23rd July 2018
Today is the last riding day… I should be able to arrive at my AirBnB accommodation in New Jersey today… at least that is the plan.
First destination though is the Harley Davidson factory in York Pennsylvania by way of the York dealership of course. It’s only about 40 miles and the sun is shining. It is however extremely humid… ugh!
I cross the Mason-Dixon line…
so it’s Maybe later Maryland and Pow! Pennsylvannia. I see a lot of civil war memorabilia, statues and the like so stop and take these photos in Jefferson PA
I remember visiting Gettysburg in 2016, which is not far from here. Just 50 miles to go to the dealership in York.
I spend a little bit of time in the shop and they give me directions to the factory, and yes you can have a look around, in fact they have guided tours… oh goody.
The factory is just up the road….
This is where they build the big touring bikes, the ones with the huge batwing at the front and all the luggage. Alas, the last tour finishes at 2pm so I have just missed it.. grrrr! They do however allow me to look around the displays and a short film showing how the factory works.. all very interesting.
There is a shop too, of course, so I do partake of one or too items… ahem! By this time it is almost 4pm so I really do need to get back on the road. Once outside it suddenly begins to throw it down.. I mean huge blobs, so back on with the boiler suit and onto New Jersey.
I pass through Wrightsville and as you can see in the photograph it is still raining quite hard.
As I enter Lancaster the rain increases dramatically and there is lightening directly overhead. The road is completely swamped and I have no choice but to try and find shelter… but where?? After some 10 minutes I see a petrol station up ahead so pull in there. I go into the shop to ask the attendant if it is ok for me to wait out the storm… he wants me to go out of the shop as I am causing a huge puddle on the floor… yes ok but can I shelter under the canopy? He does seem more than a little reluctant, but I do manage to stay for a while.
Note the flash flooding… no bloody way I’m riding in that! I begin to think I am going to have to stay overnight in Lancaster as I am still some 160 miles from my accommodation in Jersey City. Fortunately, the rain does slow down a little so I decide to continue my journey.
After about 5 miles the sky ahead appears to be clearing…. yay
Of course I have spoken too soon as the GPS routes me back towards the thunder and lightening. I pull into another petrol station and take cover as it starts honking it down again… meanwhile I have something to eat and drink.
Again back on the road, eventually passing through Kutztown with just 100 miles to go.
Before long it starts to throw it down again, at least I am on a fast road so hopefully I will out run it eventually.
I cross over the state line in the pouring rain so no photos of course… somewhere in Allentown I think… so it’s push off a Pennsylvania and Nice ta see ya, again, New Jersey.
I have messaged the AirBnB host to let her know that I will be arriving late and indeed I do not arrive until 10pm. At least it is dry here.
The host is lovely and welcomes me into her apartment. She lives upstairs but the downstairs is self contained and very nice indeed. There is even some food and she encourages me to help myself. I did actually stop on the way and buy some stuff so I am ok for the moment. However, everything is soaked… so I have to take it all out and drape it around the place to try and dry it out. The leather items will take forever, but I will sort out my washing while I am here and then everything else can get dried in the laundromat. Of course I am going to have to pack most of it on the bike when I take it to the warehouse for shipping home to the UK, but I’m not due to do that until the 26th, the morning of the day I fly home.
So here I am at last.. what a final riding day it has been. Now I can relax and enjoy being a tourist in New York City… am really looking forward to it.
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