jmacswimmer Roadtrips

[jmacswimmer]

(Renaming this to be a catch-all thread for all my roadtrips & accompanying pictures)

I had mentioned these trips briefly in the "2023 road trip plans" thread & decided to start a thread to discuss them further & share some pics I took.

I made the first trip in August as a "last hurrah" before having to buckle down & start studying for the PE exam, which I took right before Thanksgiving. Then, after finding out I passed & receiving my license, I took the 2nd trip a week ago as a celebratory drive (and to help unwind from the wild few months it had been). While going in the same general directions each time, the goal was to minimize overlap between the 2 routes. Here are the routes I took for each:

Trip #1 in August:
Leave Baltimore area on I-95 SB, then I-495 Outer, I-66 WB, I-81 SB, I-77 NB, I-79 NB, US 48 EB, WV 92 SB, US 33 EB, WV 32 NB, US 48 EB, WV/VA 259 NB, US 50 EB, VA 37 NB, US 11 NB, I-81 NB, and finally return to Baltimore area on I-70 EB

Trip #2 in December:
Leave Baltimore area on I-70 WB, then I-68 WB, I-79 SB, US 19 SB (with a stop at the New River Gorge Bridge overlook), I-64 EB, I-295, I-95 NB, VA 207 EB, US 301 NB (in order to cross the new Nice Bridge for the 1st time), MD 5 NB, I-495 Outer, and finally return to Baltimore area on I-95 NB

I had had the ideas for both routes in the chamber for a while, and finally pulled the trigger on both as fitting (for a roadgeek, anyway) bookends to the preparation process. As a general observation - I knew both routes thru West Virginia would be scenic, and they were absolutely stunning in person. In particular:

-I-77 from Wytheville all the way to Charleston, in particular north of Beckley (though a certain user here might not like the curvature on the WV Turnpike between the Pax & Chelyan toll plazas)
-Corridor H from Davis to Wardensville
-Corridor L north of Summersville (which, speaking of - I was aware of its speedtrap reputation going in & carefully stuck to 50 throughout the area; there wound up being one cruiser parked in a median turnaround about halfway thru the segment but I didn't see them stop anyone)
-The New River Gorge
-I-64 from Beckley to Lexington

Both trips were also the first time I tried taking photos more extensively. Some turned out better than others, and will post some here as I have time to upload.

[jmacswimmer]

Trip #1 in August:
Leaving DC on I-66 WB (this photo is already out-of-date with the HOT lanes now being open):



Approaching I-81:


Both ends of the I-64 overlap:



Continuing south to Roanoke:



Blacksburg & VT:



Onward to Wytheville:



The wrong-way overlap:






Over (& thru) the mountains on I-77:








Into West Virginia & the WV Turnpike:




Bluestone Service Plaza:


Base & peak of Flat Top:



Toll Plaza A at Ghent (I remember the cash lanes being rather backed up - E-ZPass really paid off here!):


Approaching Beckley & I-64:



Beckley Service Plaza:


Leaving Beckley:



Toll Plaza B at Pax:


Onward to the tight section following Paint Creek - can confirm I didn't flip my car on any of the curves!



Morton Service Plaza:



Bender Bridge & Memorial Tunnel bypass:


Over to the windy portion following Cabin Creek:


Toll Plaza C at Chelyan (fun fact: was initially billed in the wrong vehicle class, but was able to get it corrected):


Following the Kanawha:


Crossing the Kanawha & reaching the end of the WV Turnpike:



WV Capital building & the end of the I-64/77 overlap:



Beginning of I-79:


Just past the north end of Corridor L:


Onward to Corridor H:




The racetrack:



Back to Corridor H:


Approaching the Allegheny Front & quick stop at the scenic overlook just before the descent:



Onward down the front:



Approaching Moorefield:



Onward to Wardensville:




Re-entering Virginia on WV/VA 259 & then picking up US 50 to Winchester:




Re-entering Maryland on I-81 & then a final stop at the South Mountain Welcome Center on I-70 before returning home:

[jmacswimmer]

And trip #2 in December:
Heading west on I-70:



Onto I-68 & Sideling Hill:



Snow beginning to appear at the higher elevations:






Into West Virginia, with a stop at the welcome center:




Southward on I-79:





Picking up Corridor L:





Crossing the Gauley & Meadow Rivers:



Passing US 60 & approaching the New River:



Stopping at the visitor center to check out the gorge overlooks:





Crossing the actual bridge & onward to Beckley:



Approaching the WV Turnpike (and North Beckley toll plaza):



A stop at the Beckley Service Plaza:




Continuing east onto I-64:







Crossing Glade Creek & descending Sandstone Mountain to the New River:






The Greenbrier River & approaching Virginia:



Entering Virginia & stopping at the welcome center:




Covington & the James River sources:




