Pennsylvania Road Trip

[ArmyJoe]

I woke this morning to clear skies and 40 degree temps. Given that it's been cloudy and/or raining for the last two weeks, I wasn't about to complain. I was about to set off on my first road trip, a journey of military and family history in Pennsylvania. Though I'm from New Jersey and currently live in Ohio, most of my family comes from the area around Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. But before I head there, I'll be spending a day at Gettysburg.

After printing some last-minute census records, I packed the Spyder. I found that 4 days worth of clothes, my laptop, running shoes, and a fanny pack with rain gear filled the trunk.

My Cortech Sport Tail Bag held my lunches (5 Meals, Ready to Eat), camera, heavy gloves, and amateur radio walkie-talkie.

I got on the road about 9 AM and made a few quick stops to fuel up, get breakfast, and buy a quart of oil. My first side trip was Zanesville, Ohio, home of the Y-Bridge.

The Muskingum County Courthouse is pretty impressive, but I'm not a fan of Second Empire architecture.

Getting back on the road, my next stop was Cabela's outside Huntington, West Virginia.

I pulled into the parking lot with no bars left on the fuel gauge and 164 miles on the odometer. This place is the ultimate man-land, but I only stayed long enough to buy a Nalgene water bottle. The amount of mounted animals on display is probably second only to the Museum of Natural History in New York.

From there, I went up to Pittsburgh, to find the gravesite of my great-grandmother. After coming through the Fort Pitt Tunnel, you find yourself smack in the middle of the city and the view was absolutely amazing.

I love gothic architecture and the front gate of Allegeheny Cemetery was impressive.

I quickly found my great-grandmother and paid my respects. With a little time to burn, I explored the cemetery and took some pictures.

It was getting close to rush hour, so I got the heck out of Dodge. After a quick refuel in Somerset, Pennsylvania, I headed to Breezewood. Not only is Breezewood the gateway to Gettysburg, but it's also known for two pieces of travel trivia. First, it's the western end of 13 miles of abandoned interstate.

Second, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Comission didn't want to pay the fee to connect to I-70 heading south to Maryland, so a very weird interchange results in I-70 running on a surface street (US 30) for a quarter-mile.

Heading east on US 30, the sun was setting behind me. The autumn colors were incredible to look at, but there were no scenic rest stops and the twisty road demanded my attention. While the interstate cuts through Sideling Hill and Tuscarora Mountain, here the road goes up and over them. I got to the top of Tuscarora Mountain just as the last light was fading. This picture is taken from a hang-glider launch pad over McConnellsburg, Pennsylvania.

Heading east one last time, I rode into Chambersburg while a full moon rose directly in front of me.

 

[RubyRed]

Love the pics!
Glad your ride was a safe one.
I love Pennsylvania this time of year. I just hate all the snow that comes next.

 

[fastfraser]

:2thumbs: Great pics ! Nice trip.

 

[ArmyJoe]

Looks like another clear and cold morning. I'll be checking out of the hotel soon and heading to Gettysburg. Tonight I'll be in Wilkes-Barre.

According to weather.com rain will be hitting Indianapolis in about an hour, but it'll be clear here until at least 7 PM. Will definitely need to keep an eye on the weather.

 

[NancysToy]

Who needs Road Runner magazine when you can get photojournalism like this on SpyderLovers! Wonderful commentary and a nice mix of pictures. Nice to know there is at least one more genealogist riding a Spyder, too. :thumbup:

 

[NEWARKSPYDER]

:2thumbs:Good for you ! Enjoy the ride and love the pics!:chat:

 

[Bersquack]

Very nice pictures. Thanks.

 

[bjt]

Who needs Road Runner magazine when you can get photojournalism like this on SpyderLovers! Wonderful commentary and a nice mix of pictures. Nice to know there is at least one more genealogist riding a Spyder, too. :thumbup:

:agree:

This sets the gold standard for travel blogs on SpyderLovers. Loved the pics, descriptions, commentary and links. :clap:

 

[beerman]

Very nice!! If you ever come out that way again give me a call. I am 50 miles esat of Pittsburgh and about 8 miles off of the turnpike in Ligonier. 724-787-4506 Beerman (Corey)

 

[Lamonster]

That was way cool and you drove through a lot of places I've been. Thanks for the great writeup. :firstplace:

 

[dltang]

:agree:

This sets the gold standard for travel blogs on SpyderLovers. Loved the pics, descriptions, commentary and links. :clap:

:agree:

Very nicely done. This very commentary and photos makes one want to pack up their spyder and head that way.

