Rain, Rain, Rain

Well today is a different story. It rained the whole 440 miles including the worst two hours of the trip navigating the traffic around Chicago. I was on the road again at 7 and took breaks for breakfast, lunch and a rest stop but there didn’t seem much point sitting around because the rain isn’t going to stop until later tomorrow.  There is a lot of construction on I 80 and the single lanes can go on for 10 miles. I almost didn’t mind because there was no passing but so slow. When there wasn’t construction there were times when I could hardly see the trucks in front of me and also had to go really slowly.  By the time I got off the I80 at Rock Island (one of the quad cities on the eastern edge of Iowa), there were just the big trucks and I left on the road. I kept going so I could say I did this. Having done it I don’t want to do it again. 

The lady that checked me into the campground says it is snowing in Denver, flooding in Texas and there were tornados somewhere, so it could be worse.  Here I have new leaves on the trees. I’m looking over a little lake that had geese and their babies paddling around when I first got here although now it's too rainy even for them. 

I think the story of this trip is about what a difference the weather makes.  On the way over in the fall I had two days of rain in six weeks. In two weeks on this trip I have had 2 days of sun.  I am lucky that I have Strider who is well insulated and has a good furnace. If I do come back I would come in the fall and do the route from Chelmsford to Chicago again. It is full of places to visit but it is too early in the season weather wise and a lot of places and parks aren’t open yet.  The worst of this weather system is supposed to be over tomorrow and I hope I will have a perkier post next time.

Kasich Country

Finally a day that I wanted this trip to be about.  I woke up to a beautiful sunrise that spread across the whole sky.  A good omen and I was on the road by 7. 

Then a big bank of dark clouds held to my left and kept me company all the way to Buffalo and held off raining until I was down to Cleveland.  It rained for awhile but nothing serious.  Over the city the clouds were so low that I couldn’t see the tops of the downtown skyscrapers.

I love Ohio.  I was expecting and depressed rust belt but whatever is going on it definitely isn’t rusting.  They have the best freeways, Their bridges and overpasses are well designed, some beautiful and most look new.  The towns l’ve stoped in look more prosperous than many in upstate NY, Penn, and Mass.  I just realizedr that John Kasich was the Governor of Ohio.  What a shame he isn’t doing well with the Republicans. 

The East State Park by Sandusky is beautiful, has a huge bird sanctuary and they have free wifi.  I arrived here after a 7 hr drive and it was early enough in the day to get my 15,000 steps in watching the birds and the muskrats. Everyone was hungry and looking for a mate. There was a Tundra Swan,  Herons, a big Hawk, Blackbirds,  Warblers, lots I didn’t know, and the usual suspects like Canada Gees, Robins, Chickadees and Swallows.  It is a big park that once belonged to a founding family before the state took it over in the depression and turned it into a park., The campground is nearly empty I am in the pet area and the other campers all have dogs, all very friendly.  It is lovely and peaceful to watch the wildlife and walk along the lake.  Perfect day.  

As you can tell I really like the trees

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This area below Lake Erie is near the end of the shield area. This rock still has the scrapes from the glaciers.  There are signs of three different glacial periods here.

On the Road Most Travelled

 I spent some time exploring in Lowell, home of the first textile mills and Jack Keroac. It is a hard scrabble town struggling to reinvent itself. 

 I have had a wonderful time with my family. The morning I was to leave Chris cleaned Strider inside and out even shining up his tires. Such a kind, lovely way to say goodbye.  

It was hard to leave.  The road was calling, albeit not very encouragingly. The weather has been unpredictable and unseasonably cold and rainy. My original plan to go south to the Shenandoah Valley and west through Tennessee was derailed by weather. I am headed across country to Moab to meet friends before carvaning back to Edmonton.  They are the same friends I started my Odyssey year with learning how to travel with Strider so it is fitting I would finish by going to the place we began.. 