Big House & Little House Mountain, and the Maury River:



I-81 overlap:




Stopping at one of the scenic overlooks on the descent from Rockfish Gap:


I-295, then I-95, then VA 207 (and then US 301):




The new Nice Bridge (with the old Nice Bridge still standing, awaiting demolition):







One final stop at the Crain Memorial welcome center before returning home:

[jmacswimmer]

Mentioned briefly in the 2023 road trips thread, but last month my wife & I took a week-and-half-long trip out to Southern California to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. The places we hit included Long Beach, Rancho Palos Verdes, Santa Monica, Avalon/Catalina Island, Joshua Tree National Park, Palm Springs, San Diego, Laguna Beach, Anaheim, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Thousand Oaks, which meant lots and lots of driving  The freeways driven included the 5, 8, 10, 15, 56, 60, 91, 101, 105, 110, 163, 215, 405, & 710. Other notable roads included the 1/PCH, 47, 62, 75, & 111.

Planning to gradually post some driving photos day-by-day, but to start off is our outbound flight from BWI to LAX.

BWI Concourse B, featuring one of the newly-renovated restrooms while we all waited for all the food & coffee establishments to open at 5 AM:


On board at gate C8 (boarded on time, but then had to wait 30-40 minutes for the plane to fuel up due to issues with the BWI fueling system overnight):


Climbing out from BWI - MD 32 (and to a lesser extent I-70) is visible on the ground:


Crossing the Rocky Mountains:


Somewhere over Southern Utah (I think):



Reaching the Colorado River & Lake Mead - the Hoover Dam & O'Callaghan-Tillman Bridge are barely visible in the 2nd photo:



Vegas visible in the distance about a half-hour out from LAX:


San Gabriel Mountains above the clouds as we begin our approach to LAX:


Downtown LA visible as we're now lined up for runway 25L:


Taxiing in to Terminal 1:


Congestion on the upper roadway while waiting for our shuttle - waiting for & riding the shuttle to our rental car took far longer than deplaning, walking thru T1, & claiming our luggage:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 1: LAX, Long Beach, Rancho Palos Verdes, & Santa Monica

Departing LAX via Century Blvd, CA 1 thru the Airport Tunnel, I-105, & I-110:





CA 47 & the Vincent Thomas Bridge:





Followed shortly by I-710 & the Long Beach International Gateway:



Ocean Blvd & 2nd St east of downtown Long Beach:



The mouth of the San Gabriel River, as viewed from Ballast Point Brewing:


Back across the Long Beach International Gateway & Vincent Thomas Bridge:




Thru San Pedro towards Rancho Palos Verdes:





The cliffs by Point Vicente Lighthouse, with Catalina & Malibu visible in the distance in the 1st & 2nd photos, respectively:



Back thru San Pedro and up 110 to the 405 to the 10 to Santa Monica to finish off the driving for the day:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 2: Catalina Island

Not as much driving on this day for obvious reasons - the only mainland driving was from Santa Monica back to Long Beach to catch the Catalina Express, but we did rent a golf cart for a couple hours in order to drive up into the mountains immediately surrounding Avalon.

Down the 405 to the 710 to the ferry terminal:



Passing the Queensway Bridge and Shoreline Park while departing Long Beach:



Arriving in Avalon:



And onward to some of the Avalon roads & walkways:










My favorite photo from one of the roadway overlooks above Avalon:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 3: Back to the mainland and heading to the desert via the Inland Empire

Departing Avalon:




Arriving back in Long Beach:



Getting on the 710 to the 91:




Heading east past the 605, 5, 57, & 55 - featuring a rare actual exit-tab within California:






Congestion approaching & passing thru the 241 interchange (for reference, this was around 12:30):





Passing the Santa Ana Mountains & entering Riverside County:




Passing Corona & the 15 interchange:



Reaching Riverside & the end of 91 at the 60/215 interchange:



The 60/215 overlap & onward thru Moreno Valley:




Thru the Badlands - Caltrans did a great job with the truck lane project here:





Merged onto the 10 and continuing towards the San Gorgonio Pass:




Had to grab the infamous "Other Desert Cities" sign approaching Palm Springs:


And a stop at the Whitewater rest area before continuing to CA 62 towards Yucca Valley & Joshua Tree National Park:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 3 continued: The desert & Joshua Tree

Switching over to CA 62 from I-10:






Passing thru the Morongo Grade to San Bernardino County:



Morongo Valley, with the climb to Yucca Valley in the distance:


Yucca Valley:





Entering Joshua Tree National Park:







Sunset in the park:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 4: More desert & Joshua Tree, with dinner in Palm Springs

Sunrise while heading east on CA 62 past (town of) Joshua Tree & Twentynine Palms:





Heading back into Joshua Tree National Park, this time via the Twentynine Palms entrance:








