If you take the Trans Am route which I suspect the other posters are relating to, they are probably correct. However, we took Highway 20 across Oregon, Southern Idaho and Wyoming;and it gets somewhat warmer and also further between towns. We were also surprised when a place we had planned on picking up water was closed for the 4th of July weekend. The way we handled extra water was a couple of Platypus collapsible bladders. Just tucked them under a bungee on the rear rack or in the front panniers. We hit a couple of spots where we needed two days worth of water which is quite a bit if you count drinking, washing and cooking. It is also nice to have a little extra to pour over your head and down the back of your jersey. It is better to have it than wishing you had it.

I don't really call the Trans Am route portion true high desert. There are a lot of pine forests along the route from Redmond to the Idaho border. I worked in John Day and commuted home almost every weekend over 200 miles of that route. I also drove the other direction frequently. That exposure was one of the reasons we chose not to do the Trans Am route. The other primary one is that Highway 20 is the only contiguous road that spans the US. Newport, OR to Boston, MA. We also wanted to stay off the main bike routes (personal preference).

This is the road between Bend and Burns. We hit temps up to 109 F.


Between Boise and Mountain Home was not much better. The only road that goes through this part of the country, and the only freeway of the whole trip( about 65 miles)


Shade was such a novelty we stopped and took a picture of the first tree we'd seen in a couple of days.