The reason I want to hold this down to 40-60 miles/day is that while I am certainly capable of riding more on any given day, the wear and tear on the old body after repeated longer rides might take the 'fun' out of it! My 'normal' flat-ground pace is around 17mph. I figure ride in the morning after a good nights rest, stop for the day at noon-ish, have lunch, get cleaned up, wash my clothes, explore the town (on foot), have dinner, etc. Three-four hours of saddle time per day will be enough for my bottom!

The reason I say 3-4 weeks for the trip is that I really don't want to ride in the rain if I don't have to. A little drizzle/light rain maybe, but no riding in all-day cold rains or downpours! I've got no schedule to keep, so why not just ride on nice days? Besides, I hate cleaning the bike of road grime after riding in the rain!