Go for it kid
A MTB is fine, you dont need a super duper Rohloff equipped bike costing thousands.... look at a steel frame, ensure the rear wheel can take a bit of abuse and stick some decent tyres on it. Add a rack, panniers and the worlds your oyster...a fabulous, cheap way of seeing the world - I only wish I had discovered it 30 years ago.
Hey man thanks, i moved this discussion to CGOAB and have been getting all sorts of help, but i wanted to post this update. are you saying aluminum is bad for this sort of trip?
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Hello everyone, I just visited a place called the bike shop in winter haven Florida, after speaking with Chris I had the most awesome experience. It saddens me that these shops are dying out. His t shirt said "support your local Bike shop" on it. He listened to my crazy rant than started to size bikes for me. He put me on a 22 inch frame with 29 inch wheels and took me out back to let me ride it around. I don't think I've ever been on a bike that fit me like that. We then went inside and he showed me how pricing is done on bikes. I never knew this before but the size of the frame had little to do with price. It's based on components and other factors of quality.
After he showed me the bike he told me that the one I had ridden was a 2014 close out and he could get me in it for less then a lower end new 2015 model that was a step DOWN from the model he showed me. Ok so now the suspense has been built so the bike he showed me was a 29" cannondale trail 5 with hydraulic disc brakes and remote lockout on the front shock , hard tail. Made of solid aircraft aluminum and super light weight. it has shimano Altus components with rapid fire shifters. The rims are also aluminum, the tires were a cross between road and mountain tires. He told me that this bike was not high end but not low end. I asked Chris about all sorts of stuff and he showed me panniers, seats, clothing, and cool gear bags. I loved the bike it fit so we'll , I never buy on the first visit as a rule and told him I would let him know Monday. It's higher then I wanted to spend but it looks like a solid ride. Chris who had toured before said bring a couple extra spokes just in case , but the big thing would be chain lube for the trip. He told me to spray paint the bike to avoid theft , it's so sleek I can't see myself doing that , though if anyone try's to take it I'll break their neck. Chris said that they could put the rack and panniers on for me. He also showed me some low cost fenders, everything is in stock except for the front fender which interestingly enough attaches UNDER the v frame and not over the front of the tire. While I could save money online I feel like Chris and this shop could set me up so my trip is spent enjoying and not roadside repairing. i know there could still be troubles ahead, i am totally aware of that. If i went to walm art and bought a crappy 29er i could get by but no one would size me for the bike, talk to me about all the stuff i can use and whats good and whats not. The experience alone at the shop is enough to go back. I do know i could save a little money getting some stuff shipped in from amazon. A possibility is to buy the bike from the shop and get the accessories online to save a few bucks off retail. Over the weekend ill research all options. I saw after seeing them close up just how small panniers can be, i will really need to downsize my life for this trip
I'm sitting here at Dairy Queen mulling it all over and if I ever needed advice I sure do now. The bike retails for close to 999 but I'll get it for a little more then half that , also tire liners were recommended over slime. They are made from Kevlar.
Once again it's a 29" cannon dale Trail 5 2014 model
.. I'll report back on the road status lol... 
