Plymouth, MA to Weymouth, MA

The last ride of this long journey. It seemed to take so long to get to this point and now at last it’s here. When we started back in June, we thought it would be just Bill and I on this last leg as it has been for most of the country. I tried not to worry about how I was going to find my way through Boston to the Old North Church. When we arrived in Plymouth, we found out that someone had volunteered to drive my truck and I into Boston. What a relief that was! But even more would unfold. Bill had his heart set on Tuesday, September 6^th to make the ride, but the weatherman predicted driving rain, wind, and flooding so we stayed put in the Pinewood Lodge Campground in Plymouth. As the morning wore on and the sun started to come out, the weatherman was not a very popular guy around here! LOL! We decided it would be Wednesday the 7^th no matter what! Bill and I woke up in the morning to overcast skies and by breakfast time, it was pouring rain. We were undaunted. The rain stopped shortly thereafter and we headed into Plymouth to meet the Chief there. When we arrived, we found out that 2 of the Plymouth Bicycle Patrol would be accompanying Bill as well as a cruiser out in front.

Chief Michael Botieri brought us into the conference room and wanted to know all about our trip.

We gave him the patches from Plymouth, North Carolina which he was really happy with. He in turn gave us patches and coins. When we went outside, we met their K-9 officer.

American Aluminum had given us quite a few goodies to give to a K-9 officer along the way, so we passed them along to him.

He showed us the k-9 unit in his cruiser made by American Aluminum

and gave us 2 K-9 coins.

Bill then locked his riding shoes into the pedals of his bike and joined the 2 Plymouth Bicycle Patrol, Officer David Lis and Officer Stephen Harrington.

They followed the officer in the cruiser and I followed behind them in the truck with the flashers on. We made our way to Plymouth Rock and I took a few nice shots to post here.

When we arrived at the Plymouth town line, the Bicycle Patrol turned back and Bill and I continued to follow the cruiser, Bill pedaling and me driving our truck. When we came to the Norwell Police and Fire building, we pulled in to say Thank-You

and also for a much needed bathroom break. We met with the Chief of Police and exchanged patches.

He was very excited that we had stopped by and was very generous to us. From there we headed to Weymouth, still being led by the officer from Plymouth. As we were driving up to the Police Station in Weymouth, I saw at least 25 Bicycle Patrolmen and wondered if there was a meeting or something. As Bill cycled past, they all applauded. When I parked the truck and got out, to my surprise I learned that the 28 Bicycle Patrol Officers would be riding with Bill all the way to Boston!

I couldn’t help it, I got all misty. After discussing details, it was decided that our truck would be left in Weymouth and I would ride in a cruiser! They had made arrangements for us to spend the night in Boston and the Bicycle Patrol presented us with a gift card for supper and I was overwhelmed yet again. We met with Chief Richard Grimes and traded patches and coins and he was very generous to us also. 

We met Captain David Phillips who was part of the Field Services Division in Weymouth with the K-9 Unit. Lt. David Murphy was there, he was the Commander of the Citywide Bicycle Unit in Boston and seemed to be the go-to guy for all of these arrangements. Sergeant James St. Croix and Officer Jen Pompeo from the Weymouth Bicycle Patrol also joined up with the Bicycle Patrols from Quincy and Boston.

There were 4 motorcycle patrolmen from Quincy

and several cruisers. A nice young officer named Isaac drove the cruiser I was in complete with my Cabella’s bag “luggage” LOL! So the whole lot of us started out for Boston! Thanks for reading. Stay tuned for the rest of the story!

Injuries!

Here we are only a day or two from the last ride of the trip and a trip and fall happens! Me this time! We went to the grocery store last night for a few things and one of the workers was pushing in a line of carts. We followed behind and the lady at the cafe said, "We're closed." So we turned around and went through the inner door into the foyer. What I didn't see was the rug that got rolled up on one end from the guy with the carts. I tripped over that, felt like I was sailing through the air and landed on my shoulder, elbow, and hip. Owee! I looked up to see shocked faces and an "Oh my Gawd!" and I just stayed put to assess the damage. One of the managers came over and asked if I wanted an ambulance and I said no, who wants to stay in a hospital waiting room until midnight?! Bill helped me back to the truck and we came back to the camper. This morning, my shoulder and elbow were hurting pretty bad so I was considering the hospital thing. We had made friends with the people next to us in the campground and as they were getting ready to go, we went over to say good-bye. They told us that Health Express in Plymouth might be a better place to go to avoid a long wait. We took their advice and went there after breakfast. I was beginning to wonder if I had knocked my shoulder out or cracked something. The doc looked me over and had some x-rays taken. This was the glamorous outfit that I got to model...

