We woke just before dawn and I took a walk down to the lakeshore to greet the morning. It was chilly and damp and there was fog on the lake. Sometimes it was difficult to see over into Vermont, but I was able to take a few nice pictures. As the sun rose, I could tell it was going to be another beautiful day.
- Morning fog on Lake Champlain. 11Sept.2008
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- Sunrise on Lake Champlain. 11Sept.2008
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We tried to give our tents time to dry, but finally gave up, rolled them damp and we were on our way. On the other side of the bridge, the road forked and we went left on Vt 17W. We soon stopped for fuel, coffee and a breakfast sandwich and I immediately remembered that my Stepson had told me most of the gas stations in VT/NH sell only the low octane 'regular' fuel. That didn't bother me much, but Dad doesn't run low octane in his Harley. I don't think he can because it was modified by the PO. So we had to go looking for a station that sold higher octane. That's something to keep in mind when you're modifying your bikes and you plan on traveling far from your regular gas stations.
Now, there's this awesome stretch of Rt17 that becomes a series of very exciting switchbacks up into the mountains between Jerusalem and Irasville. THAT was a blast! When we got to the top at Appalachian Gap between the Stark Mountains there was a pull-off where we stopped and took pictures of the view looking back the way we came.
- Appalachian Gap, Stark Mountains, Vermont, USA looking east.
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A hiker there said that someone told him they ride bicycles up this road for training. I say that even in the best cycling days of my youth I don't think I would have tried.
That's what SOHC 4's are for. 
Back down off the mountain in Irasville we came to the junction of routes 17 and 100 and I stopped at a bicycle shop to borrow some lube for my screaming tach. The staff at the bicycle shop was very friendly and helpful. He had an early eighties motorcycle of his own from one of those other Japanese manufacturers inside. I can't remember if it was a Kawasaki or a Yamaha, but I'm pretty sure it was a 650. Then we took a left turn onto 100(N?). We stayed on 100 up to Waterbury and then found Rt.2 which runs parallel to I89 from Waterbury to Montpelier. In Montpelier we got on 302 and headed for the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Just past Twin Mountain, NH we turned right onto Zealand Rd and looked at campsites in Sugarloaf Campground. We had heard along the way that a freeze was expected this night and decided to see what kind of lodging would be available nearer our destination. I did take a picture of our bikes parked near a big rock at the campground.
Then we got back onto 302 and followed it to Bretton Woods. We stopped at a gas station just before the Base Station Rd. and found out about lodging and the schedule for the cog railway that goes up to the summit of Mt. Washington. It was getting late in the afternoon, so we hurried back about 1/4mi. to a motel, got a room, unloaded our gear and headed up the Base Station Rd. to the cog railway station. We got there just in time to catch the last train going up that day. If you ever get the chance, the cog railway at Mt. Washington is a wonderful experience.
You can read more about it at http://www.thecog.com/ . We couldn't have asked for better weather either. There's also a road going up the east side of the mountain, but I hear it can be quite treacherous and not nearly as cool as riding the world's first mountain-climbing cog railway. But you would have more time on the summit if you didn't have to worry about catching the train back down. Especially since ours was the last train going back down the mountain that day. There's more about Mt. Washington (which holds the world record for wind speed) at http://www.mountwashington.com/ .
Back at the base, we spent some time in the museum and gift shop and then headed back to the motel, stopping for food at that same gas station we stopped at before (it had a deli and general store inside).Once again I slept soundly right through the night.
To be continued...
