NH to Deals Gap and back in 100 hours: Part 4

Day 4:

I didn’t get much sleep the night before. When I first checked into the hotel, the lady at the front desk had only second floor rooms available. Well, after we chatted for a few minutes, she understood that keeping an eye on my bike was my first priority. She then offered me a handicap access room, which was right next to the lobby. On top of this, she let me roll my bike right in front of my room. So, after I checked in and all that, I stepped out of my room to lube the chain and all that. Needless to say, a bike parked in front of a room, right next to the lobby is a sure way to start a conversation. There was this one fellow from Memphis, a retired airforce pilot, and we spent almost two hours chatting by the bike. Then, when I finally got to bed, some kids down the street kept revving their ‘rice burners’ until the police sirens shut them up.
However, despite the fact that I was beat by the time I fell asleep, I woke up around 5 o’clock.

I went outside, had a smoke, and looked at the sky. The sun was rising, but the sky looked rather dismal. After a shower, I threw my gear onto the bike, and went inside to check the weather. The tri-cities station was talking about bad weather for the day – thunderstorms, rain…, then they went back to the news and talked about some guy being arrested for moonshining. Okay, what year is this?
I tried to get some breakfast at the lobby but all they had was biscuits and gravy. At six o’clock? No thank you.  When I got back to the room, the TV was still on and then I heard the words I did not want to hear: “Possible tornado warning!” It was to be happening within the hour.  Don’t get me wrong, but tornadoes are the last thing I want to see while on a bike. I put my riding jacket on, slipped into the boots, checked out and hit the starter.

The easiest and fastest way to get out of dodge was the highway, so I jumped onto 81 North twisted the throttle. I could see the storm in my mirror, but, except some rain, I managed to outrun it. I rode hard until Roanoke, where I pulled over to get some breakfast. While eating, I sent a text to Devo to see if he was anywhere nearby. He text me back that he was on the BRP getting blown around.  Remembering the awful weather along NC coast a couple days earlier, I scratched my plan to ride home along the coast, and decided to try reaching NH “iron butt” style.

By the time I got back on 81N, the traffic was pretty heavy. When I came down on 81 Sunday, there were but a few trucks. On Thursday, however, the trucks greatly outnumbered other vehicles. There isn’t much to report here. I hit it just above the speed limit and rode as long as I could, taking only the stops I needed to, either to stretch or to get gas.

Back at Wheeler’s near Deals Gap, I did not get the tire, and I was regretting that decision shortly before Winchester, VA at a rest stop. My rear was going pretty bald from all the slab. Trying to get a new rear tire, I pulled off the highway in Winchester and started looking for a bike shop. First stop was a Yamaha dealership, which did not have the right tire size in stock. I then tried the Harley place right across the street from there, since they had a big Buell sign and Buell bikes use similar tires. I was politely told that even if they had the right tire, they would not work on my bike as their insurance prohibits them from working on anything but HD or Buell. Whether this was just a bunch of bullshit or not, doesn’t really matter. Next stop was Shenandoah Honda, where I came up empty-handed again. Last stop, the last bike shop I could find in Winchester, was a small shop off the highway 2 exits up. Again, I came out empty-handed. Looks like 130/80 17 is not a popular tire in Virginia.

I hit the road again and rode, and rode, and rode. There’s nothing else to report, as that’s all I did. Once I crossed MD, the shit got worse. More trucks, more crap on the road, more smog. Instead of going through 81N to Scranton to hit 84, I went towards NYC. But trust me, the closer I was to NJ, the less enthused I was about hitting the NJTP. Judging by the time, I would be arriving in NYC by around 5-6pm and that was no time to be in NYC with all its traffic. At Allentown, I bailed off 78, took 33 to Stroudsburg. I had enough of the superslab at this point, so 209 along the Delaware Water Gap looked really appealing. It was worth the extra time. The only mistake I made there was taking 209 business instead of straight 209, so I wasted about an hour to get out of town. Once out, I rode along the water to Middletown, where I took 84E.
At a gas stop in Brewster, NY I noticed my hands were shaking a bit. I also had a real weird feeling once I took my helmet off – not tired, but almost drunken-like. Maybe I inhaled too much of exhaust fumes that day. Anyway, I was in no shape to ride the remaining 300 miles to NH, so I booked it to Danbury, CT where I found a hotel and crashed for the night. Despite eating and drinking a ton of orange juice, that weird drunken feeling stuck with me until I went to sleep.

Days 1-4 totals

 Day 5:

The final hours. In the morning, I called my wife that I would be home for lunch, and then I headed out of town. I must admit, it felt good to be in New England again. Not because of the people or the customs, but because of the roads. First, I took 7 from Danbury to Canaan, which was a blast! There is something about New England roads that I missed down south – the ever-changing scenery. Don’t get me wrong, the BRP and Skyline were beautiful, and the entire area around Fontana was even better, but a lot of those roads go on and on without much change. Here, even on the simple Rte 7, the view changes every few minutes. I even got a couple of pics with some heavy machinery.

 From Canaan, I continued north to Pittsfield, MA, where I got off 7 and headed for the Mohawk Trail. Well, as my luck has it, the Berkshires managed to hit me hard again. Riding south, I got wet in the Berkshires. Riding north, it started snowing. What the ….! I can only recall one time when I was on the bike in the area that it neither rained nor snowed. Day earlier I was at 86 degree weather, so the change was rather strange. Since my feet and hands were freezing, I had to pull over at Dalton to put some extra layers on. After that, I rode all the way home without stopping, except for picking up a new rear tire at a local dealership.

Overall, this was an amazing trip. Although I had to cut it short, I got to see parts of the country I never saw before, met some cool people I wouldn’t have met otherwise, and rode some roads I only read about until then. Would I do it again? Sure, but not any time soon. Next long trip is going to be either Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, or Canada.
Most of the people I talked to down south knew nothing about NH. They all assumed that anything north of PA is the same as MA, NYC, or CT. If only they knew.

Most importantly though, you gotta love this country. The freedom to get on a bike, to ride a couple thousand miles without the need for a passport, visas, currency exchange, or a dictionary is something we all take for granted. The next time you are on the road, just remember that despite all the crap that goes on, we are still somewhat free, and this great country of ours has so much to offer. No two states are alike, the scenery, customs, and people change from region to region, so get out there and experience it. It’s good for the soul.