The x-rays came back and.......I hadn't broken anything! Yay! Just a little battered and bruised. So I limped back to the grocery store with Bill to pick up the few things we were after last night and came home. Oh, and it was mentioned in Health Express that there probably would have been a 6 to 8 hour wait had I gone to the hospital. So if you are in the Plymouth area and manage to injure yourself, get on over to the Health Express! Very nice caring people and a lot more reasonable than a hospital visit. Thank-you everyone! You made these injuries a little easier to handle! Please continue to pray for us so that things go smoothly for the last ride...and that hurricane needs to get out of here! LOL! Thanks for reading.

Running from Hermine!

We were in the middle of New Jersey when we saw the reports of Hurricane Hermine predicting devastating rain and wind. The campground spent the night in flooded a bit while we were there and it was time to make a decision. Since we were planning to drive through New York City anyway, we decided to make a run for Plymouth, Massachusetts before the hurricane hit. I was glad we drove through New York City,

we had three very close calls - one of which I was just waiting for the crunch sound. Our angels sure worked hard through that section of road! Then the shocking toll of $50 to cross the George Washington Bridge! Whew! It was good to see the "Welcome to Connecticut" sign!

We worked our way across to the campground in Plymouth being ever mindful of the storm hovering off-shore. When we called the campground to see if they had a spot for us for a few days, they said they had been full, but just received one cancellation. Guess that is where we're supposed to stay! :) After we registered and got settled in, we visited a few people out on Cape Cod

that we knew and they were kind and generous to us. Thank-you all so much! So the next couple of days  will be full of preparation for the final ride from Plymouth Rock here in Plymouth, MA to the Old North Church in Boston. There will be bike washing, cleaning out the truck, patches and the last 120 New Testaments to get ready, laundry, and making a run to the grocery store. Bill has all his miles in and we are looking forward to the last ride. Looks like Bill will have some bicycle police accompanying him for part of the way and I am hoping that someone will volunteer to drive me and the truck into Boston as I am a little chicken about doing that. I know, I know, what about all the bad@ss stuff I talk about...when it comes to driving to Boston, I'll be like "Driving Miss Daisy"! LOL! So I will get lots of pictures to share with you and please continue to pray that the weather holds for the final ride. Thanks for reading.

Pilesgrove, NJ to Jackson, NJ

Bill left at 6:45 this morning cycling between the raindrops.

He's headed East on Route 40 then it will be up the coast on Route 9. Looks like we'll be finishing a little early. We just need to get together with Boston to see if they can make arrangements for some people to join us. Our first meeting place today will be Pleasantville, NJ...yes, it's a real place! LOL! As I got closer, the traffic got heavier, there was more construction, and lots and lots of signs! I made a turn to get on 9 but then there were no more signs and I was back on 40. Next thing I know, I'm in Atlantic City! I called Bill and said, "Should I be seeing the ocean?" Nope! So I was able to turn around and find my way back to Route 9 with Bill's help and our cell phones. I caught up to him at last just as he entered the Garden State Parkway. Since he had over 61 miles in, we loaded up and started for the campground. He had been riding in torrential downpours and even had to stop at a little gas station on Route 9 because the rain was washing the sweat into his eyes and burning them. He told me about officers along the way that he had met. He thanked them and took their pictures and was on his way.

Thank-You gentlemen for the jobs that you do! Then we arrived at the Tip Tam Camping Resort where we hooked up and settled in. We worked on the blog and Facebook page and as we were finishing, it started pouring! I was getting a little concerned when the water started to get a few inches deep outside and was flowing like a river through the campground.

Fortunately, the storm was short-lived and an hour later, all the water was gone. I cooked some chicken and we had a nice supper before turning in for the evening. Thanks for reading.

Killens Pond State Park to Pilesgrove, NJ

Bill left this morning at 8 am in a morning fog.

He had an appointment for an interview at the Dover Police Station at 9 with WBOC-TV. I left an hour later to catch up to him. What I thought would be a 10 minute trip turned into a half hour. I arrived just as the TV crew pulled away. When I get a link to the interview, I'll post a link on our Facebook page. I did get to say Thank-You to this officer in his vehicle

and was able to give him a New Testament too. Thank-You sir for the job you do! Bill was in the police station talking with Sgt. Scott Sealund and Officer Jeff Davis. The latter also appeared on a great video which I have posted on our Twice Across America Facebook page! LOL! They took a nice picture

which includes, Officer Jeff Davis, Officer Derek Lawson, Bill, and Sgt. Scott Sealund. Sgt. Sealund has an uncle in law enforcement up in Weymouth, MA so we are going to see if we can look him up when we are up that way. Bill gave him a stack of the New Testaments to give to his men and he even managed to walk into the shot like it was planned during the interview! It was great! Sgt. Sealund and Bill traded patches in the interview too.

