Windshield Wipers Work!
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Day 2: June 17, 2012 Windshield Wipers Work! |
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I woke up sometime this morning to the sound of thunder and pouring rain.
After peering out the window, I went back to sleep and by the time I was
awake enough to think of taking a picture, the heavy duty stuff was past.
It was still gray and wet, though.
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I've eaten at Micky's before and it was just the right distance east of
Zanesville for breakfast. There are many ways to gauge quality and
friendliness of a restaurant but counting the pictures of children and
grandchildren on the wall is one of the more reliable ones.
My meal was good and the service was prompt.
The waitress was friendly and so were the prices.
Some rain passed by while I was eating and that would be pretty much how the day went. A little rain, a little drizzle, and a little nothing. There wasn't much wind and the rain was never torrential but I was pleased to see that neither I nor my gear got soaked which is something I had considered a real possibility. And the wipers, all thirteen inches of them, worked. Just one speed but electric and functional. Speaking of gear, how about this nifty 1963 to 2012 adapter? |
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Even though it was raining slightly and the road was obviously wet, I
drove the Valiant over the well maintained brick segment of the National
Road that passes through Norwich, Ohio.
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During the rainy morning, roadie Mike Austing and I had been in contact
and arranged a meeting. We've been in frequent contact online but had only
met once before,
in 2007. Following
Mike's directions, I left US-22 at Cadiz and followed a rather scenic
US-250 past Tappan Lake to a point near Uhrichsville. We met at a Jerry's
where I took Mike up on his offer of pie. After a goodly amount of
chatting and reminiscing we headed toward the door where we met a friend
of Mike's. Then it was north through New Philadelphia with a stop at
Tuscora Park.
This city park seems to have something for everybody. That tan round roof
covers a carrousel and there is a swimming pool between it and the little
roller coaster. A small ferris wheel stands out of frame to the right and
there are ball fields beyond that. As Mike was telling me about big fish
in the pond because of the "catch and release" rule, we saw one
park resident blatantly ignoring the rule with a single gulp. From the
park, Mike guided me through some pretty scenic territory to the Ohio
& Erie Canalway then he headed home and I continued north.
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Dover Dam didn't look all that picturesque today. Apparently some major
repairs are in progress.
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According to the sign,
Magnolia Flouring Mills is open every day except
Sunday and it definitely looks worth a visit.
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This was my third visit to
Palmantier's
Motel and the second since Rainie Sonntag bought it in 2010. That's
Rainie, caught by the wind, in the picture. This was our first meeting
though I'd met her son Kevin, who lives on premise, during
my previous
visit. I stayed in a different room this time so have a new
interior view. New bath fixtures are
evidence of the Sonntag's continuing improvement of the property.
Improvement is also apparent outside in things like a new concrete
driveway that allows driving from the front to the rear without using the
road.
The motel is busy. I only got a room tonight because of an early check out and some shuffling by Rainie. The motel has benefited from some relatively long term stays by workers on various nearby projects but note that I said relatively long term, not permanent. The difference is important. Several rooms are currently occupied by a team, largely college students, counting bats. The poles in the trucks seen from my rear window are used to erect nets to catch bats which are counted and tagged. I'm extremely happy about the motel's success. It allows the classic motel to not only stay in business but take some pretty big steps forward. But I'm a little disappointed that little of that success involves the Lincoln Highway or heritage travel. Rainie says that, other than me, only one customer has said they were there because of the location on the old highway. It's possible that the frequently used "No Vacancy" sign has something to do with it but that's not my impression. I realize that Lincoln Highway travel is no where near that of Route 66 but it does exist. If this place was on Sixty-Six I'm confident it would be getting plenty of attention from folks driving the route. It sits near the end of one of the longest sections of brick Lincoln Highway in existence. In my opinion, it deserves a little more Lincoln Highway buzz. |
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