Author Topic: New Travels and Stats Discussion  (Read 228561 times)

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Offline Markkos1992

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #735 on: May 24, 2022, 02:47:46 pm »
So the weekend before last I took a five-day trip down to Atlanta, GA, in order to finally see the Braves play at Truist Park for the first time with my parents and a family friend.  Despite the fact that they keep finding new ways to lose, I did get to see them win one game.  (To be fair, no one really thought that the Braves would have won the 2021 World Series this time last year either.)

So it is finally time to start doing some clinching in western NC instead of central/eastern NC, but I have to get there first.

Day 1 (Harrisburg, PA, to Asheville, NC)

I started at 1 AM so I could get to Harrisonburg, VA, on I-81 as quickly as possible.  Once there, I looped around to get VA 257 and VA 290 before heading south on VA 42 to the south end of its northern segment at I-64/US 60 and VA 269.  After clinching VA 269 real quick, I took US 60 west (leaving I-64 through Covington, VA) to VA 159 south to VA 311.  Once VA 311 entered WV, I took WV 3 west to Alderson, WV, (which actually has an Amtrak Station) being held up by some paving projects.  I then followed WV 12 south to US 219 to finish my clinch of that route after doing it north of WV 63 in the snow back in March.  I then went back to Narrows to follow VA 61 to Tazewell, VA, so I could finally clinch that route.  After finishing up in Tazewell, VA, I went south on US 19 (sneaking over to Richlands, VA, to clinch the US 460 BUS route and also clinching VA 82 while looping around Lebanon, VA) to Abingdon.

I then took I-81 south to TN 126 back east to TN 394 to US 11E/US 19 SB.  Then I did a full clinch of US 19E all the way down to where it meets back up with US 19W east of I-26.  Then I followed US 19 (along with I-26, US 23, and other routes) down to Asheville for the night.  After taking a brief nap, I drove around Asheville for a bit most notably clinching I-240 (NC) before settling down for the night.

Clinched: VA 42 (North), VA 290, VA 42 BUS (Dayton), VA 257, VA 39 ALT (Goshen), VA 269, VA 159, WV 12, VA 61, VA 16 ALT (Tazewell), US 19 BUS (Tazewell, VA), US 460 BUS (Tazewell, VA), US 460 BUS (Richlands, VA), US 19 (VA), VA 369, US 19 BUS (Lebanon, VA), VA 82, US 19E (NC/TN-full clinch), I-240 (NC), NC 112, US 19 BUS (Asheville, NC), US 23 BUS (Asheville, NC), NC 81, US 19 BUS (Weaverville, NC)   
New Mileage: US 33 (VA), US 250 (VA), VA 39, US 60 (VA), WV/VA 311, WV 3, VA 16, VA 67, VA 80, US 58 ALT (Abingdon, VA), TN 126, TN 91, US 321 (TN), TN 67, NC 194, NC 226, NC 80, NC 197, US 19 (NC) US 23 ALT (Mars Hill, NC), I-26 (NC), US 23 (NC), US 25 (NC), US 70 (NC), US 74 ALT (Asheville, NC), NC 191, Blue Ridge Pkwy (NC), I-40 (NC), US 74 (NC)

Day 2 (Asheville, NC to Atlanta, GA) (note that we actually stayed in Smyrna, GA)

On this day, I enjoyed the amazing scenery in the Smokies along US 19 especially in the Nantahala River Gorge.  After an adventure in getting the cheapest gas in Blairsville, GA, I got to the Atlanta area around midday.  In the Atlanta area, I basically finished clinching US 19 and GA 400 in the area along with a lap around the Perimeter (I-285), which was held up by a crash a few miles south of I-20 on the west side.  I got to the hotel just after 4:30 PM ET and walked to Truist Park from there.  Note the interesting pedestrian situation for the DDI on I-75 at Windy Hill Rd (Exit 260) where pedestrians actually end up in the sidewalk in the middle of the DDI.  There were pedestrian bridges closer to Truist Park so there was very little crossing the street after crossing I-75.

