451 Miles
3829 Total Miles
We left New Milford this morning under sunny skies and low humidity. The temperature was a cool 65 degrees when we pulled onto I-81 South at 8:30 this morning.
Today's ride proves that Charles Kuralt was correct when he said, "Thanks to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel from coast to coast without seeing anything."
We spent the entire day on I-81 and, although we continued to enjoy riding our motorcycles, we did not see or learn anything new. As a result, our cameras stayed in their bags. We figure everyone has seen an interstate. Not every day is filet. Some days are hamburger (had to say something about food).
We really put on the miles today, 451 total, which was our biggest ride of this trip. We spent the entire day in a constant cluster of cars and trucks.
We found ourselves on the interstate because we spent the past two days continuing to tour. Our visit to Woodstock and the Catskills yesterday came at a price: we didn't get much closer to home. So we started the day 858 miles from Nashville. We decided that, unless we want to arrive home to dogs who don't remember us, we needed to make tracks.
Riding on the interstate is statistically much safer than riding on two-lanes. There are no driveways, gravel tails, dogs, left-hand turners or traffic lights; all things that threaten the street rider. That being said, riding on a busy interstate takes an incredible amount of mental energy. Maintaining extreme vigilance makes for a safe ride but it does take a lot out of you.
We plan to repeat the experience. Tomorrow we return to the wormhole called I-81, hunker down and ride 430 miles to Nashville. Plans can change, however, so if we see something particularly interesting, we may venture off the interstate and return to the real world.