Thank-You all so much for the jobs you do! We both set our navigation for St. Georges, Delaware and started on our way. It took me quite a while to catch up and pass him as there were quite a few traffic lights along the way. I stopped at a small pull off to wait for him about a mile from the large bridge over the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.

When Bill pulled up, he had 45 miles in and since crossing bridges can be a little dicey at times, we packed up and drove to Four Seasons Family Campground where we were greeted by very friendly folks who sell big ice cream cones in the office! Yum! Our little hotspot came to our rescue so we could download rides from the Garmin and posts for the blog. Now that we are mostly done all that, I think I need one of those ice cream cones!

And check out the sign at the swimming pond! LOL!

Thanks for reading.

Westover, MD to Killens Pond State Park

Last night was a little noisy since we were really close to Route 13. We rested well though and Bill left at 6:45.

While I ate breakfast, I watched the Canada geese on the pond here.

There were about 40 of them! I called Bill at 10 as I hadn’t heard from him. He had stopped by a police station in Salisbury and met Chief Barbara Duncan. In the picture, she has her bicycle that she used when she was bicycle police in Brooklyn, NY.

They traded coins and patches and talked at length.

She was very impressed with what Bill was doing and introduced him to more people in the department so he could share his story. The Chief also shared a bracelet that was in memory of an officer who lost his life in the line of duty.

She asked Bill to share it with another police chief. He thanked them for the jobs they do and headed over to the Sheriff’s Office where he met with Chief Deputy Gary Baker. He showed him an extensive car collection a gentleman had given them

and shared a coin and a patch too.

They showed him their Command Center vehicle and then added that it was a converted Bookmobile. :) You remember those bookmobiles…they were built like tanks! LOL!

This is Lt. Tim Robinson, Bill, Chief Deputy Gary Baker and Lt. Rich Wiersberg. They wanted to take another picture in the conference room so that there would be a nice background.

This is Captain Babe Wilson, Lt. Tim Robinson, Bill, Chief Deputy Gary Baker, and Lt Rich Wiersberg. All of the officers there appreciated what Bill was doing and Bill was able to thank many of the people there. After we talked on the phone, I left the campground about ½ hour later and caught up to him at about 40 miles. By then, he had stopped at the State Police Barracks in Salisbury and met Detective Sergeant Michael Rickard

who also happens to be a “Very Serious Photographer”. :)

He had also recently hiked Mt. St. Helens so Bill gave him the Washington patch that we have been carrying for quite awhile. They enjoyed conversation together and Bill went on his way. Next, he stopped and said Thank-You to Trooper Saylor who was parked on the side of the road.

While he talked to him, he mentioned that there was another State Police Barracks about 10 miles down the road, so Bill said good-bye and headed there next. They welcomed him and provided water and one of the officers had his picture taken with Bill’s bike.

They were very glad that he stopped by and he was able to thank them too. We decided to each go another 20 miles looking for a campground along the way. I pulled over just outside of Harrington, Delaware to wait for him as I had not seen a campground. I found a small pull off on the side of the road and waited for him to cycle up. Bill will have over 60 miles in and we’ll call it a day. When he cycled up, he had 61 miles in! So we loaded up and drove to the nearby Killens Pond State Park to spend the night among the trees. Thanks for reading.

Temperanceville, VA to Westover, MD

After talking about the tires last night, we decided it was time to buy 2 of them for the little beach house on wheels. One was bald about 4 inches in on both sides and was the worst of the 2. One of the gentlemen that worked at the campground told us that Walmart might have the tires we needed. We left about 9 this morning and started for the closest Walmart about 17 miles from the campground. When we arrived, Bill drove the camper around the back to the tire center. The tires would be $100 apiece! Yow! Also, Walmart is not allowed to remove them from your RV. So Bill got out the jack from the pickup and found a way to jack up the camper. After removing the first one, we decided that we could probably get by with it until the end of the trip. The mechanic did a spin balance on it, Bill put it back on, moved the jack to the other side, and removed the bad tire. Bill asked if they could put our new spare on the rim instead of buying another tire, but after much discussion and a little arguing amongst themselves, the answer was "No." So we now have one new shiny tire and we are no longer as concerned about having a flat out on the road.

While all of this was going on, I went in and bought a few groceries. It was almost noon by the time everything was done, so we drove over to Lake Somerset Campground to spend the night. I had found a square frozen pizza in Walmart that I thought might fit in my teeny oven so got the oven lit and heated up to bake it. It looked great but somehow burned in the center of the pizza. Not sure why that happened, but I bet it was because the pizza had thawed before I could bake it. The freezer in here takes awhile to freeze some things...it can take 3-5 days just to freeze Freeze Pops! So I think the pizza will have to wait until we get back home. Thanks for reading.