Day 7

Today was another day of driving. I was barely awake when Suzanne and Krystyne left this morning. I heard Falko, the theater producer and owner, come to pick them up this morning. By the time I awoke, everyone was gone. I went downstairs and took a shower. I made the mistake of doing the usual routine once my shower was over. I usually dry and get dressed in my room, not in the steaming bathroom. However, once I got up to Suzanne’s room, I remembered the door was not on yet. I didn’t think anyone was home, but you’re never sure.

After I packed my things I walked down to the market at the end of their block. I got another supply of pop tarts (Suzanne’s original supply was finished off yesterday), and one of the Vermont stuffed pretzels that Suzanne raved about. The pretzel was not too bad—I got the apple cinnamon kind. I walked back in the sprinkling rain, left a note thanking Mel, got in the car, and left Saxtons River. It was exactly 11 in the morning when I left.

It was going to be an interstate day, I could tell, but there may be a few short scenic drives perhaps. I went south on I-91 to Brattleboro and then turned west on VT 9. This was the same road we were on earlier this week. Eventually I would pass the park where we camped the first night and, once again, drive through Bennington. Once in New York, I drove into Troy. Here I would cross the Hudson and get I-787 south through Watervliet, passing by the Watervliet Arsenal and City Hall. After passing through Albany, 787 took me to the New York Thruway, I-87.

I was on this road for a while. I wasn’t really speeding today. I figured I had all day, so why waste the gas and be pressured by the rat-race of cars found on the interstates. So I stayed around 72 or 73 miles per hour and just cruised at that speed. I was caught in a few downpours today, pretty bad. I wanted to get off at exit 15, but on my two-year-old map there was a road under construction which, if finished, would be a fast way through New Jersey, I thought. When I got to the toll, I asked if this road had been completed, the answer was yes, thankfully. This would connect me to I-287 which is a bypass around New York City. The problem was that it was about 4 in the afternoon by now and there was a lot of construction so it was clogged. Passed by Morristown National Park and Jockey Hollow, places we used to go when we lived in Chester.

Will I ever get to I-78? This road was beginning to get on my nerves—everyone wanting to go 100 miles per hour and with thin lanes and a slow speed limit. The last time we took I-78 west it was pretty empty as far as traffic goes. Not the case today. I took this road all the way to the first exit across the Delaware in Pennsylvania. Rather than go through the Allentown-Bethlehem mess I decided to get off on PA 611. This is the Delaware River Scenic Roadway, and it lived up to its name while I was on it. The problem was I was behind someone doing about 5 or 10 miles per hour below the speed limit.

I turned off 611 onto PA 212 which wound its way southwest to Quakertown. I’d heard about this town for a while and thought it was a large Allentown-sized town, but the map shows it to be a small town. Upon arrival, it is larger than the map led me to believe. It has sections that are very urban and industrial, reminding me of Philly around the stadiums. It was about 5:30 by now and the rush hour traffic was flowing.

I made it through the town and jumped on the PA Turnpike (PA 9) south to the Blue Route (I-476) and Villanova, which is considered home. I arrived at about 7 o’clock and wasn’t too late for dinner. It had been a long day of driving and I was hot. I took another shower before dinner and unpacked the stuff. Everything needed to be cleaned, but this had to be done at some point, I guess. Now the question arises, how is Suzanne going to get back to New York at the end of the summer?