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My ninth trip south (designated TS9) will start in 6 days, on August 30. The plan is to arrive back in Fort Myers on September 8, then leave September 10 on the 30-night transpacific cruise. I won’t even unpack.
Unlike the TN9, I will not be alone on the TS9 – Marlene will accompany me. She is with me now in Worcester, having arrived August 20. I will report next on our first 5 days together in Worcester.
The TS9 route is being driven by the following requirements:
TS9 plan
Spend at least two days in New York City (Marlene has never been there).
Spend at least two nights in northern Virginia with Jett’s sons and grandson.
Spend at least two nights in Acworth GA with Marlene’s son.
Arrive in Fort Myers by September 8 (we need a full day to adjust our luggage for the cruise).
Those requirements leave just two days free and we will spend them in Charlotte NC – a city I have visited before but haven’t fully explored. To get from northern Virginia to Charlotte we will route ourselves into western Virginia and will traverse a section of the Blue Ridge Parkway – another place Marlene has never been.
The plan, then, is 9 nights in 5 hops covering almost 1,800 miles.
My son Tony joined me in Worcester for 4 days this week, to see the daughter (my granddaughter) that he hadn’t seen for 2 years and the brother that he hadn’t seen for a year and a half. The weather didn’t cooperate – it was cloudy and cool when it wasn’t raining – but it was a successful reunion despite the weather.
He flew in Tuesday afternoon. He was very tired as he hadn’t slept the night before – too worried about getting up at 3:30am to catch a 6:00am flight. We fetched Lili (daughter/granddaughter, almost 18) and went to a late lunch at O’Connor’s Restaurant in West Boylston MA, adjacent to Worcester and very close to where Lili lives. I had a reuben sandwich which was very good, but the appetizer was the best potato skin dish I have ever had.
Then Tony napped.
The four of us at Redbones
Wednesday featured a visit to the New England Aquarium. I didn’t join Tony and Lili for that one as I think it is one of the lesser attractions of Boston. Apparently, they thought so too as they stayed just 2 hours while I wandered around downtown, noticing the changes that had accrued in the past year. We then picked up brother/son Frank and had a lunch/dinner at Redbones in Somerville. I have fond memories of Rebones – great BBQ ribs and 30 beers on tap. Well, it has changed. The ribs were still good, but not spectacular, and the draft beers were gone. I can no longer recommend it. Sad. The Redbones in Ft Myers (no relation) is now better than the namesake in Somerville.
Thursday was an afternoon of shopping (back-to-school time for Lili) as Tony bought some clothes for his daughter at the Natick Mall. I then cooked dinner (spaghetti and Italian sausage) for them before we all went to the WooSox game (the Worcester Red Sox, the AAA farm team for the Boston Red Sox) at Polar Park in Worcester. Not the most exciting game – the WooSox lost, 2-1 – but it didn’t rain.
Lili and Tony at Polar Park
Friday featured a trip to the Museum of Science in Boston. I have been there many times, but my last visit was probably more than 8 years ago. It is a nice museum. Not huge, but there are many exhibits that are interesting for both children and adults. We particularly enjoyed the electricity show. The Van de Graff generator (the huge metal balls) were out of order but the show featured Tesla coils which were pretty impressive in their own way.
One complaint about the MOS – the options to get tickets online and at the self-service kiosks were both wastes of my time. I couldn’t figure out how to complete the sale online and the kiosks seemed to offer only add-on tickets (IMAX movie and planetarium options). I can’t understand how a technology-oriented museum can have such useless software. Annoying.
Electricity showOther photos from the MOS
We had a farewell breakfast with Lili Saturday morning, then Tony and I drove to Frank’s home and picked him up. I dropped them off near Fenway Park with clear instructions to Tony on how to get to the airport (a 15-minute walk and a $3 bus ride). With less than 3 hours to kill, what could go wrong? Well, I don’t know the details (or, more accurately, I received different accounts of the details from Tony and Frank) but the bottom line is that Tony missed his flight. Fortunately, American Airlines rebooked him at no extra cost, so he made it home just a few hours later than planned.
Despite that last-minute glitch, it was a successful and full four days.
My first week in residence at the home of Ray – Jett’s brother – and his wife, Kim, was mostly spent getting settled – shopping, washing clothes, etc – and enjoying not driving much (though I still had to get behind the wheel every day). Except for the first day when I spent the afternoon with Ray, I was mostly alone. The weather was unsettled. I got a sunny afternoon to play disc golf at Lake Tully but my trip to Kimball Farm to get a fried haddock bite dinner (superb!) was overcast. I was startled by a tornado warning one morning but no tornado materialized.
Kimball FarmHaddock bitesHole 7 “pin”The view from the first tee
The big event, though, was three days at Ray and Kim’s cabin in New Salem MA, on the edge of the Quabbin Reservoir watershed. It is a serene setting, with constant activity at the hummingbird feeders. We took a 4-mile was to/from the reservoir one afternoon – good exercise that I sorely needed. And Kim – a fantastic cook – kept me well-fed.
