Back on the BMW in New England

After three nights in Avon, CT, we got back on the BMW and on the road heading north. A big thanks to our friends Ted and Liz and their children for having us over for dinner last night. It was our first home-cooked meal in over two weeks, and very much appreciated!

Mike had the oil changed and tires replaced on the BMW yesterday at Max BMW in South Windsor, VT. Even though they didn't have any electricity due to a fire earlier in the morning, they brought in a generator and kept working. They went the extra mile to make sure that we got back on the road as planned.

We started off on U.S. 10 north out of Avon, CT and in Simsbury were delighted to see numerous life-like statues along the road. At first we thought they were real people, and then realized we were actually seeing statues depicting people doing everyday activities. It's a part of the Simsbury Art Trail that features the sculptures of Seward Johnson. Here are a few of our favorites:

Our route took us north through Connecticut and Massachusetts, passing through small towns, busier sections of small cities, and twisting roads through the countryside.

Much of this area is familiar to us since we lived in southwestern Vermont for 20 years before we moved to Arizona 5 years ago.

We stopped in Brattleboro, VT for lunch at Whetstone Station restaurant and brewery, right on the banks of the Connecticut River that marks the boundary between Vermont and New Hampshire.

It was hot and humid by the time we stopped for lunch, yet it seemed cooler as we continued northeast into higher elevations in New Hampshire. We're stopping for the evening in Keene, NH where we plan to enjoy walking around the lively downtown. We can't think of a better way to celebrate our 37th wedding anniversary!  Here is today's route

The rain catches up to us in Rhode Island

Rhode Island is one of the 19 states we hadn't been in on the motorcycle before we started our cross-country trip. Today we rode 2 hours from our base in Avon, CT into Rhode Island, checking off our 14th state.

We wound our way northeast primarily on narrow 2-lane roads through the Connecticut countryside, avoiding the major metropolitan areas.

We lived in Vermont for 20 years, and it's fun to be back in New England. Hartford, Connecticut's capitol, was founded in 1636 and we saw several houses dating from the mid-1700's along today's ride.

The roads were mostly lined with forests, but periodically we passed by fields planted with large, leafy tobacco plants. I didn't realize that tobacco is grown this far north, and discovered that Connecticut specializes in growing tobacco used for the two outer layers of cigars.

We crossed the Connecticut River, the longest river in New England, that flows from the Canadian border to Long Island Sound.

Once again the weather forecast was for rain, and based on the grey skies we expected it to rain at any moment. We crossed into Rhode Island on U.S. 6 and as we pulled into the first gas station a couple of miles into the state, it started raining and kept raining for the majority of our ride back to Avon.

We planned to stop for lunch at Sweet Peas in Brooklyn, CT based on their menu of interesting sandwiches, fresh salads, and baked goods but didn't realize that they only have outside seating. We gamely sat outside and pulled the table under the awning on the outside porch, staying mostly dry while we enjoyed our lunch.

We opted to take the interstate for part of the ride back to Avon since it was raining hard and we wanted to get back quickly. Our hotel room is now decorated with rain gear, gloves, and motorcycle gear hanging on every surface to hopefully dry out overnight. Another successful day on our cross-country trip!  Here is today's route