2015 Road Trip: Part 2 (VT-NY)

Vermont to New York
Day 3
4.16.15 - 4.17.15

Thursday began with yet another beautiful day with warming temperatures and a clear sky.  Today my goal was to drive in some convoluted fashion to Schenectady, NY to see some friends from Union College.  As per my usual incessant planning, I checked google maps again to see how long it would take, and the result was around 3.5 hours.  But that was the fastest route, and I could have used a feature for "most beautiful route".  The route I ended up taking certainly took much longer than 3.5 hours, but completely worth it, as the Vermontian countryside is one of the better things in the world.

I took a leisurely start to the day, and pulled out the paper maps to figure out what roads might be fun to check out.  This is the joy of being on a solo road trip.  You can open up a map, say "I want to go here," and just do it without any worry that you won't get back in time, or that it's in the wrong direction.  I admit, a GPS is great for getting to a destination, but when you want to experience a journey, paper maps is where it's at!

With my start point of Waterbury, VT nestled up in the northern Green Mountains, I was interested in following the whole range south and then crossing over into New York later rather than sooner.  I have no regrets. I chose Rt. 100 to start with, and let me tell you, there's nothing quite like driving alongside the bumpy Green Mountains for miles and miles, where every bend in the road gives you a new mountain to look at.

Rt. 100 was going great and all, but then spontaneity got the best of me, and I went westward to cross over the mountains via Rt. 17.  I passed by a ski area, started racking up the hairpin turns as I gained elevation to Appalachian Gap at 2375'.

Appalachian Gap, Rt. 17

The descent was just as beautiful, just seeing the mountains pass by you as you carve the corners into the valley.  It's always handy to have effective brakes in the situation.  Having crossed the mountains, I was now on the western side, I suppose in the Lake Champlain valley...I'm not sure if that's official or not.  I passed by lots of farmland and some little towns as I made my way south.  A pleasant place to drive through.

Rt. 116

Eventually temptation took over once again, and I saw a sign for Rt. 125, Scenic Byway, which - you guessed it - crosses to the other side of the Green Mountains.  This road, however, followed a stream of sorts instead of gaining lots of elevation, but that was equally enjoyable.  It seemed like a road you'd see in a national park (this is probably because it's in a national forest).  Your feet get a good workout along this route with all the curves and hills.

Rt. 125, Scenic Byway

Because of my late start, I was beginning to crave some lunch.  So here began the search for a picnic area.  I had rejoined with Rt. 100 again now that I was back on the east side of the mountains.  I spotted a small picnic area by a stream to have some lunch.  It was beautifully located by a hayfield that hugged the hills, and a farmhouse on the opposite side of the water.  I had the place to myself, made some lunch, and walked along a small trail that followed the stream to a rocky beach a ways down.  This was my opportunity to stretch the legs, since there isn't much variation in driving positions.  The legs were happy.

The field by my picnic spot!

The White River

After lunch, I continued along Rt. 100 southbound, which does eventually go the length of the state.  There was not a shortage of mountains along the route, nor ski areas.  I passed Killington, and quite a few others whose names I didn't pay much attention to.  At some point I saw this cool bridge and had to take a picture of it:

My journey along Rt. 100 finally ended in Wilmington, where I began to cross the mountains for a third time along Rt. 9.  I have been on this road a few times commuting to and from Union College, when I thought the standard highway route was too boring.  I have to say that by this point, even I was a bit sick of driving, and I tend to enjoy it.  I think I was about 5 hours in, and when it's all state roads, I just wanted to sit back and set the cruise control.  That doesn't work well on state roads.

After crossing into New York, my fourth state on the trip, I discovered I had timed my arrival into the Capital District (Albany/Schenectady) perfectly for rush hour.  Apparently I don't drive aggressively enough for New York, based on some of the stuff I observed in my rear view mirror. However, I did make a successful arrival into Union College, after 10 months of absence.  I know there were things about college there that I didn't like so much, but getting to see the people I met at college was refreshing.  Kicked back, did a bit of gaming, and got my signature chicken parmesan sandwich from the dining hall, and then nostalgia arrived at the party.

Here is the map of my progress along the trip.  I completed 237 miles, bringing my total to just under 500 miles.

Normally I have a heading for each day, but Day 4 was pretty low key, and I spent it doing some route planning for the next few days, and trying to get all the old roommates together for dinner.  Over the course of lunch and dinner, I was able to see everyone at least once, which was great.  The great part about doing this trip, is that whenever I go to visit someone, I get to share my story of the trip so far, and it only gets more interesting as the trip gets longer.  I also determined from seeing glimpses of some engineering textbooks from my sophomore roommate, Benny, that I am extremely glad to have made an alternative plan for this year.  I'd much rather be seeing the world go by me right now, hence the trip.  Cheers!