Hummingbird, through the screenQuabbin ReservoirStuffed shells
On the last day at the cabin we buried Rusty’s ashes next to Cha-Cha and Grace.
Roses on Kim’s tableRusty’s final resting place
Ray and I also made a trek to the Tree House Brewery in Deerfield MA to sample some fine craft beers. We had 48 to choose from. I had a peanut butter chocolate stout that was fantastic.
The tap room at Tree HouseSome of the 48 pulls at the barRay with his selection
I finished my ninth trip north (TN9) on Sunday. This was my first trip with no travel companion of any kind – person or dog. Time for a wrapup.
By the numbers:
10 days, 9 nights, 6 hops, 1,724 route miles (287 miles per hop).
Only 33 extra miles – I didn’t use the car much once I got to my destination.
59.3 gallons of fuel consumed in 1,757 miles (29.6 mpg).
Total fuel cost: $211.37 ($3.56/gal).
I mostly stayed with friends and family. Only 3 nights were in hotels. Total hotel cost: $344.11 ($114.70 per night).
The mileage was a bit disappointing. This was almost all on highways (though I did spend more time on back roads than usual). I expected to get at least 32 mph.
Highlights:
Seeing Jett’s sons and grandson. I love these guys!
Seeing the Appomattox Courthouse. It was a quick trip and a bit disappointing but it did remove one item from my Civil War Bucket List.
Beating grandson Zachary at chess. I was rusty and probably should have checkmated him sooner, but I was very worried that I was going to be beaten by a 12-year-old. Didn’t happen.
The Toyota ran well.
Lowlights:
Rain in Charleston SC. I was hoping to get more sightseeing time, but not in a deluge.
Only one minor lowlight suggests that this was a pretty successful trip north overall.
Planned versus actual route:
TN9 planTN8 actual
The two diversions from the plan were the whimsical trip to the Appomattox Courthouse and the decision to approach CT via PA rather than up the NJ Turnpike (which I dislike).
150 miles via NY 308, NY 199, NY 22, US 44, CT 318, CT 219, CT 20, I-91, I-291, I-84, US 20, I-290 and MA 122. Miles since the end of Hop 5: 150. Cumulative route miles: 1,724. Total TN9 miles: 1,757.
This was a route that was more complicated than it needed to be, but I like back roads and I have never traveled through northern Connecticut, so why not? The day was sunny, the traffic was light and the scenery was pleasant. Not a bad trip.
My host for the evening was Harry, an old friend and fellow widower. We traded cancer stories over a couple of beers, then went out to dinner at The Tavern at Beekman Arms in Rhinebeck, an historic Colonial-era tavern. I had fish and chips. Very good.
The T-Mobile service at Harry’s place was terrible but was better in town. But it was also terrible all across northern Connecticut. I tried to chat with Marlene as I drove, but the call dropped a half dozen times. The edge of civilization, I guess.
82 miles via I-95, I-287, the Sprain Brook Parkway, the Taconic State Parkway, US 9 and NY 308. Miles since the end of Hop 4: 82. Cumulative route miles: 1,574. Total TN9 miles: 1,607.
This was a short hop in good weather. It was scenic, following the Hudson River north. But the traffic was very heavy with a full stop for an accident near Poughkeepsie. Not a fun short trip.
My host for two nights in Greenwich was an old friend, Marc. He was a congenial host who gave me a brief tour of the Greenwich/Cos Cob area. We had lunch at Fairfield Pizza in Greenwich where I had arguably the best slice of pizza that I have ever had. It had chicken and tomatoes and some kind of creamy topping. Delicious. Marc also treated me to a fine Italian dinner (roasted artichoke hearts and calamari for appetizers, lasagna for entree) at Villa Italia in Stamford. Excellent! I ate well on this hop.
The weather was cloudy and even a bit cool (haven’t said that in months) but I got some decent photos of the harbor in Greenwich. And the beard continues to grow.
The marinaThe harbor9/11 memorialMarc and appetizersThe beard at one week
360 miles via VA 234, I-95, VA 123 to a lunch engagement with Carl, my old friend and travel companion from PCL2, then VA 123, I-66, I-495 (west of DC), I-270, US 15, PA 581, I-83, I-81, I-78 and US 22 to a refueling stop in Easton PA, then US 22, I-78, I-287 and NY 120 to my destination. Miles since the end of Hop 3: 370. Cumulative route miles: 1,492. Total TN9 miles: 1,525. The 10 extra miles during my stay in Montclair were due to a single trip to see family.
The 3 days in Montclair were basically family days, with Jett’s sons and grandchild. Wonderful people and always a pleasure to see them. Thank you, Devin and Mary, for the first-class accommodations. And thank you, Zachary, for letting me win the chess match.
Carl treated me to a sushi lunch before I got back on the road to endure heavy traffic all the way to Connecticut.
We went out to dinner one night but this was mostly “home” time. I did some genealogy research and drove the family to Dulles to catch a flight to Cancun. I also had dinner with Josh, Jett’s other son, and Cristina. A very nice dinner and a relaxing afternoon and evening. Thanks, guys!
