Bellingham author promotes slow travel after cross-country bike ride

Bellingham author Heidi Beierle is encouraging local residents to slow down and engage more deeply with their surroundings. After cycling across the United States, she published a book titled “Heidi Across America, One Woman’s Journey on a Bicycle Through the Heartland.” While promoting the work in libraries and shops, she noticed that readers were drawn less to the act of biking and more to the concept of slow travel.

Beierle defines slow travel as an intentional way of moving through the world. She notes that speed is relative and that the goal is to make the journey part of the destination. This approach involves savoring experiences, appreciating local culture, and interacting with neighbors. It can happen anywhere, including in one's own backyard.

The author has developed a quiz on her website to help people identify their specific travel style. She categorizes these styles into four groups: Go Green, Rooted, Stay Awhile, and Flow. The Go Green style emphasizes self-powered travel like bicycling and hiking, often combined with public transit to reduce environmental impact. The Rooted style focuses on staying home to explore one's immediate community, a method that is particularly accessible to people with disabilities.

Stay Awhile travel involves living in a location for a period to immerse oneself in its rhythm. Flow combines elements of the other styles to transform regular vacations or daily routines into deeper experiences. Beierle recently demonstrated this by walking to an interview to observe autumn in her own neighborhood.

During a two-week book tour last month, Beierle visited Montana to promote her work with organizations like Bike Walk Montana and Adventure Cycling Association. While in Billings, a reader named Andrew from Seattle contacted her after finding her book at This House of Books. Beierle discovered the store was a co-op, which resonated with her role as a board member at the Bellingham Co-op. The store invited her to speak, an event she described as the essence of slow travel.

Beierle says the biggest surprise of her cross-country journey was the kindness of strangers. People offered rides, meals, and lodging without knowing her political or religious views. These interactions restored her faith in the goodwill of Americans. She now uses her platform to help others find similar connections through their chosen style of slow travel.

Local resources support these different approaches. Bike Bellingham, Walk and Roll Bellingham, and Whatcom Smart Trips offer guidance for those interested in active travel. The Adventure Cycling Association provides route maps, while Rails-to-Trails Conservancy maintains a database of trails. For those seeking communal lodging, Hostelling International operates hostels in Seattle, Portland, and Vancouver, British Columbia.