Clinched:  US 19 (NC), US 441 BUS (Cherokee, NC), US 19 BUS (Andrews, NC), US 19 BUS (Murphy, NC), US 19 BUS (Dahlonega, GA), GA 60 BUS (Dahlonega, GA), GA 400, I-285 (GA)
New Mileage: US 23 (NC), NC 215, US 74 (NC), US 276 (NC), US 441 (NC), NC 28, US 129 (NC), US 64 (NC), GA 11, US 76 (GA), GA 2, GA 515, GA 180, GA 9, GA 60, GA 52, US 41 (GA), GA 3, US 29 (GA), US 78 (GA), US 278 (GA), GA 8

Day 3 (Atlanta, GA area)

After realizing how bad the hotel internet was, I decided that it was time to tie some loose ends from my past Atlanta clinching from the 2011 mission trip.  After eventually looping around Marietta for a while, I got to meet the Black Pope (known as Dear Woke Christian on YouTube, and yes he is handing out those indulgences haha) briefly before heading to the late afternoon game that the Braves actually won.

After the game, I took my parents through Downtown Atlanta to drive the Downtown Connector at night.  I gained a little mileage of I-75 and I-85 that I did not already have from the 2002, 2004, and 2011 trips, but nothing significant since I had already clinched the Downtown Connector back in 2002.

Clinched: GA 141 CON (Atlanta), GA 237, GA 13 CON (Doraville), GA 3 CON (Marietta), GA 120 ALT (Marietta), GA 5 CON (Kennesaw), GA 14 CON (Atlanta)
New Mileage: US 41 (GA), GA 3, GA 9, GA 13, GA 141, US 23 (GA), GA 120, GA 140, GA 5, I-85 (GA), GA 54, I-75 (GA)

Day 4 (Atlanta, GA, to Boone, NC)

Today was back to working on the western part of the Carolinas.

I left the hotel and immediately took I-285 over to US 23/GA 13.  I followed that north to GA 317 in Suwanee and did a loop so that I could get the part of I-985 not concurrent with US 23.  Then I followed US 23 to US 123, which I followed to Greenville in order to get a full clinch of that route.  After clinching US 123, I looped around Greenville a couple of times to clinch I-185, I-385 north of the I-185/US 276 area, US 276 south of Greenville, and SC 153.  I then followed US 276 north (with on and off rain becoming a slight factor though it allowed me to explore the Connestee Falls all alone) all the way to its northern end at I-40 for a full clinch despite having to sight clinch it in Brevard along the US 64 Concurrency (as part of the Davidson River Village Connector Road Construction US 64/US 276 is detoured onto the now open connector; however, there are no signs directing you back to these routes).   Then I took I-40 back to I-26 in Asheville, and took US 19 north to US 19W. 

US 19W is barely worth keeping as a state route in NC, and has no reason to be a US Route these days.  While the scenery was fine, it was way too curvy, and of course I got stuck behind someone.  After finally making it back to I-26, I went to Johnson City, and looped via TN 381 back to US 321 to head east to Elizabethton.  From there, it was all US 321 for the rest of the day until getting to Boone as I looped around trying to find my hotel for the evening.

Clinched: GA 317, I-985 (GA), GA 365, GA 15 CON (Cornelia), US 123 (GA/SC-full clinch), I-385 BS (Greenville, SC), I-185 (SC), US 276 (SC/NC-full clinch), SC 153, SC 124, US 19W (NC/TN-full clinch), TN 381
New Mileage: US 23 (GA, TN), GA 13, GA 20, US 129 (GA), GA 384, US 441 (GA), GA 17, GA 184, US 76 (SC), SC 28, I-385 (SC), US 29 (SC), SC 20, SC 183, SC 11, US 64 (NC), NC 215, US 23 BUS (Waynesville, NC), I-40 (NC), US 74 (NC), NC 209, I-26 (TN), TN 67, TN 91, US 421 (NC), NC 194, NC 105, US 221 (NC)

