Originally Posted by tmclough
Day 1 Total distance (according to TOPO!) is 66.30 miles; total climb is 4085 feet.
Day 2 Total distance: 61.96 miles; total climb: 2511 feet.
After a few days with the family, the trip back home is more-or-less the same route in reverse. Same distances, slightly lower total climbs.
How are the total distances/climbs for a first-timer? Are they too much? Or, will I be bored out of my mind, with nothing to do for several hours? Or, is it just right, as long as I take short breaks periodically? How short or long should these breaks be?
The distances look fine. If you are planning this for the Labour Day weekend in September you've got LOTS of time to build up to that. In fact, during your training rides, you could probably quite easily do that and more a few times during July and August.
Why would you be bored? And I'm not sure what you mean about the "nothing to do for several hours". If you are cycling, you
are doing something ... something
interesting!
As for your breaks ... as you build up your distances to the 50 miles you mentioned, and perhaps longer, you'll figure out how many breaks you need, and how long you need or want them to be. The best answer I can give you on that is: "It depends". It depends on how you feel. It depends on whether you are tired, or have a lot of energy. It depends on the weather. If a storm blows through, you might want to sit it out. If it is a gorgeous day, you might want to keep riding. It depends on what sort of tourist attractions there are along the way, and whether or not you want to stop and see something. It depends on if you want to dash into a convenience store for a quick snack, or if you want to stop at a restaurant for a nice sit-down meal. That's all up to you. There are no hard and fast rules for things like that when you tour ..... just go with what you feel comfortable with.