Halving the Remainder
Day 1
Lakeside Sunset
Day 2
Scenic Fingers
Day 3
Gettin' NY Kicks
Day 4
Moon Over New Hampshire
Day 5
Braking Good
Day 6
A Peek at the Park
Day 7
Maine Rain
Day 8
Cars and Diners
Day 9
Rain Driven Change
Day 10
Wet in Three States
Day 11
Rainless in PA
Day 12
Cityside Sunset
October 5, 2015 (day 12)
Before declaring the trip ended with a sunset on the expressways of
Columbus, I got to drive some of my favorite bits of US-62.
October 4, 2015 (day 11)
The day was a little chilly but dry and beautiful. I visited some
overlooks, a couple of diners, and a third Ansonia.
October 3, 2015 (day 10)
It just kept raining as I moved from Connecticut to New York to
Pennsylvania but I revisited a familiar bar and found a new diner and
brewery.
October 2, 2015 (day 9)
After recurring rain triggered a change in plans (which were kind of
tentative anyway) I tried some drive-by-numbers.
October 1, 2015 (day 8)
Two diners, two car lots, a brewery, and a giant globe. Seems like an
alright day.
September 30, 2015 (day 7)
It turns out yesterday's drive through Acadia was the last dry daylight
I've seen.
September 29, 2015 (day 6)
Had I been paying attention to weather predictions, I'd have probably
hastened to Acadia but I did get there in time for a decent look.
September 28, 2015 (day 5)
I had to get up early to catch my train but it was worth it. Mount
Washington was cold, windy, and wonderful. I ended the day in Maine
leaving me just three more states to visit.
September 27, 2015 (day 4)
I ate breakfast near the Vermont capitol then strolled around the town for
a bit before heading to the next state.
September 26, 2015 (day 3)
I started the day by visiting a friend with a few Route 66 related items
then went on to check out a fort, ride a ferry, and drive scenic two-lane
to a state capital.
September 25, 2015 (day 2)
I had a nice breakfast with happy people followed by a scenic drive to
a couple of breweries and the tree of scythes.
September 24, 2015 (day 1)
It was all expressway to the Pennsylvania line then US-20 across the
state's north west "ear". I bedded down in New York after
eating dinner and watching the sun set on Lake Erie.
Prelude - September 22, 2015
Over six years ago, someone started a "How many states have I
visited" post on Facebook and I played along. 36 was my number in
August of 2009. Since then it has risen to 39 then 41 and 42 and now
stands at 45. Since the District of Columbia is included, that means that
a half dozen states remain unvisited by me. Not surprisingly, the two
outliers, Alaska and Hawaii, are among them. North Dakota probably isn't
much of a surprise, either. In their own way, I suppose the other three
are hardly shockers. Although all three, Vermont, New Hampshire, and
Maine, are much closer to me than states like Washington, Oregon, or even
Colorado, they are kind of tucked away in their own little corner and not
really on the way to anywhere else.
The trip is not exactly spontaneous but neither is it a well thought out excursion. A couple of weeks ago, probably after seeing something about fall foliage, I had a "Gee, I've never been to Maine." thought that was quickly followed by a "Why not?" thought. It's a lot easier to go through Vermont and New Hampshire on the way to Maine than not so a trip that included all three of my unvisited New England states is pretty natural. For lack of anything better, the state Capitals, Montpelier, Concord, and Augusta, will be my targets. I'll also try to get to Maine's Acadia National Park and I've anchored things time wise around a train ride. I somehow learned of a cog railway that climbs up the side of Mount Washington and thought that would be a splendid thing to do. Both coal fired steam and bio-diesel locomotives are used with steam making no more than one trip per day. Monday, September 28, turned out to be about the only date I could secure both a seat on the steam powered run along with a place to sleep the night before. I think a September 24 departure will work.