WHEN Trevor Lund decided to enjoy some winter sun cycling thousands of miles across America he had no idea what was in store.

The tandem business owner from Guiseley found himself facing extreme storms and crushingly-low temperatures as he undertook his gruelling 2,937-mile journey.

During the six-week trip he found himself close to an area devastated by tornadoes, rode through blizzards and spent his nights in a freezing tent.

Trevor, 46, was no stranger to long-distance cycling, and his previous trips included a 16,000-mile epic from the southern tip of Argentina to North Alaska, an 1,800-mile journey from Calais to Sicily, a ride home from Krakow and a tour of New Zealand. But he told himself “never again” as he cycled across the country from Florida to California.

He decided on the USA journey after being described as inspirational by a work colleague.

“It had been years since I’d done anything ‘inspirational’,” he said.

Planning to visit relatives and catch some winter sun he set off to the States – where he was caught out by extreme weather and unusually cold temperatures.

He said: “I asked myself every day ‘why am I doing this?’ and thought of quitting every day. The distances were too great, the weather was too extreme (there were many nights when my water would freeze in my tent and days when water bottles froze solid as I cycled) and I was lonely.”

He added: “The lowest point, perhaps, was sleeping one night in the Rockies when temperatures plummeted way, way below freezing – every item inside my tent was covered in a hoar frost... and I was travelling with a two-season sleeping bag, which wasn’t designed for such temperatures.

“The following day the temperature barely rose above freezing. I’d eat cheese sandwiches beside the road for lunch, desperate for a rest but the cold forcing me on. My budget didn’t allow me to stay in motels every night or to buy meals in warm cafes.”

But it wasn’t all bad.

“The high points were a fabulous Christmas Eve out in New Orleans with travellers from all over the world, a free night in a Hilton Hotel courtesy of a passing motorist who wouldn’t allow me to continue cycling in blizzard-like conditions, cycling through the iconic Monument Valley and sitting outside my tent in the Arizona Desert as coyotes howled nearby,” he said.

Despite the difficulties he persevered and felt a huge sense of achievement on reaching LA – but he will be steering clear of freezing temperatures for his next trip.

“A more leisurely cycle tour with friends somewhere warm would be good,” he said.

“It’s a fabulous way to travel and you see and experience so much more and meet so many more interesting people travelling this way.”