reading to each other in their tent in the evening.

The refreshing thing was that, of all the people I encountered along the way, only one seemed like an ass.