Work had been flying me to Harleysville, Pennsylvania this year, but I was really looking forward to the chance to ride my bike there with some extra time to explore the region. You can view the pictures at any time.
The first leg of the trip was a visit to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. While I was looking forward to spending time exploring the battlefield and the town, the weather was not cooperating. Just as I finished reading about restaurants in town and decided to leave the motel, a strong rainstorm forced me to change plans to the brewery/restaurant next door. The restaurant was crowded, but they sat me at the only open table (one with room for six). Just as I was ordering my dinner, another biker couple walked in and were informed of a short wait for their table. Since I had plenty of available space at my table, I invited them to join me. They were from New Hampshire, and they enjoy doing bike trips around the country. It was a fun dinner.
While most of the rain passed through overnight, there was another line of thunderstorms heading into the area. I had planned to spend most of the morning at the battlefield, but decided that I should stay ahead of the storm. There was supposed to be a re-enactment that weekend, but I was unable to find it (I am thinking it was canceled due to weather).
Opting to stay off freeways as much as possible, I followed US30 from Gettysburg through York, Pennsylvania (where Harleys are assembled) and through Pennsylvania’s Amish country in Lancaster. It was an enjoyable ride and traffic was light. I arrived at the hotel in Harleysville ahead of the rain. Luckily, my room was ready, so I unpacked and rested for awhile. I took a short ride into town to find lunch and grab some snacks for the week-long stay.
My co-teacher, Lee Ann, was flying in from Columbus, and she called me a few hours later when she arrived. After she settled in, we rode to dinner in nearby Lansdale. On one of our earlier trips, we found a Thai restaurant, so we returned there to try some more great food. Besides being fun, I really like traveling with Lee Ann because she likes to try different restaurants. We spent a few weeks in Des Moines in 2012, and ate somewhere different each night.
We had a free day before the work week began, so she took me to the Atlantic City area, where she grew up. It was a very hot day, so I was glad to relax in the air conditioned rental car for the ride across New Jersey. After leaving Philadelphia, almost all you can see from th highway is trees, making for a short and uneventful trip to the coast.
While Atlantic City is mostly large gawdy casino’s, the towns surrounding it are scenic and quaint. This was once an area where the wealthy would have huge summer homes, but now most residents live there year-round, or rent the homes out to tourists. Most of the beaches charge admission, but we were able to sneak a look at the Atlantic Ocean.
One of the more unusual sights is Lucy, a giant elephant built near the shore in 1881. The sight of an elephant would attract boaters to the area, and Lucy’s owner, James Lafferty, would try to sell them real estate. The elephant weighs 90 tons, stands 65 feet tall, 60 feet long, and 18 feet wide. There are six rooms inside. Left neglected for many years, the elephant was scheduled for demolition in 1970, but the community raised money for a restoration effort. Lucy was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
After a quick ride by the casinos, we stopped at Absecon Lighthouse. This tower was completed in 1857 and helped sailors navigate the coast. The tower stands a massive 170 feet tall, and could be seen from almost 20 miles away. With the hot weather, neither of us felt like walking the 240 steps to the top of the lighthouse, so we toured the museum in the lightkeeper’s dwelling and talked to the curator. Having been a tour-guide at a lighthouse on Lake Erie, it was fun to talk to another guide.
Lee Ann drove me to her hometown, and showed me her childhood home, and some of the other sights. She took me to a restaurant at Leeds Point. It was a creepy drive, several miles from town through marshland. The restaurant was family run, and had a large dining room indoors and on a screened-in porch. I was enjoying the air conditioning, so we ate indoors and enjoyed a meal of fresh seafood.
Our trip back to Philadelphia followed the historic Lincoln Highway, US30. While I have been on many parts of this road (the first road to cross from coast to coast), I did not remember until now that it starts in Atlantic City and ends in Lincoln Park, San Francisco, California. It was fun to see the many small towns scattered with historic buildings.
The following day we rode the bike to Valley Forge and took a bus tour of the grounds. It was very informative. We learned that there was just one requirement to join the Continental Army’s infantry: That the man has two natural teeth, on opposing gums, necessary to bite and tear the paper pouches filled with gunpowder. Each state had their own militia fighting in the Revolutionary War, but because they each had different fighting methods, styles, and signals, the colonists were defeated in both New York City and Philadelphia. They spent the winter of 1787-1788 at Valley Forge, watching the British to ensure they did not need head further east.
Ben Franklin had traveled to Paris to ask for assistance (the French did not want the British to own the new country), where he met Baron Von Stueben, a veteran of the Prussian Army. Von Steuben came to America and to Valley Forge, where he trained a collection of colonists from each militia, teaching them to follow the same signals and to fight the same way. After all of the militias were trained at Valley Forge, the Continental Army became a powerful force, and went on to win the remaining battles of the Revolutionary War.
After our tour, we stopped at a Harley dealership across the road. We both bought t-shirts for souvenirs,. As we walked out of the storm, we were in the middle of a downpour. A check of the weather radar showed that this would last quite awhile, and without any jackets or hats (to shield the rain from my eyes so I could drive the bike), so we found a nearby restaurant for lunch. While we took our time eating, the rain did not end. The restaurant had some hats and shirts, and I tried to buy a ballcap, but they were sold out. I ended up with a golf cap, like thing (a bill like a ballcap, but just a strap around the back and open on top). Lee Ann couldn’t stop laughing at how it looked on me, but it was the only alternative to get us to the hotel. We arrived safely, but thoroughly soaked.
We changed to dry clothes and headed to work, to setup the training room for the week’s class to start the next morning.
The 3-day class went very well, with a dozen students learning new techniques for solving problems. Each night, we used my GPS or a Google search to find somewhere new for dinner.
After our teaching stint completed. I had a few extra days to get back to Ohio. A friend’s brother lives north of Pittsburgh and was celebrating his birthday. The weather was going to be good, and the interstate would get me there quickly, but boring. I decided to take back roads and minor highways across Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania is full of hills, so it is challenging to travel east-west, since the hills move north-south. So, most of the highways follow the valleys, and there are not many options for moving east to west. The GPS isn’t programmed for scenic drives (it only wants to take the most direct route), so I have to use a paper map to direct the GPS to towns along my choice of unfamiliar roads. Argh. I arrive in Pittsburgh at rush hour. At least the GPS gets me around most of the traffic and finally to my destination.
I spend the weekend in Pittsburgh with friends from Columbus, and friends I have known from previous trips to the area. A fun weekend-long birthday celebration.
The ride home was pleasant and uneventful. The first out-of-state roadtrip on the new bike was a success.