first we proceed Northwest to Interstate 81 which except for the heavy truck traffic, is a beautiful route right through the famous Shenandoah Valley. Then on to Interstate 64 East at Staunton Virginia. (The birthplace of our 28th President, Woodrow Wilson)
From there, we proceed to Charlottesville, Virginia (the birthplace of good Ol’ Tommy Jefferson, or TJ as his buddies called him). And oh yeah, he was also a President.
...cool dude...TJ
Shortly, we pass by Shadwell, VA and Montecello...
...which was Tommy J’s crib...
Eastward we drive, passing through Richmond, Virginia. (the birthplace of Mr. Bojangles, Bill Robinson)
...and he kicked so high, then lightly touched down...
Pressing on, we go around Norfolk, en route to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. ( the birthplace of Mervin Schniklegruber, whose mother Bernice Petunia Schniklegruber, afraid of heights, water, tunnels, and all bridges, gave birth to Merv, somewhere in the second Northbound tunnel.
Mervin, despite his exciting entry into the world, was quite boring and never amounted to much. The Schniklegruber name was not elevated by his existence.
The bridge tunnel combo is 17.6 miles long. It is entirely over or UNDER the Chesapeake Bay. (Your iconoclastic Captain has also been OVER the tunnels and UNDER the bridges, but that’s a whole nother story)
Now, I gotta tell you, cherished reader, your Captain is a pilot, ex racing driver, 100 ton Ocean Master in the US Merchant Marine, motorcycle rider, etc. And, yes Marsha, he also drives nearly anything with wheels. That said, imagine your Captain’s state of mind when approaching the first northbound tunnel in his brand new coach, the Queen...
The sign over the entrance reads “Vertical Clearance 13’6””...
The regal standing Queen is THIRTEEN FEET, FOUR INCHES TALL...(look it up on Google... Newmar London Aire height).
Having had some experience with government geniuses, I was hesitant to really trust the accuracy of the sign. But, noting the absolute absence of any visible scars on the concrete overhead (made by previous hapless owners of tall coaches), we proceeded through.
You didn’t ask about width, but here goes...
The tunnels are 28 feet wide, wall to wall. Oncoming tractor trailers and the Queen are barely missing hitting each other’s mirrors. Those your Captain really doesn’t mind. However, meeting an oncoming motor coach the size of the Queen, driven by a rookie is a scary, scary experience which would make our insurance agent cry. The tunnel walls curve inward, kinda making the driver stay in the extreme left of his lane. Sometimes he drifts past the centerline...jes sayin.
The exciting portion of our journey over, we continue without incident to one of our favorite stops, Castaways RV Resort in Ocean City, Maryland. (Birthplace of OPIE)
...Opie
...Ocean City Inlet
... Castaways Party Beach and Tiki Bar... They put something in your drinks to that makes you charming...
We will be here for about 10 days, so more to follow
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please let the Captain know your thoughts...