Day 5 (Boone, NC, to Harrisburg, PA)

After what was honestly a really good night’s sleep and some breakfast, I basically took US 221 north from Boone all the way to Roanoke, VA.  From there, knowing that there was severe weather in the forecast east of me, I decided to drive into eastern WV and do a full clinch of WV 92.  After some heavy rain in Elkins (and myself accidentally turning an opposite direction lane into a left-turn lane on WV 92 NB at US 33/US 48/US 250), I finished WV 92, took WV 7 east into MD to clinch MD 39 and MD 135, and then finished the eastern portion of WV 46 east of Keyser before taking WV 28 north to Cumberland, MD.
 
From Cumberland, MD, it was basically US 220 NB to US 30 EB to PA 26 NB (when I realized that PA 915 TRUCK was not signed) to PA 913 EB to PA 655 NB to US 22 EB to Harrisburg.
 
Clinched:  US 221 BUS (Jefferson, NC), VA 392, US 58 BUS (Hillsville, VA), VA/WV 311, WV 92, MD 39, MD 135, WV 46 (East)
New Mileage:  US 421 (NC), US 221 (NC/VA), NC 194, NC 88, NC 16, US 21 (NC/VA), US 58 (VA), VA 89, US 60 (WV), WV 39, WV 28, US 250 (WV), WV 38, WV 7, WV 28
« Last Edit: June 05, 2022, 12:25:38 pm by Markkos1992 »

Offline the_spui_ninja

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #736 on: May 24, 2022, 05:59:36 pm »
Despite the fact that they keep finding new ways to lose, I did get to see them win one game.  (To be fair, no one really thought that the Braves would have won the 2021 World Series this time last year either.)
Could be worse, you could be a Mariners fan.

In on-topic news, I went to a friend's wedding in Quincy IL via flying into Des Moines and then driving 3 hours. Clinched a good portion of the business routes in southeast Iowa as well as some of the expressways I missed back in college. Pella is a really nice little town and would definitely recommend stopping there.
An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered. - G.K. Chesterton

Offline kjslaughter

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #737 on: May 26, 2022, 11:11:46 am »
Note the interesting pedestrian situation for the DDI on I-75 at Windy Hill Rd (Exit 260) where pedestrians actually end up in the sidewalk in the middle of the DDI.  There were pedestrian bridges closer to Truist Park so there was very little crossing the street after crossing I-75.

Yeah, the GDOT seems to like scaring pedestrians and has been doing this on all the new DDI bridges.  See here at Ashford-Dunwoody Road as well.  Ashford-Dunwoody at I-285 in Perimeter area

Offline the_spui_ninja

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #738 on: May 26, 2022, 06:25:33 pm »
Note the interesting pedestrian situation for the DDI on I-75 at Windy Hill Rd (Exit 260) where pedestrians actually end up in the sidewalk in the middle of the DDI.  There were pedestrian bridges closer to Truist Park so there was very little crossing the street after crossing I-75.

Yeah, the GDOT seems to like scaring pedestrians and has been doing this on all the new DDI bridges.  See here at Ashford-Dunwoody Road as well.  Ashford-Dunwoody at I-285 in Perimeter area

I think that just might be standard DDI design; the one in Cheyenne does the same thing (streetview) while the one in Pocatello would do it but US 91's a dual carriageway (streetview).

