Seattle father, daughter cycling cross-country to save Orcas

Seattle, Wash.s — A Seattle father and daughter will pedal in a 3,400-mile, cross-country bike ride

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all in an effort of raising awareness and funding to protect northwest Orcas.

Orcas are critically endangered in the Puget Sound area and despite recovery efforts, their numbers are dwindling.

>> Related: Read about the different kind of orcas in northwest waters here

Fourteen-year-old Olivia Carpenter, a lifelong enthusiast of whales and the Salish Sea, says it's her goal in life to protect and save them.

"That's why this summer, I am going to ride a tandem bicycle across the United States of America with my dad," she wrote on her blog.

Olivia and her dad, John Carpenter, had a send-off on Saturday from Golden Gardens. The two avid cyclists will take nine weeks, hopefully averaging 63 miles a day, to complete the Seattle-to-Boston trip on Olivia's 15th birthday.

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John, who is an  IT Director at Seattle's Madrona Venture Group,

that some creative technology will aid in the effort. A Dynamo generator hub on the front wheel will power the front and rear taillights as well as a USB charger built into the bike.

He will also wear a Bluetooth wireless headset to get directions from a cycling app called

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But they will not be relying on tech alone; Olivia and John have trained for months in preparation, cycling around Seattle and the San Juan Islands.

“It’s such a different experience being on an open road in farmland on a bike than the hectic busy streets of Seattle and a daily commute,”

. "Olivia will have an opportunity to raise awareness as we travel across the country and meet a lot of people who have different views than we do out here in the Pacific Northwest."

The family hopes to raise $10,000 to support The Orca Network.

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Cox Media Group