Is it theoretically possible to ride a bike via frozen ocean between Alaska and Russia?

Comments ( 2 )

1. littlemissknowitall says

   David in Kenai knows what he is talking about. It would be almost impossible to ride a bike to the coast. If by any chance you invented a bicycle that could traverse the swamps and lakes, you would run out of food, as the villages are too far apart for food resupply for a bicyclist. Then, as he said, the ice is not only rough and full of big hills of broken ice, but it has thin spots and open channels of water. People who have tried to walk or snowmobile that route have found themselves floating away on an ice floe of ever-decreasing size. And with global warming, even some of the people whose ancestors traveled the ice for centuries have disappeared into the ocean, as the ice is no longer as thick or predictable as it once was. Scientists are predicting that the summer arctic ice pack will be gone in just a few years.
   If you want to do an epic bike ride, maybe you could do one somewhere else to publicize a cause of some sort? Raise money and awareness? Do presentations along the way? If you ride through Alaska it will just be you and the mosquitoes. I probably wouldn't do northern Canada, either, as you would have to look over your shoulder for polar bears. If you want adventure, maybe retrace the route of an early explorer?

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2. David in Kenai says

   You're right that it is about 50 miles from mainland to mainland. The Bering Strait does freeze each winter and the locals go out on snow machines (what 48-staters call snowmobiles) and/or land ski planes on the ice.

   But there are often open leads in the ice from expansion, contraction, and the currents, so most adventurers are prepared to cross 10-50 feet of water when needed.

   I'd see the bigger issues as:

   Hundreds of miles of swampy land between Manley Hot Springs (closest thing on the road system) and the Bering Strait. At least it would be frozen in winter, but you want a dog sled for that, not a bicycle, unless someone has prepared a trail for you.

   Hundreds of miles of swampy or snowy ground on the Russian side before you get to any gravel roads or paved surfaces.

   Border crossings, outside of established locations is rarely appreciated by the recieving country. Especially Russia. The guy who sailboarded from Little Diomede to Big Diomede was jailed upon landing in Russia. Cool stunt, though.

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