USA – Mid Atlantic (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York)

After departing Springfied, Virginia we drove to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Despite this being our first time here and 2 – 3 days being the recommended time to properly soak up the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg, we decided to squeeze it all in in one long, action packed day. First stop was to the visitor’s center where a short film (narrated by Morgan Freeman), followed by the cyclorama, then a few hours at the excellent museum before hitting the battlefield. We learned so much from our visit to Gettysburg and were very happy that we included it on our road trip. From Gettysburg, we hit up a few covered bridges, checked out a round barn, scored free chocolate at the Hershey’s Chocolate World tour, and walked the full length of an abandoned highway in creepy Centralia. Our last stop in Pennsylvania was Valley Forge, military encampment for the Continental Army in 1778. The termination of our USA road trip included family reunions in New Jersey and New York before the short drive to Massachusetts to winterize and store Big Bertha. 17,000 miles, 34 States, 22 weeks…this was an epic USA road trip. We discovered that the US is even more beautiful than we could have dreamed of, and can’t wait to return to do another extended road trip next year.

"Pursue your happiness" welcome sign in Pennsylvania Robby poses with the Abraham Lincoln statue; Gettysburg Gettysburg cyclorama depicting Pickett's Charge - this amazing painting is longer than a football field and taller than a 4 story building! "Unite or die" snake - slave states were urged to unite to preserve their way of life in this symbol of the Confederate cause 10 Confederate dollars; Gettysburg Museum Voting stickers and buttons; Gettysburg Museum Detail on the State of Virginia Monument at Gettysburg
Union soldier swinging his rifle like a club - the State of Mississippi monument; Gettysburg Alabama State monument commemorating the state's Confederate units that fought in the Battle of Gettysburg View from Little Round Top; Gettysburg Cemetery Ridge; Gettysburg It is well that war is so terrible, otherwise we should grow too fond of it - Robert E. Lee The quaint town of Gettysburg hosts 3 million visitors annually Gettysburg's historic train station Sachs covered bridge Historic Round Barn; Gettysburg Delicious fresh fruit for sale at the round barn; Gettysburg Bowser beer for dogs! Goats eyeballing our peaches; Historic Round Barn Cardinal bird Hershey's chocolate world Milton S. Hershey wanted to make people happy with his famous chocolate Robby with a super sized bottle of chocolate syrup; Hershey chocolate world Pennsylania's graffiti highway can be found in Centralia, which was abandoned and became a ghost town between the 1960s and 70s Robby on the abandoned graffiti highway; Centralia "Adventure is out here"; Graffiti highway Muhlenberg Huts; Valley Forge National Memorial Arch; Valley Forge Detail on the memorial arch; Valley Forge Washington's Headquarters; Valley Forge Statue of Baron von Steuben who trained the Continental army in close order drill; Valley Forge Archway of the Washington Memorial Chapel; Valley Forge Purple Heart Memorial Bridge (used to be the Bear Mountain Bridge) spanning across the Hudson River US 9W overlook; United States Military Academy Duck crossing sign; New Jersey Charlie Rose begging for attention; Egg Harbor Township lightbox flash jqueryby VisualLightBox.com v6.1

Itinerary

26 Aug: Drove from Springfield, VA to Gettysburg, PA. O/n free camping at Gettysburg Walmart
27 Aug: Visited Gettysburg National Military Park. O/n free camping at Gettysburg Walmart
28 Aug: Visited Sachs covered bridge, Historic Round Barn, Heikes covered bridge before driving to Hershey’s Chocolate World. Did free tour and drove to Centralia’s abandoned highway and ghost town. O/n free camping at Pottstown Walmart
29 Aug: Visited Valley Forge before departing PA and drove towards Egg Harbor Township, NJ. O/n at Lisa’s.
30 Aug: Departed NJ and drove towards Schenectady, NY. O/n at Nancy’s.
31 Aug: Departed NY and drove towards Hopkinton, MA. Road trip complete.

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