My choice of a northern route did not take into consideration that most campgrounds up here are not open until later in May.  My choice for travelling the I 90 was on the advice of Good Sam and two good old boys who know this route.  They were united in assuring me that is the fastest route to Chicago, has the least traffic in spite of having the biggest road markings on the map and is the prettiest.  So far I would agree, what they didn't tell me was that it also has $30 worth of tolls and this is only day one.  I'll think of it as a carbon tax and not complain.  

Google map says it is 5 hours but it was over 6 and I only stopped for two short breaks. The traffic was very heavy until Springfield then it eased off and made for a great driving day through the Berkshires and the Appalachians. In spite of the lack of greenery the hills and great swooping valleys, lakes and rivers made for a beautiful drive. As I neared my destination the clouds hung low and the temperature dropped.  I am pretty much on my own in a large campground filled with trailers with no one in them.  They lease their spots for years and leave their RVs set up.  It is a little weird to walk the 'streets' and no one around. They do a wonderful job of maintaining it but it is still cold and bleak.    

Big trees, bleak skies, no people

Same image different angle

First real sign of spring

In The Air And On The Road Again

Welcome back to share the last leg of this Odyssey.  I start out with mixed feelings. Edmonton is having it's warmest spring on record and my garden is coming up a month early.  It didn't help that the east coast has had one of the coolest springs. However I do want Strider  home for the summer and I miss my family in Chelmsford.  The closer the departure date the more I am looking forward to being here and the journey ahead.  

When I first arrived I had a great day in Boston starting at the ICA (see www.icaboston.org).  When I came out of the T station there was so much construction going on I couldn't figure out where the galley was and asked one of the construction guys.  He walked me around and told me that Boston hadn't had so many projects on the go there hadn't been anything like it for over 40 years.  The ICA was built in 2006 and for many years sat alone on the waterfront.  Now it will be dwarfed by what will soon surround it.  

Coming out of the Silver Line Station obviously not rush hour

In this section 1,300,000 sq ft of new retail space 

 A favourite restaurant being demolished

One of my favourites and a new piece using reflecting mirrors has been added

A Unique Collection of Paper Puppets by 

Geoffrey Farmer

I took the T over to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts to meet my friend for lunch and tour

There was a fascinating show on Textile Art everything from snakes, and videos of wearable art to 3D printing of clothing with various materials

There was a major display on Asian Megacities

Ai Weiwei built a bicycle sculpture to memorialize the loss of this mode of transport in Beijing

 Below is a small section of Subodh Gupta's kitchen It provides a small sample of what it takes to feed a small number of a growing population.

The three images below were taken inside a mental storage container the walls and ceiling of which was a miniature replica of the slums in Mumbai by Hema Upadhyay 

This image of Liza and I was taken in the middle of a Korean Installation

a strange counterpart to the above 

It was a great afternoon and then we went over to MIT, had dinner in a area full of young people with lots of good energy, and then onto Arcadia, a Tom Stoppard play.  It was smart, well acted and long.  My brain was overloaded by the time it was over. We could have stayed to listen to two Harvard profs discuss the science and philosophy behind the play but we were both done in after such a good day. 

Friday and Saturday

Chris and Quinn picked me up on their way back from a week at the Cape. So excited to see each other.  Quinn telling me of all her adventures. The whole day was all about catching up, re-estalishing our little routines and sharing stories. Everything was perfect until I went to bed and started thinking about all the things that could go wrong, Does propane go bad? Will it corrode the tank and just blow me up in the middle of the night? Do I really have to rotate the tires, Can I trust Ford to check the brakes because they are the only ones around here with a hoist that is high enough for the van? It is a lot cooler than I expected and I don't really know the terrane I planned to be travelling through.  Do I need to plan a new route? And on and on.....

In the light of day everything seems manageable again, but it will take some planning as time is short between when I leave here and when I need to meet up with friends in Moab.  So the roads less travelled may have to wait until I know I can get there on time.