360 miles via US 113, I-795 (in Goldsboro), I-95, US 58, some local roads to US 1, VA 40, VA 642, US 460 and VA 24 to the Appomattox Courthouse National Historical Park. Then VA 24, US 60, US 15, US 29, VA 28, VA 646 and VA 234, with a refueling stop in Zion Crossroads VA. Miles since the end of Hop 2: 364. Cumulative route miles: 1,132. Total TN9 miles: 1,155. The extra 4 miles on this hop were due to my trip to Chili’s for dinner.
TN9 Hop 3
This is one of the most complex hop routes I have ever experienced. I am pretty sure that I didn’t record it exactly right. This is the result of a whimsical decision to divert to see the Appomattox Courthouse. I made that decision after I stopped for coffee just over the VA border. When I look at where Appomattox is located, I realize that I could have saved about 50 miles if I had made that detour decision before I left my hotel in Goldsboro. I was also intending to stop at the Manassas battlefields, but decided, halfway there, that I had run out of time, so I rerouted to my Montclair destination. All of this whimsy cost me about 90 minutes in wasted travel. But at least it was (mostly) a nice sunny day and I got to see a lot of central VA where I have never been. I did get one heavy shower, but it didn’t last long.
The trip to the Appomattox Courthouse was not worth the effort. Because it was so much further from I-95 than I expected, I felt pressed for time and so spent only about 30 minutes there. I may not have fully appreciated what it had to offer because it was a battlefield as well at the site at which the Civil War officially ended. But at least I got to see it and get a feel for where this historical event occurred.
Appomattox CourthousePainting of the armistice signing event
Can you spare a quarter?
My home for one night in Goldsboro was the Days Inn. This one was a bit nicer than the one in Charleston, but still just mediocre. The keycard they gave me didn’t work initially and I had to return to the front desk – a fairly long walk, carrying my luggage – to get that rectified. Annoying.
I “dined” at the nearby Chili’s where I had, no surprise, chili.
Did I mention that Marlene wants me to grow a beard? I have not shaved since the start of TN9. I am definitely into my “homeless derelict” phase.
242 miles via I-26, US 17, US 701, NC 403 and US 117 with a refueling stop in Whiteville NC. Miles since the end of Hop 1: 261. Cumulative route miles: 772. Total TN9 miles: 791. The extra 19 miles were due to a trip into Charleston.
This hop was entirely on small highways, except for the few miles on I-26 at the start. This was intentional as I find the local roads in the Carolinas to be far more interesting than I-95. My original intent was to travel up the coast through Myrtle Beach, but Google said that the route I took was shorter and faster and I think it was right. The weather was good and the traffic was light. The only delay – for about 5 minutes – was waiting for a train to pass just before arriving at my destination.
Charleston on a sunny break
My home in North Charleston was the Days Inn near the airport. Not a great hotel but not terrible either (unless you don’t like cockroaches – I found 2 dead ones). The bed was comfortable and about 40 cable channels were available. No breakfast, though.
I spent much of my day in Charleston in my room, watching TV and doing genealogical research because it rained almost all day. But the sun broke through in the late afternoon and I took a quick trip into Charleston to snap some photos and have a light dinner (fried green tomatoes and a Smithwick’s Ale) at Tommy Condon’s, my favorite restaurant in Charleston. This is not a cheap restaurant (my light dinner cost me $27) but the food is always terrific and I love the atmosphere. And Charleston is always photogenic even when the sun is not shining brightly.
I plan to return to Charleston, with Marlene, on the trip south at the end of August. She has never been to Charleston. She is going to love it.
Fried green tomatoes and Smithwick’s AleTommy Condon barCharleston
530 miles via FL 80, FL 29, US 27, I-4, I-95, US 17 and I-526 with refueling stops in LaBelle FL and Kingsland GA and lunch in Sanford FL. Cumulative miles: 530.
My previous trips all originated in Ft Myers FL, my home. But this time I closed up the RV on Tuesday and stayed with Marlene until Friday morning, so the trip originated from her home in Lehigh Acres FL.
The trip was uneventful through Florida but it started raining when I reached GA and rained on-and-off the rest of the way. At times the rain was heavy and that slowed me down. And, as usual, traffic through Orlando was very heavy. The worst delay, however, was about 20 miles short of my destination in Charleston when I was stopped by an accident on US 17. The road was closed for about 30 minutes while the fire department doused a burning overturned car.
The Toyota ran well but one side of the front end again came loose – a problem which I will now have to wait until October to correct. And I traveled without two hubcaps. The replacement hubcaps that I had ordered did not fit and I had to return them and the replacements did not arrive in time. I will try to find two used hubcaps, but will travel without them unless I can find good, cheap used ones.
Speaking of replacing hubcaps… I ordered them through Amazon and returned them via Kohls which serves as agent for Amazon returns. I was initially impressed with the efficiency of that operation – I simply handed them the package, showed the clerk the QR code that Amazon had emailed to me authorizing the return and was handed a receipt. But 3 days later the very same package was delivered to my RV. Yes, my “return” was returned to me! For the first time in my life I had to return a package twice. Apparently the Kohls clerk was so efficient that she skipped the step where a return address was afixed to the package.
