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Sunday, April 15, 2012

Earlier This Week . . .

We were stuck in a day-long series of traffic jams travelling from Cranston, RI to Manheim, PA to the last family visit of our Easter road trip, . Grenville told about it ranted in an earlier post. Thankfully, to sustain us we had the memories of a wonderful grand Easter visit  and a package of candy from Grenville’s aunt.

Here’s a visual of the traffic jam as we approached the GW Bridge. Notice the speed limit posting vs. the actual speedometer reading – 45 mph would have been like speeding in this jam.

traffic collage1After all the day’s traffic frustrations, we arrived in PA and ended our seemingly endless day with these beautiful sunsets . . .

sunset collage1

sunset collage2Things were better as we were leaving PA and drove through some scenic farmlands in Lancaster County.PA barn collage1When this lone tree and distant barn caught my attention, I shot it in landscape and portrait modes with selected coloration and semi-B&W. All were done straight in the Canon PowerShot S130 camera with no additional digital editing . ..

farms041112 (18)misc collageSeeing these beautiful sights after a frustrating early start, and a great visit with fellow blogger Doris/Fun Fahn Times (who also likes Panera Bread stops) reminded us that we shouldn’t sweat the small stuff – even traffic tie-ups.

But just to be on the safe side next time we travel this route, we’re avoiding the George Washington Bridge and taking the Tappan Zee instead – no matter WHAT the GPS suggests – cause it’s not driving the route.

17 comments:

Unknown said...

shudder the traffic....hate that, reminds me of so many hours of my life wasted sitting in similar in CA all those years. Beautiful shots of the PA slies though. I was just doing some catch up blog reading and noticed your new post. Safe travels...hope some of that box of candy makes it all the way!

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

Hi Pat and welcome back. We spent a month driving the 405 in CA when our grandson Bobby was born as his parents were living there at the time. He was a preemie and in the neo-natal unit for a couple of weeks, hence all our highway driving. It was a small package of hazelnut candy that lasted only throughout the drive.

Connie said...

That traffic looks quite dreadful, but I'm glad the day ended in such a gorgeous sunset for you. I like the different ways you captured the same scene with your camera settings.

(GBS) NewsFromTheHill said...

Great photos! And seeing those cute grands made all the traffic woes worth it I'm sure!

Montanagirl said...

I wouldn't do well in that kind of traffic. Love your sunset shots, and the tree landscapes.

Mellodee said...

Traffic has become (and continues to get) worse with every passing day! And it appears to be a problem all across the country. It makes me wonder why so many of us live so far away from the places we want to go!! Glad that your drive time didn't completely spoil your journey.

Your sunset photos are particularly striking!

Anonymous said...

So sorry about the traffic jams. You did get some extraordinary photos later on and I read about your visit with dear friend, Doris. Enjoy your Monday.

Elaine said...

Beautiful sunset and farm collages, and the tree and barn photos are lovely. Nice to get away from all that traffic into some peaceful farm country.

MadSnapper said...

the GPS will tell you that you are on the wrong route, or so i am told. what a wow of an ending for the day of traffic jams. sky is stunning and i love that tree and the different settings.

Lois Evensen said...

Thanks for sharing your road trip. As you know, we love road trips, too. :))

Ginnie said...

On my frequent trips North I always scoot over to Rt.81 North, even though it is a little longer mile-wise...but I make up for it in lovely scenery, less traffic & MUCH less stress.
Your pictures are lovely.

Anonymous said...

Thankfully we rarely have traffic jam's like that here. But we had it all the time when I lived in Gothenburg and I have to admit I don't miss it at all :-)

I really like those three photographs with the lone tree and barn, they're just beautiful!

Have a great day!
CFhrister.

Ginny Hartzler said...

Hi there! I have seen your blog before, maybe we commented to each other a bit in the past? I also know that my best blog buddy Sandra follows you! Your blog is s lovely, you are such a good photographer. We live in the Shenandoah Valley in central Virginia, in the city of Waynesboro. So we live at the base of Afton mountain about 25 minutes from Charlottesville. Do you know where that is? How far is it from you? My folks were from Pennsylvania. But I have not been there since a teenager, wish I could go again. We have lived here for almost 45 years.

possum said...

If I had to drive thru that kind of traffic, I just would not go. I even hate Route 13!
Love that barn and tree without the bright color. Perfect!

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

Hi Daisy, you can get a variety of effects with the settings in many of the current "point & shoot" digital cameras and they are such fun. Glad you enjoyed these.

Yes, Grace the visits were wonderful and thankfully these traffic woes came later.

Mona, that's why Grenville drives cause I would not do well either. Thanks for the compliments on the sunsets all taken from a moving vehicle, but it was going s-l-o-w.

Mellodee, cutting down on a long drive time is why we are planning to relocate to New England and will then only hand an 1-1/2 commute to visit the grands. I was rather pleased too with the sunset shots.

Hi Elaine, I thought of your fondness for barns while I was capturing these and glad you enjoyed them!

Yes Lois, I well know your fondness for all trips - land and sea. Thanks for stopping by and hope your return home continues to go well.

Thanks Ginnie, sometimes taking a longer route is better than a shorter, congested one as we learned so the GW bridge will be avoided even if it supposedly cuts the trip by an hr. This time it added nearly 3 hours!

Welcome back Ginny and yes we have visited one another's blogs before. I forgot where you lived in VA. We are on the VA eastern shore, which is not near any major cist unless you drive 1-1/2 hrs across the Chesapeake Bay-Bridge Tunnel to reach VA Beach or head north the same amount of time to Salisbury, MD. We have friends who live in Newport, VA and we have visited Charlottesburg as well and it was quite a distance from us. We used to live in NJ and look forward to relocating to NH.

Possum, it's becoming harder to escape traffic anywhere and sometimes even on Rte 13. Thanks for the comments on the tree photos!

grammie g said...

Hi B...Sorry about that traffic jam...I have never been in a big one... yuck what a horrible way to spent your time ; }
Love the photos..the sunset ones are nice,but the ones the old building and the tree are just gorgeous ...love the different looks !!
Grace

Anvilcloud said...

The end of the trip seems much better than the beginning.