Wit Tuttell, the executive director of Visit NC, announced the 2022 Cycle North Carolina “Mountains to Coast” Route with the help of town representatives in a pre-recorded video released Thursday morning.

To view the video of the “Mountains to Coast” Tour announcement, click the link.

The 23rd annual ride is scheduled for a Lake Junaluska to Holden Beach route, from Oct. 1-8. With tourist stops along scenic back roads, the “Mountains to Coast” trek is the highlight of the year for many cyclists from across the nation.

Cycle North Carolina will begin its full-service, cross-state ride on Oct. 2 in Lake Junaluska (Oct. 1 is a travel and check-in day), and will arrive at Holden Beach on Oct. 8, with 1,100 bicyclists expected to participate. Over the course of the week, riders will bike an average of 60 miles per day. Additional overnight stays are planned for Hendersonville, Tryon, Belmont, Albemarle, Laurinburg and Whiteville.

The Cycle North Carolina “Mountains to Coast” Tour is the state’s only cross-state, fully-supported ride created in 1999 with the N.C. Division of Tourism (now Visit NC), Capitol Broadcasting Company, the N.C. Department of Transportation and North Carolina Amateur Sports as founding partners. Cycle North Carolina was developed to promote North Carolina’s scenic beauty, heritage tourism, visitor attractions, historic sites, state parks, fitness, healthy lifestyles and the benefits of bicycling to individuals and the state. During the past 21 years, Cycle North Carolina has stopped overnight in more than 100 North Carolina towns and visited more than 700 North Carolina communities.

Online registration is open at www.ncsports.org. Cycle North Carolina will be capping registration at 1,100 riders, so interested riders are encouraged to register early, to avoid missing out on the highlight of the year for bicycling in North Carolina.

In addition to the “Mountains to Coast” Tour, Cycle North Carolina will host the Coastal Ride in Edenton April 22-24. Cycle North Carolina will also host its eighth annual Mountain Ride in Marshall Aug. 5-7. Registration for both rides is open at www.ncsports.org.