Monday we slept a little late again, knowing we each had plenty of time to get home. Breaking camp took a bit longer than I'd expected, but it always does when you're out of practice. Dad and I had camped well together, meaning we both knew what needed doing and went about it without needing to talk too much. I'm often a creature of habit, and am looking forward to a camping routine.
Despite my love for routine and a penchant for planning, my favorite way to ride is without a plan. When Dad and I left camp I headed west with no plan but to head south sometime after reaching New Hampshire. My routine was determined by whim, the need for gas, and more uniquely the need to detour town parades. I detoured around 3 Memorial Day parades (once with detour signs that did not lead back to the route I had been on), and was somehow caught right in the middle of the parade in Farmington, ME. The police politely stopped me and the Harley rider in front of me just as the parade began marching onto the main drag right in front of us. They hadn't signaled for us to pull over, but once I realized the parade was heading right at us I did the best I could. The Harley guy didn't budge tough, so the driving vets and marching bands had to swing wide around us. They didn't seem to mind; I got lots of smiles, several nods, and a few waves. Everyone seems to like a traveler on a motorcycle.View Memorial Day Weekend - Monday in a larger map
Rt 2 is pretty boring through central ME, but once you get west of Farmington it gets a interesting, and by the time you start climbing through the White Mountains in NH it's a downright beautiful ride. I failed to stop for lunch in Gorham like I'd planned (the plan being hatched as I entered Gorham) because, as so often happens, I'm indecisive about where to stop for food so I just keep on riding. I stop for a banana on the side of the road overlooking Mount Washington, considering how it's summit is the site of highest surface wind speed ever recorded. Seems impossible on a day like today. I end up eating at a decent dinner near Twin Mountain about half an hour later.
Headed down I93 through Franconia State Park for a short while, passing Mt. Lafayette which Jess and I climbed last year with our friends Eric and Sybil. It's a nice ride through the steep valley there, but I93 widens out soon enough and gets boring so I bailed as soon as possible and started winding down Rt 3. I let myself get pulled back east a ways and ended up in Laconia for the first time. The weather was hot and sunny, and the whole town seemed to buzz with summer. I thought about pulling over and checking out the lake for a bit, but a Nick in motion will stay in motion, and I just kept rolling. Not long after that the roads got familiar, and I was home.
All in all it was a very enjoyable weekend camping and riding with Dad, and I'm feeling confident in our kit after this shakedown.
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