We navigated through town to I-83 north and then made a quick stop at a Speedway and McDonald's for gas and food before heading north towards Harrisburg. Exit 34 was like a pit lane with an exit ramp that went past the fuel station and restaurant and then merged right back onto the Interstate.
Once again, I did not consult the map and ended up wandering around Harrisburg following obscure GPS directions before heading north along the east bank of the Susquehanna River on US 22. It was foggy along the river and, after a ways, we crossed the river and took US 15 North along the west bank.
Mishap in the fog along US 15
Almost got the house
We followed US 15 but took an unintended jog onto the new I-180 into Williamsport, home of the Little League World Series. Really, I need to look at the maps. The Interstate detour added a few miles and accomplished nothing. After a stop for a bathroom and more coffee, we continued north to New York.
Fog banks along US 15
Trees are starting to change colour
There are some series viaducts in this part of the country
Welcome to the Empire State
The road got rougher as soon as we crossed the New York line. This was still being billed as the "future I-99 corridor". We stopped at a McDonald's in Painted Post for more coffee. Back in 1978, Sandy and I got lost in a traffic circle in Painted Post because it didn't have any highway numbers on the signs. Now they have all kinds of highway numbers and no traffic circle. It was also here in 1999 that I learned not to eat a Popsicle while riding a motorcycle on a hot day.
Welcome to Painted Post New York
Lots of Highway signs in Painted Post
We took I-86 out of Painted Post and then exited on I-390, which continued northwest to Mount Morris. This was near where the Rochester Peacemakers used to host the Lost Weekend Rally in the 1980's. From there, we followed the dead straight NY 63 to Batavia and onto the New York Thruway.
Nary a bend on NY 63
On to the Thruway and thanks for EZ Pass
We headed west on the Thruway with a last stop for relatively cheap US gas at the Clarence Service Center around noon. Near Buffalo, we exited on I-290 and then took I-190 across Grand Island to the Lewiston/Queenston border crossing.
Not sure why we took this picture
Geese flying north?
One of two Grand Island Bridges
Off Grand Island
Almost on native soil
The NEXUS lane was empty at Lewiston so we pulled right up. The booth was remote, so we declared our T-shirts and camp chairs to a disembodied voice. We were released and then went through the EZ-Pass toll booth. Total crossing time was about two minutes.
I should note that we went through many toll booths yesterday and today, but every one of them accepted our EZ Pass transponder. And the EZ Pass is free as long as you make provision to automatically top up your account when it falls below a certain level. I wish the twits that run our ETR407 would start this idea. Right now, there is a monthly transponder/account fee for a ridiculously overpriced road.
The Maple Leaf forever.....
Welcome home, eh!
OK, the ETR407 is way overpriced but we were in a hurry with a long way to go, so I bit the bullet. We took the QEW across the Burlington Skyway and then got on the 407. As it crossed the 401, we saw the traffic on the free road was dead stopped while we were rolling along briskly. Before long, we were turning due north on the 400.
Stopped traffic on the 401
Near Stonewall's house
Traffic was fine right up to the 400/11 split on the north side of Barrie. The northbound ramp was still under construction. I have a feeling rookie workers will retire before they finish this little project.
400 exit north of Barrie
Some day this will be finished
The home stretch
I was surprised to see how many trees have not started to change colour. We stopped at the new Tim's at the Honey Harbour exit for still more coffee before continuing.
Lots of still green trees
The tiger motif is a little scary
Miller Paving (great outfit) working on 400 south of Parry Sound
Little holdup
As perfect as it gets
There was a wreck near Shawanaga. The road was open but they had a lot of emergency response crews. They even had Ministry of Natural Resources Conservation Officers directing traffic. The only thing we didn't see was a lot of wrecked vehicles, just a few with some minor damage. Maybe everyone was just enjoying the nice weather?
Lots of emergency vehicles
Another just down the road
And MNR doing a non-traditional role
Four laning of Highway 69 continues south of the French River
Have to save those poor rattlesnakes
We reached town and pulled into our subdivision about 5:45 PM. We had covered over 650 miles in twelve hours, not bad for an older guy who seems to tire more easily these days. This was an excellent trip to a brand new place with old friends and new, and we were glad we did it.
(N.B. - It has taken me a long time to get the last two days finished. My apologies to anyone who has been paying attention.)
Today's Route (651 Equinox miles):
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