More on the topic of this thread, the wife and I are heading out to the Northeast (flying into Boston) for a short roadtrip in a couple weeks. I've never been to MA, CT, RI, NH, or ME (I spent 2 hours in VT once lol), so does anyone have any "can't miss" attractions in the eastern Adirondacks to White Mountains area? I already have some ideas but I figure asking people who know more would be useful...
An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered. - G.K. Chesterton

Offline yakra

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #739 on: May 26, 2022, 07:40:43 pm »
^ NH112
Sri Syadasti Syadavaktavya Syadasti Syannasti Syadasti Cavaktavyasca Syadasti Syannasti Syadavatavyasca Syadasti Syannasti Syadavaktavyasca

Offline Markkos1992

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #740 on: May 26, 2022, 07:46:24 pm »
^I was just going to say to listen to Doug Kerr's Gribblenation Roadcast Episodes.

Offline vdeane

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #741 on: May 26, 2022, 10:27:10 pm »
Back when we still had the pavement windshield survey, Whiteface Mountain (NY 431) was always a highlight.  AuSable Chasm was a great place for a stretch break too.  And NY 73 is my favorite touring route for a reason (although the Cascade Lakes portion is under construction this year, so now really isn't the time to see it).  The Crown Point Bridge on NY 185 is also nice.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position of NYSDOT or its affiliates.

Offline the_spui_ninja

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #742 on: May 27, 2022, 07:45:13 pm »
Thanks everyone! It'll be a great help!

And NY 73 is my favorite touring route for a reason (although the Cascade Lakes portion is under construction this year, so now really isn't the time to see it).
We're staying in Lake Placid; is NY 73 closed or just one-lane with a pilot car?
An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered. - G.K. Chesterton

Offline vdeane

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #743 on: May 27, 2022, 08:23:08 pm »
^ One lane with automatic temporary traffic lights, but the longest section in question (there are two smaller ones) will be about a mile long (at least), so it will be a bit of a wait.  Pilot cars aren't usually used in this part of the country, but they're not unheard of either.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position of NYSDOT or its affiliates.

Offline Markkos1992

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #744 on: May 27, 2022, 08:30:35 pm »
^ One lane with automatic temporary traffic lights, but the longest section in question (there are two smaller ones) will be about a mile long (at least), so it will be a bit of a wait.  Pilot cars aren't usually used in this part of the country, but they're not unheard of either.

On my last trip, I dealt with two pilot cars just while driving WV 3 from WV 311 to Alderson.

Offline the_spui_ninja

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #745 on: May 28, 2022, 02:26:41 pm »
^ One lane with automatic temporary traffic lights, but the longest section in question (there are two smaller ones) will be about a mile long (at least), so it will be a bit of a wait.  Pilot cars aren't usually used in this part of the country, but they're not unheard of either.
Cool, thanks for the info!
An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered. - G.K. Chesterton

Offline clong

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #746 on: June 01, 2022, 09:13:47 pm »
Took a trip with the wife over an extended Memorial Day weekend.

Finished off the 2 sections of I-95 in North (I-74 to I-40) and South Carolina (pretty much I-20 to I-26). Now I have continuously completed I-95 from Daytona Beach, FL to the I-495/95 junction on the north side of Washington. A couple of small sections around Baltimore and Philly to have it all the way to Boston.

Also got I-26 from I-95 to the end in Charleston and I-526 around Charleston. US17 from Charleston to Myrtle Beach (previously had it from Myrtle Beach to New Bern). US76 from I-20Business in Florence, SC to I-74/US74. US258 from the end in Jacksonville, NC to US70 in Kinston, NC. US70 from Kinston to I-95.

Also, got 12 new counties.

Offline Markkos1992

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #747 on: June 05, 2022, 12:41:56 pm »
Yesterday I drove into NJ ultimately to attend the Creation Conference at Calvary Chapel of Marlton, NJ, featuring Dr. Jason Lisle (and yes, I do not expect you to agree with Young Earth Creationism whatsoever).  Anyway that meant that I had some time to work a little bit on NJ clinching.

I basically followed I-78 EB to I-287 SB to NJ 18 SB to NJ 35 NB to NJ 71 SB to NJ 35 NB to NJ 70 WB.  I also got to Marlton early enough to give me time to view the ongoing I-76/I-295/NJ 42 interchange construction while looping around to clinch NJ 154 and NJ 41. 

