American Discovery Trail

And I think eventually I'll do all the, the Triple Crowns.

Some of the more obscure ones, um, I wanna do the American Discovery Trail someday.

I think that, that-

Mm-hmm

Mm-hmm.

Hiking coast to coast.

Um, that one's kinda unique too because as far as I know, they really, they're kind of in that same boat, where I don't think they've ever built any, like, just American Discovery Trail.

It's mostly c- uh, combining existing trails together in a cohesive a way as possible.

The coast-to-coast relay started in California at the beginning of July, passing over the Golden Gate Bridge on July 4th, and will end on Thanksgiving Day in Delaware with a dip in the Atlantic Ocean.

The relay follows the American Discovery Trail, spanning 6,800 miles, and celebrates 250 years of the United States with participants carrying a copy of the Declaration of Independence inside the patriotic-themed relay batons.

Novy said he started his journey in West Branch, Iowa on Monday, biking through Muscatine and clocking 76 miles before arriving in Davenport.

On Wednesday, he cycled another 17 miles to Kelowna, bringing his total to roughly 90 miles.

However, this is not the first time Novy has ridden on the American Discovery Trail, he said.

The longtime member of the Quad Cities Bicycling Club said the trail is fantastic, and he hopes the relay brings more attention to it in the Quad Cities and across the country.

They want to make it an annual event, and this publicity is what we need for the American Discovery Trail, Novi said.

It's out there, and we need to utilize it.

It started at the Golden Gate Bridge.

That was around the Fourth of July, and it's been handed from walker to cyclist to runner ever since, along what is known as the American Discovery Trail.

That's nearly 7,000 miles from California to Delaware.

Organizers believe it's the longest non-motorized relay ever attempted, and this week it's in Iowa.

Uh, it's moving from Cedar Falls to Waterloo, uh, Waterloo to Cedar Rapids, and then on its way to, uh, Davenport, I believe.

Butch Niebuhr lives north of Perry, Iowa.

He's on the board of the American Discovery Trail Society and is its Iowa coordinator.

Butch, welcome to the program.

Iowans can take part in a free national relay celebrating the nation's 250th birthday as it passes through Cedar Rapids October 3rd through 4th.

The American Discovery 250 Relay follows the 6,800 mile American Discovery Trail, which runs from California to Delaware, passing through Iowa and 12 other states along the way.

On July 1st, participants in California set off carrying three batons labeled Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness that each contain a copy of the Declaration of Independence.

The batons will be passed from person to person over 145 days as participants travel the trail.