The TransAmerica Trail or TAT is a transcontinental vehicular route, intended as a recreational pathway across the United States using a minimum of paved roads, traveled by dual-sport motorcycles,

off-road vehicle An off-road vehicle (ORV), also known as an off-highway vehicle (OHV), overland vehicle or adventure vehicle, is a type of transportation specifically engineered to navigate unpaved roads and surfaces. These include trails, forest roads, and ...

, or

touring bicycle A touring bicycle is a bicycle designed or modified to handle bicycle touring. To make the bikes sufficiently robust, comfortable and capable of carrying heavy loads, special features may include a long wheelbase (for ride comfort and to avoid ...

. The trail was scouted by Sam Correro in 1984 who spent 12 years assembling the route using only publicly accessible roads and trails. To legally travel on the TAT, vehicles and drivers must be appropriately licensed for their type and class.

Route

The original route starts in Eastern

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

( Tellico Plains) and makes its way through

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

including the

Ozarks The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

and finishes on the

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

Coast at Battle Rock in Port Orford. This route has since been unofficially supplemented by an open source community with additional eastern starting points on the New York and North Carolina coasts, and end points in Oregon and

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. The eastern portion of the route mainly consists of farm roads and forestry tracks which become more severe toward the

Southern Rocky Mountains The Southern Rocky Mountains are a major subregion of the Rocky Mountains of North America located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Wyoming, the central and western portions of Colorado, the northern portion of New Mexico, and ext ...

where it covers several high passes. The desert of Utah follows, then

Sawtooth National Forest Sawtooth National Forest is a United States National Forest, National Forest that covers 2,110,408 acres (854,052 ha) in the U.S. states of Idaho (~96 percent) and Utah (~4 percent). Managed by the U.S. Forest Service in the United States Depart ...

of Idaho and the

Deschutes National Forest The Deschutes National Forest is a United States national forest (NF) located in Central Oregon, in parts of Deschutes, Klamath, Lake, and Jefferson counties. It was established in 1908, with border changes following in 1911 and 1915. The f ...

of Oregon, to name a few.

Types of travelers and vehicles

The trail is traveled mainly by riders of motorcycles who can choose to be self sufficient by

camping Camping is a form of outdoor recreation or outdoor education involving overnight stays with a basic temporary shelter such as a tent. Camping can also include a recreational vehicle, sheltered cabins, a permanent tent, a shelter such as a Bivy bag ...

, often rough (or wild camping), motel supported or vehicle supported. Others choose to travel by

ATV ATV may refer to: Broadcasting * Amateur television *Analog television Television broadcaster * Andorra Televisió * Anguilla Television * Ayna TV, Afghanistan * ATV (Armenia) * ATV (Aruba), NBC affiliate * ATV (Australian TV station), Melbourn ...

4x4 A four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, is a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case provi ...

vehicle, often in overlander configuration. Bicyclists also utilize the route, often long-distance touring cyclists. Skill sets of riders on the trail vary from veteran riders with decades of off-road experience, to well-prepared and educated beginners. Motorcycle types are usually dual-sport or adventure style motorcycles, such as the Kawasaki KLR 650 or the BMW R1200GS, due to their higher ground clearance, suspension travel, and tires being better suited for the various terrain on the TAT. The trail has also been completed by less conventional motorcycles, such as the Honda

Grom The GROM Military Unit ( Polish: ''Jednostka Wojskowa GROM''), is a Polish special forces unit and forms part of the Special Troops Command of the Polish Armed Forces. It is believed to consist of around 250 operatives plus support personnel. G ...

and CT series trail bikes. Vehicles with 4 or more wheels are largely body-on-frame trucks, commonly outfitted with raised suspension, recovery equipment, and other off-road oriented modifications. Due to the challenging obstacles on the trail, these are less common. Side-by-sides, or SXSs. are only street legal in the state of Montana, and therefore cannot legally travel on the public roads of the TAT. In the summer of 2021, journalists from

MotorTrend ''Motor Trend'' is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, and designated the first Car of the Year, also in 1949. Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles published ''Motor Trend'' until 1998, when it was sold ...

became the first to cross the Trans America Trail in an electric vehicle, using a stock

Rivian Rivian Automotive, Inc., is an American electric vehicle manufacturer and automotive technology company founded in 2009. Rivian produces an electric sport utility vehicle (SUV), a pickup truck on a Skateboard (automotive platform), "skateboard" ...

R1T.

References

{{reflist Endurance and trail riding Motorcycling in the United States Motorsport in the United States Off-roading Transportation in the United States Transportation infrastructure in the United States 1984 establishments in the United States

External links

* https://www.transamtrail.com/

Route

Types of travelers and vehicles

See also

References

External links