The trip back was basically slogging through Philly along I-676 and I-76 before glimpsing the PA 320 Hanging Rock Construction.  Hopefully, PA 320 will be reopened before roadwaywiz's Philadelphia Meet in August so that people can drive through it if they choose to.  From there, it was just the normal US 422 WB to PA 183 NB to I-78 WB route via Reading to get back to Harrisburg.

Clinched:  NJ 18, NJ 172, NJ 70, NJ 154, NJ 41
New Mileage: NJ 71, NJ 35, NJ 55, NJ 47, NJ 38

Offline mapmikey

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #748 on: June 05, 2022, 02:29:57 pm »
Took an 18.5 hr u-turn yesterday. Ambitious goal to get all of US 62 in PA and US 6 west of Warren.

Didn’t work out…

New clinches - PA 417, PA 428, PA 257, PA 338, PA 861, PA 839

New mileage - US 250 (wheeling to Cadiz; US 36 to I-77), US 62 (canton to Franklin PA), PA 8, PA 408, PA 58, PA 68, PA 85

Found oversized cutouts for both US 62 and OH 7 (BGS shields on posts).
Other oddity is that PA 58 between PA 338 and PA 368 is completely unstriped.

Offline Markkos1992

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Re: New Travels and Stats Discussion
« Reply #749 on: June 17, 2022, 04:13:39 pm »
Last weekend was a trip to Lynchburg for another road meet hosted by Laura Bianca-Pruett.  You can also see my driving miscues on roadwaywiz's livestream.

I also went down to NC on Friday to work on my planned RDU Meet (unofficially scheduled for July 30th, will be official when NCDOT finally announces the opening of the East End Connector) and tour the new NC 119 Mebane Bypass.  Finally, I also cut into the Northern VA, southern MD mileage, and finished the Northern Neck in VA as well.

Clinched:  MD 84, MD 75, MD 80, MD 109, MD 107, VA 391, VA 228, *VA 228 TRUCK (Herndon), VA 286, VA 289, US 360 (full clinch-In VA Only), VA 201, VA 354, VA 200, VA 222, NC/VA 119, US 58 BUS (Danville, VA), VA 413, VA 398, US 311 (VA), ***NC 700, US 29 (VA, MD), US 29 BUS (Lynchburg, VA), VA 163, VA 128, US 29 BUS (Altavista, VA), US 460 BUS (Bedford, VA), US 221 (VA), VA 122 BUS (Bedford), VA 130, US 460 BUS (Lynchburg, VA), VA 210, VA 334, US 29 BUS (Lovingston, VA), VA 20 BUS (Orange), VA 230, US 33 BUS (Stanardsville, VA), VA 375 (unsigned for TM purposes, only signed on rectangles), VA 237 (former(?) and current routing), VA 376, VA 244, VA 120, Clara Barton Pkwy (VA/DC), Cabin John Pkwy, MD 188, MD 186, MD 614, MD 396, MD 384, MD 390, MD 108

New Mileage: MD 355, MD 28, VA 7, VA 123, US 264 ALT (Wilson, NC), NC 42, NC 58, NC 222  **NC 55, US 70 (NC), NC 49, NC 87, VA 293, US 29 BUS (Danville, VA), US 311 (NC), NC 770, US 29 (NC), VA 43, VA 122, VA 56, VA 6, VA 20, US 33 (VA), VA 236, MD 187, MD 410, MD 191, MD 185


*Also signed as SR 606 TRUCK
** Clinched current routing still signed through Holly Springs
*** I now have SC 700, NC 700, and MD 700 clinched. Outside of mapmikey, I cannot think of anyone else that would have these three routes (or any combination of three 700s) clinched.  I only got SC 700 from a mission trip to Johns Island in 2012.