Hills and Curves (and Rain) -

Saturday, July 9, 2011 – Norfolk, CT. First, let’s catch up on Beth and O.R.’s progress on Friday. They rode 600 miles and ended up SE of Nashville.

Here is the “cantina” where Beth & O.R. had dinner SE of Nashville.

O.R. finishes checking the bike before the next leg. We ended up at a Comfort Inn at a special Harley-Davidson rate!

Back to Tim’s report: “Hills and Curves” is the theme for the next several days as I ride through places that have such. This morning I started out fashionably late. I didn’t have many miles to cover, so I didn’t need to get up at the crack of dawn. My route took me across NY state on US 20. I didn’t ride one inch on an Interstate, though I did cross over a couple of them.

There wasn’t much traffic and there were just enough curves to make the day enjoyable. The weather was perfect – sunny and cool with low humidity. At a gas stop a guy asked if I was riding the Harley. I said, “Yes,” and he said he was thinking of taking out his Gold Wing, but that it might be too humid. I told him that by Florida standards the weather was perfect.

The roads in this part of the country are subject to some pretty brutal winters that cause frost heave. The revenue shortfall keeps those ridges from being fixed, so you get a bumpy ride in many places.

I got to my campground around 3:00 p.m. and set up the tent.

I rode over to Norfolk, CT and am visiting my son, Ross.

After a quick dinner we went to a concert here at the Chamber Music Festival.

The concert was in The Shed, which was built of California Redwood and dedicated in 1906.

Beth and O.R. didn’t fare so well weather-wise. They aimed for Valdosta, Ga., today, but a bad storm south of Macon forced them to seek lodging in Washburn instead. They had spoken earlier in the day about enjoying a nice steak and a glass of wine. Unfortunately the only place within walking distance of the Days Inn was Shoney’s. A bit of advice: don’t order steak at Shoney’s. So they found some wine at the nearby Rite-Aid and headed back to the motel. Tomorrow’s forecast looks better, so they’ll try to get an early start.