Last Leg of the First Half

Thursday 6-3 - Jay's new trailer tires came in about 9:30, but by the time we got the trailer over there and the tires mounted it was after noon. What with the late start we almost decided to stay another night at Bob's, but figured we had better get some forward momentum going before we got out of the riding "groove". So we headed up to catch the Parkway at the Peaks of Otter, and drove north to Shenandoah National Park where I had planned to spend the night. As always the Parkway was beautiful and serene. Been a long time since I cruised that road on a motorcycle... so nice to breath in the essence of the damp hardwood forest. The long views were somewhat obscured by the cirrus and thunderheads which skudded about, but still breathtaking vistas were enjoyed. We stopped for picnic lunch at the James River visitor center and then took a short trail jaunt up to one of my favorite overlooks on the James (Ronnie - remember where Sugar almost went over the cliff?). It was fun to share these places with Jay, and I babbled on to him with the history of the area as I know it. As glad as I was to leave after having lived in the area for 5 years, I will always have fond memories of Virginia. As Jay said so succinctly, "The whole state is like a park". We bivouaced at a very nice KOA near Charlottesville. What happened to camping at Shenandoah you ask?... well good old NOAA radio. A severe thunderstorm warning was broadcast and popped up on my Garmin about the time we arrived, so we decided to head into Charlottesville for a motel. So why are we at a KOA, one wonders? Because there is some kind of alumuni thing going on at UVA and the motels rates were as severe as the anticipated thunderstorms. It did rain overnight, but nothing too severe.

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Friday 6-4 - Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. After the overnight rain, we packed up wet tents and headed for Monticello. This was the reason for the diversion from our northward route. The tour was considerably more expensive than I recall from about 20 years ago when I last visited, at $22 bucks, but there are many improvements including a wonderful visitor center with After completing the tour and walk of the grounds, we headed back over the ridge to I-81 and headed north bidding farewell to Virginia and looking towards Pennsylvania.

P.S. - Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday to Me!

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Saturday 6-5 - Getting a little weary now. We have been rolling for three weeks, and we are getting anxious to get to Rhode Island and take a longer break. We stayed on the dreaded Interstate all day in an effort to recover from our dalliance at monticello, And of course weathered the requisite thundershower, heat and humidity. I completed the audible book of Uncle Tom's Cabin, and started Gone with the Wind while gobbling up mindless freeway miles. Rolled through the remainder of Pennsylvania, and made it most of the way through New York before I succumbed to the lure of the road less traveled, and bailed off the super-slab onto secondary local routes. We meandered through many small communities in New York, ever mindful that we did not drift too far south and get sucked into the metropolis. We crossed the Hudson on Bear Mountain Bridge, continuing up the bluffs on historic route US 6. What a cool road. Ended the day at a motel in New Haven Connecticut... RV parks are virtually non-existent on this route according to both the Garmin and the local residents.

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Sunday 6-6 - Only 138 miles to go to get to brother Jerry's place in Rhode Island. No need to hurry today, we take a leisurely (and rare) restaurant breakfast, then head up US 1 along the coast of Connecticut, stopping at Stonington for pictures of the us and the bikes with the Atlantic ocean in background. Jay and I share a sense of fulfillment, having completed the coast to coast component of our tour. We pulled up to Jerry's house at about 1:30. Conversation, rest and barbecue consumes the remainder of the afternoon and evening.

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