Goin’ Home
On Friday, I left Dayton, OH, bound for Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The land in western Ohio is very flat with trees here and there. After all, this is the corn belt, wonderful farming land, but east of Columbus it becomes gently rolling with more dense, fluffy deciduous trees. By the time I reached the eastern border of Ohio, I was in the foothills of the Appalachians.
My journey takes me through West Virginia, Pennsylvania, WV, again, then to MD. In WV, there is always an extra lane going up the mountain for slow traffic, and it ends at the top. Then there is a warning sign, a 5% – 7% grade for 5 or 7 miles. The longest one I found was a 6% grade for 13 miles! Going down, frequently there is a runaway truck ramp off to the right, paved with gravel, hopefully not needed, but available just in case.
It is exciting to travel through the mountains and the scenery is beautiful. For one who does landscape paintings, it is a feast for the eyes.