| AWSHIDT and Presidential Tour Photos
Friday, September 21, 2001 Cathy and I combined a long weekend trip to Washington DC for the Presidential Tour with a few AWSHIDT stops. Cathy left for Atlantic City, New Jersey the weekend before to stay with friends. The plan was for me to pick her up on Friday afternoon then head south toward DC. We did not have any real schedule planned for the trip other than seeing some sights in DC then heading home. The next few pages show both AWSHIDT and Presidential Tour stops in chronological order. |
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| Right off the bat I was
running way later than I wanted to leave the house. Wake up late, wait for the bank
to open, run around town doing last minute errands, I didn't get on the road until almost
10:00 AM. Did I mention that it was raining cats and dogs! The local weather
radar showed clearing to the west, the way I would be heading for my first stop.
Pulling on my rainsuit I started out. From Waterford, CT west on I-95 to New Haven it poured. Traffic was travelling about 45 mph most of the time. I pulled off I-95 in New Haven onto CT 34 west to take me to I-84 and Danbury. The ride was uneventful, it was raining steadily but I was staying dry thanks to the Concours full fairing and a good rainsuit. The rain stopped as I neared the exit for US 6 in New York. Turning from US 6 onto NY 284 the sky completely cleared, soon I was at my first stop of the day. I stopped for a quick photo of CR22 for the AWSHIDT, then proceeded the 1/2 mile north to Johnson. |
CR 22 Johnson, NY |
 US Post Office, Johnson, New York |
I had the address for the
Johnson Post Office, but upon arriving I found the buildings sign did not say Johnson, a
requirement under the Presidential Tour rules. I would have to look for a town sign for
the photo. No luck, back to the Post Office. The only other vehicle there was
a motorcycle parked around back. I photographed the building then went inside to see
if anyone could help me. I was told by the postal employee that the Johnson town sign had been removed a few weeks before for road improvements but had not yet been replaced. She was curious about what I was up to so I explained the Presidential and AWSHIDT tours to her. Being a motorcyclist herself, she was more than happy to try and help me out. While there were no signs she could lead me to, she had a photograph that was taken of the building during the previous winter. She dug it out of a filing cabinet and put a post mark on the back before handing it to me. That along with my photo of the same building might be proof enough of the visit. After exchanging a little chatter about motorcycling, the weather and children, I thanked her and was on my way. The temperature now was in the low eighties under a beautiful clear sky, perfect riding weather. |
| From Johnson it was south on
284 into New Jersey. Then 23 to 94 to US 206 south to I-80. I rode I-80 east,
crossed over the Pasaic River, took exit 61 and followed River Drive south to Garfield
where I was greeted by a nice roadside sign welcoming me to the "City of
Champions" After snapping the photo I was back on the Concours heading south on River Drive and 507 to my next destination. |
Garfield, New Jersey "City of Champions" |
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Harrison, New Jersey |
The going was very slow, stop
and go traffic so a few miles south in Rutherford I opted to cross the river on route 3 to
avoid all the congestion. Once over the river route 21 took me quickly south to I-280 to
recross the river into Harrison. I got off the highway onto Harrison Ave. and immediately traffic came to a stop. It took a bit but I found the Post Office, only to realize that at this time of day a photo of the front was nearly impossible. There was no place to park the bike for a shot, I had to find something else. I headed north to Kearny then turned around and watched for a city limit sign. I found this one at a busy intersection, so was forced to park on the sidewalk for the photo. Getting out of town was easy, I-280 east just a few miles and then the New Jersey Turnpike (I-95) south. |
| Staying south on the New
Jersey Turnpike for about 36 miles or so I pulled off at exit 8A and used 130 south
through Cranbury then 571 through Hightstown. I was soon looking at the Roosevelt Post Office. Closed for the day meant an easy shot by parking at the front door. One quick click, then on the road again. |
US Post Office, Roosevelt, New Jersey |
| After leaving
Roosevelt, I stayed on 571 until I reached 537 near Six Flags Great Adventure. The
town of Jackson, another of my target stops, was just a few miles away but for some reason
I forgot about it. My mind was set on getting to Atlantic City before dark. A
stop for a snack and some fuel and a check of the map, then on my way again. 537 then to 539 south through the Fort Dix Military Reservation seemed like the way to go. About 40 miles later I hit the Garden State Parkway for the 21 miles south to the Atlantic City Expressway. I pulled over in front of the Hilton and called Cathy. A few minutes later I was unloading my gear in the parking garage of the Ocean Club. Time was about 8:00 PM. After a nice dinner, Cathy and I strolled the boardwalk and checked out the casinos. Around midnight we turned in, tomorrow would be a full day. |
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