Monday May 4, 2020
Day 8
Winchester, Virginia is a bookmark for my rides. If I am going south or west on the southern route Winchester is a good stop for the first night on the way out and the last night on the way back, if the route used is all slab and the big roads. This is especially true if I’m in the Sprinter as there’s a Walmart parking lot that’s good for a nap.
Generally speaking getting in and out of New England is a pain in the ass. While the Hudson River makes a wonderful natural moat it also means crossings must be selected with care. The majority of the time the GPS will select a route over the George Washington Bridge, across the Brooklyn Queens Expressway and into New England. I grew up just over the line in Connecticut and I know better than to ever consider that route. It’s about 350 miles from home via the slab so today was my last day regardless of what route I select.
As an aside while struck in traffic on the GW Bridge transporting my grandparents to my brothers wedding in New Jersey my grandmother leaned forward and from the back seat said:
“Robert, I do hope you have the good sense to marry a woman from east of the Hudson.“
She was serious and if she lived long enough would be absolutely delighted that my wife hails form Hingham, Massachusetts and has roots that stretch back to the Mayflower whereas ours only go back to the “second boat.”
So the GW Bridge sucks and riding Manhattan would suck even more. Except perhaps during a pandemic. What better way to experience the Zombie Apocalypse than by riding through Manhattan? It was even suggested I take one of the tunnels and ride across the city to the FDR.
Being the type that immediately considers what could go wrong the thought of being anywhere near the center of the Virus in North America where it’s already the worst place to get a flat topped a pretty long list of reasons not to ride in Manhattan. Sorry to disappoint but there are no photos of my bike in an empty Times Square.
When I left the hotel in Winchester I thought I’d be able to wing it and put together a pretty good ride. I forgot how challenging Southern Pennsylvania can be. From the interstate it’s obvious that PA is the distribution center for the eastern seaboard. Along the highway every exit has a million square foot warehouse or one or two under construction; the Interstates in PA have been under construction since I got my license to drive. What I did not realize is that many of the towns along the secondary roads also have big warehouses and these roads are full of trucks with a posted speed of 45 or less.
It was a frustrating experience as I tried once again to get off the beaten path. It seemed every town had paved over a big chunk of town for the walmart and other big box stores while the farms in the middle were getting squeezed by housing developments. I was not having a great morning.
Once in a while I stumble over a place that seems interesting. I also tend to look at places like they were a bonus on a rally and this place looked good for both. Too bad it was a bit early for a hot dog.
As I headed Northeast I was getting close to the weather I’d been following across the country. This was the only day of the ride I used my heated shirt; the high temp was 62 degrees and as the day went on it decreased to the high 50’s and the clouds came out.
I wanted a hot lunch and I stopped at a pizza parlor somewhere in south central Pennsylvania. I ordered a steakbomb and sat at a table while he made it. The place was empty and quiet so I asked if I might be able to sit over in the corner. The owner said he could get in trouble, lose his license and all that and we agreed it would be a bad idea. I asked if I could take a chair out on the sidewalk (we were in a mini mall) and he was quite insistent that if he did we could all go to jail so I sat on the curb and ate my sandwich.
Pennsylvania started with the closings early and the message has been received loud and clear. This was the state where some of the large gas stations were pay at the pump only with the convenience store closed. This was also the state where mask use was most prevalent with people wearing mask in their cars and on their lawn tractors too. Even the DOT road crew and construction workers were wearing masks; this was the only state I saw this. As I traveled the irony of the CDC issuing instructions to wash your hands (reinforced on electronic billboards) yet every public bathroom is closed was not lost on me.
Once north of I78 rural Pennsylvania gets much more bike friendly. One of my favorite diversions is route 209 from the Delaware Water Gap up to Port Jervis. It sets up the ride into New England to be well north of Manhattan with Port Jervis located on I84 which runs east to Hartford.
I picked up 84 for a bit but after the ride I had I just didn’t want to end it on the slab or riding through a capital city. I explored a bit by selecting a less traveled bridge across the Hudson then onto familiar roads for the last bit home.
Homebound. 446 Miles in 11:00