 

[FANG]

Great write up -- keep it coming and ryde safe

 

[JimAlpha]

Awesome write-up and pictures! I grew up in PA and it is beautiful. Maybe you should travel professionally like Rick Steves :clap:

 

[Director]

Wow!

What a great post and wonderful photographs! :2thumbs:

I have traveled through this area as well, and this really makes me want to return.

Best regards,

Bruce

 

[ataDude]

Great pics! Keep it up! :2thumbs:

 

[Smylinacha]

Nice pics! We stayed in Chambersburg on our leg home from the BBQ at Lamonster's.
Have a safe trip!

 

[northramp]

Wonderful pics.. I travel that road alot as I have a son in college in Pittsburgh .. I had no idea about the abandoned section ..

 

[ArmyJoe]

Today was my Staff Ride to the 3-day battle at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. I woke about 8 AM took my time heading to the battlefield. I got there about 10 and went to the visitor's center.

I made a reservation for a battlefield bus tour, access to the museum, and the cyclorama. I was a little bummed to find the military discount was only one dollar off the price of the museum admission. You'd think that soldiers have paid enough to walk these fields.

The bus departed at 11 AM. The tour guide took us through the battle site chronologically.

On July 1, 1863, the two sides met north of town. It quickly turned into a rout and the Union Army fled through town to the high ground in the south.

On July 2, 1863, the battles mostly raged around Cemetery and Culp's hills in the north and Little Round Top to the south. The connecting Union battle line formed a defensive formation resembling a fishhook.

Looking west from Little Round Top is a clump of rocks called Devil's Den. The arrow points to a sniper's position.

This is the view from the sniper's position, looking back toward Little Round Top. The small castle on the hill is a monument to a New York unit.

This is the same view made famous by the photograph by Alexander Gardner of the dead Confederate sharpshooter.

Using Google Earth, I measured the distance from Little Round Top to Devil's Den at 3/10ths of a mile (528 yards). To put this in perspective, modern soldiers only practice with their M-16s out to 300 meters (328 yards). I'm amazed that someone can be deadly at that range, but then us Yankees know that Rebs spend all their time hunting squirrels. :joke:

On July 3, 1863, the focus of the fighting was Pickett's Charge. At 3 PM in the afternoon, after some of the heaviest cannon exchange of the war, 12,000 Confederate troops advanced across almost a mile of open farm field.

The Union Army held the high ground and pumped withering fire into the advancing soldiers.

When the southern troops finally fell back, only 25% returned. General Lee withdrew his army from the field the next day, but with at least 46,000 killed, wounded, or captured, Gettysburg is considered the most costly battle in American history.

The tour was only 2 hours, but they provided lots of information to help put the battles into perspective.

After the tour, I visited the museum. There was much to see, but unfortunately, the museum is kept dark and no flash photography was allowed.

Following the museum, I saw a short movie about the battle and Lincoln's Gettysburg Address which was narrated by Morgan Freeman. From there, I got to see the multimedia presentation called the Cyclorama. In a large circular room, a painting gives you a 360-degree view of Pickett's Charge. Using lighting to detail parts of the painting and accompanying narration and sound effects, you get the feeling like the battle is raging around you.

Leaving the visitor's center, I used my remaining time to explore on my own. There are over 1300 monuments at Gettysburg and the Spyder was the perfect vehicle for getting around. The roads follow the contours of the land and many are one-way. In addition, the ability to hop on and off quickly is an asset. Most of the monuments are boring to look at, but I tried to find those that had a lot of detail.

The largest memorial in the park is from the State of Pennsylvania. The plaques contain 35,000 names of the Pensylvanians that fought there.

The last thing I did was to visit the National Cemetery. This is where some of the Union soldiers were reburied (many were hastily buried by townsfolk where they fell) and where Lincoln gave his address. The site of the address is marked by a large monument from the State of Kentucky.

In the Ohio section of the cemetery, I found a large buckeye tree, which is the state tree of Ohio. The buckeye is in the same family as the chestnut and it's nuts are frequently worn by fans of Ohio State University football. I collected about 3 dozen nuts and plan to give them to soldiers in my unit.

I left Gettysburg around 5 PM. Unfortunately, I had a conference call with my Army Reserve unit at 6, so I lost an hour of daylight while I participated in that.

I crossed the Allegheny Mountains in the dark and I'm sure I missed of lot of nice scenery. The temperature dipped into the 50s and I was forced to break out the neck gaiter and heavy gloves. I got to Wilkes-Barre about 9 PM and settled into my hotel.

Tomorrow, I go looking for my ancestors.

 

[bjt]

Another great write up bro. :thumbup:

 

[Lamonster]

You need to ride more Bro. That was great, thanks. :thumbup: