Canada 2018
 
 

Day 15

August 4

 
     
     
   
  Nothing really pushes my buttons for breakfast and the motel's offerings are mighty slim. I figure I'll just take my chances and see what I come up with on down the road. At least the rain seems to have blown away for now.  
   
  I get to do a little bit more of two lanes today, taking highway 101 across New Hampshire and then highway 9 across Vermont.  
   
  It's a nice two lane run for the most part through the country side.  
   
  I can see from the old bridge still standing that this used to be a much more narrow road in days gone by. And I am surprised as they usually take down the old when they put up the new.  
   
  When I get to highway 9, it actually has some pretty good sweepers. And it has something else more important ...  
   
 

the Chelsea Royal Diner near Brattleboro, Vermont. I remember it from a previous trip through here and how good their grub is.

 
   
 

So I find me a place, and they fix me right up. I tell one of the older servers -

"Last time I was through here you came through the front door to get in."

"Yes, that was a long time ago" she replies - which gets me to noodling trying to remember when it was but with no success. But the mug of hot chocolate assuages my failing memory to the point that it don't matter.

 
   
  And breakfast is just as good now as it was then so I am not in the least bit disappointed.  
   
  And I dispatch what is before me with my usual aplomb and determination to leave the field of battle victorious.  
   
  Highway 9 takes you right through the Green Mountain National Forest and many small towns like Wilmington, Vermont.  
   
  It often runs beside rushing mountain streams which are a pleasant relief to concrete canyons.  
   
  As I come into Bennington, Vermont I see the old H.E. Bradford Company building which was one of the earlier knitting mills in the area.  
   
  But once I get on down the road, it sure looks like Mr. Rain is going to pay me a visit pretty soon.  
   
  But the nice thing about covering a lot of distance is you can count on the weather to change and the change can be quite dramatic.  
   
  I have to give them credit when I see this sign - the road is indeed rough but not quite up to Newfoundland standards.  
   
  And at least they have a plan for fixing it and are in the middle of it's execution.  
   
  And about now I am wishing there were something icy around here with the heat that engulfs me.  
   
  Before long, I've crossed over into Pennsylvania as I check off the states that I must cross today.  
   
  With the heat, it's time for Frost and me to get our thirsts taken care of and fortunately I can find a shady spot for both of us.  
   
  With both our tanks full for the moment, we head out into it. The countryside of Pennsylvania in this area reminds me a lot of East Tennessee.  
   
  Soon we cross over into Maryland for a short while, knowing we be into our last state - West Virginia - very shortly.  
   
  The skies don't look too good but at this point I figure I'll just chance it and keep rolling.  
   
  There's a little liquid sunshine but nothing too bad and given the heat, it actually feels pretty good at this point in the day.  
   
  Soon I'm into the hills of West Virginia and closing fast on my destination for the evening in Fairmont.  
   
  And once again I'm mighty happy to see this sign and this building knowing that heat relief is a knob click away.  
   
  It's been a little shorter today - close to 700 miles - but it still has been a long day with the heat. I get Frost bedded down for the evening and get into the motel as quick as I can get there.  
   
  Once again, my sponge is about wrung out and I decide just to forget supper even though there's a Cracker Barrel right next door. I figure I'll get a good breakfast in the morning before I head out. So with that plan in my noggin, I crank up the AC and and fade fast into dreamland.