Day 315 – Shenandoah National Park, VA to Lambertville, NJ

Day 315 – Shenandoah National Park, VA to Lambertville, NJ      07/02/2011      Mileage: 342

Morning came on the Blue Ridge and I broke camp one last time. It is hard to believe this will be my last day on the road after all this time and miles under my wheels. It will be bittersweet to finish this journey, as I am sad to see it end, but excited to get home to see my sister and friends. So after packing the bike, I pointed her north one final time.

The weather was perfect and rivaled only by the scenery, so I was savoring every bit of it.

The bike was running great as usual, but the drive sprockets and chain were now totally shot and the chain was bouncing all over the place and eating the swingarm slider. I adjusted the chain as best as I could…and simply hoped it would make it the last few hundred miles without flying off! I came down out of the Blue Ridge at the north end near Front Royal, VA and stopped off at a Starbucks to get some WiFi and make some plans to meet up with friends later today. Erik and Bob, friends and fellow moto heads, are going to ride out into Pennsylvania to meet up with me on the road and join me for the home stretch into Lambertville, NJ where I will officially end my journey. Back on the road, I had to stop and check the chain a few times so that was slowing my progress…but I finally made it to the rendezvous point. A short time later, Bob, on his Suzuki DR650 and Erik astride his KTM 640 Adventure, rolled up…it was so good to see them! Like true moto heads, they immediately started grilling me about the bike…how many oil changes, how man flats (None! More on that in another post) carb adjustments, mechanical problems…and then of course, the women…in that order! Ha! So after talking a little shop, we pointed our bikes to Lambertville to meet up with the rest of the gang.

I am a sushi addict and I didn’t have much opportunity to eat sushi along the way. So, I was craving sushi and my favorite sushi bar called Ota’Ya just so happens to be in Lambertville…needles to say it was a forgone conclusion where we were going to eat dinner! But first, some tequila!

…and another…

…and another…

Sushi and Jagermeister? These are the choices you make after tequila shots…

That is a boatload of sushi!

So, I guess that’s it…a little over 10 months and 42,000+ miles later it has come to an end. To say it has been a rewarding journey would of course only scratch the surface. I have learned much about the world around me and the spirit within me. I have slept out under the haunting glow of the Northern Lights, and guiding light of the Southern Cross. I think back to all the experiences I had and people I met along the way and I am, and always will be, forever grateful for having had the opportunity to do this trip. I have come away with many valuable life lessons which I will cherish and carry with me forever.

Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable.   -Sydney J. Harris