Descending towards the Colorado Desert side of the park:




Arriving at the Cholla Cactus Garden:


Back towards the Mojave Desert side of the park:




Views across the Coachella Valley from Keys View:



Continuing from Keys View back towards the Joshua Tree entrance:







Descending out of the park back to the town of Joshua Tree:





Back towards Yucca Valley:





Descending to Morongo Valley, and then into Riverside County towards the Coachella Valley:





Briefly getting on the 10 from exit 117 to exit 120:




And finally entering Palm Springs for our anniversary dinner as the sun finished setting:

[kendancy66]

Am I the only one that cannot see any of the pictures? All I am getting is a empty box with a little graphic in the upper left corner of a broken thing.  IS that the same chrome permission issue?

[74/171FAN]

Am I the only one that cannot see any of the pictures? All I am getting is a empty box with a little graphic in the upper left corner of a broken thing.  IS that the same chrome permission issue?

I believe so.

[kendancy66]

I am getting an http error 429  Too many requests. from this url: as an example

https://i.imgur.com/bwWlTCd.jpg

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 5: Last hurrah in Joshua Tree National Park, followed by the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway

Leaving our airbnb and getting on CA 62 towards the park:



Heading up Park Blvd towards the Joshua Tree entrance:



A close-up of the entrance sign:


Went as far as Quail Springs and then turned back towards the exit:







A closeup of the CA 62 shield at the intersection with Park Blvd:


Descending into Morongo Valley again:


Approaching Palm Springs along N Indian Canyon Drive:


The base of the climb towards the tramway base station, as seen from the intersection with CA 111:


Continuing up:


Arriving at the base station:



Views across the Coachella Valley from the top - I-10 & CA 62 visible at various points:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 5 continued: Onward to San Diego

Descending back towards CA 111 from the tramway base station:



Heading northwest on CA 111 towards I-10:



Back on the 10:


Approaching the 60 split:



Back across the Badlands on CA 60:



And into Moreno Valley:






Approaching the I-215 interchange:



Now turned southward towards San Diego:







Merged onto I-15 and heading thru the mountains:











Passing Escondido and the beginning of the express toll lanes:






Jumping over to I-5 via CA 56:






Following the local bypass lanes from CA 56 thru the northern 5/805 interchange:




Passing UC San Diego, the CA 52 interchange, and exiting into Pacific Beach:





Heading down to Sunset Cliffs from Pacific Beach, with downtown (and SeaWorld) visible across Mission Bay:



Sunset Cliffs Boulevard:




Arriving at Sunset Cliffs:


Taking in our first west coast sunset:



Congestion heading north on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard immediately following the sunset:


Newport Ave in Ocean Beach:


And an instant-favorite street name, spotted intersecting Newport Ave:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 6: Bouncing around San Diego part 1

Heading towards the San Diego Zoo on I-5 south, with a quick pitstop for coffee at exit 22:


Intersection of Denver St & Clairemont Dr in Bay Park:


The 5/8 interchange:


Approaching downtown - the morning started off foggy which obscured the view a little bit:



Briefly getting on CA 163 & passing under the Cabrillo Bridge:



Arriving at the zoo just after opening time - spent most of the day there:


Views of CA 163, the Cabrillo Bridge, and a Southwest 737 on final approach to SAN from the back of the zoo:




A massive pedestrian overpass within the zoo connecting sections on either side of a deep valley:


After several hours & several miles walked within the zoo, decided to go relax at the beach - getting back on 5 south:



CA 75 & the Coronado Bridge:





Looking back towards downtown:



Passing thru Coronado & continuing down the Silver Strand:




Arriving at Silver Strand State Beach:



Several hours later, heading out again:





The Coronado Bridge & downtown in the distance:



Crossing back over the Coronado Bridge:





Back across downtown on the 5:





Approaching and briefly getting on the 8 (mainly just so I could say I'd been on it):



Exiting 8 onto Mission Bay Dr:


Continuing back into Pacific Beach:






And later heading over to Mission Beach to close out the day:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 7: Bouncing around San Diego part 2

Getting on I-5 north briefly to start the day:



And then immediately exiting for La Jolla:




Wandering around the village:



And checking out the cove, with sea lions all over the place:




Looking across the cliffs - we started the day by kayaking up to them below, but we forgot our waterproof cases at home


Heading down towards Pacific Beach from La Jolla:


Heading east on Grand Ave in Pacific Beach after another sunset:


Later on, attempted some night photos with mixed results on the way to downtown San Diego:



Getting on 8 briefly to connect over to the 5:



A view of downtown along with a badly-timed streetlight:


Missed the mark on this onramp signage for 5, but the Mona Lisa mural turned out ok instead:


Entering 10th Ave from 5 at the south end of CA 163:


Petco Park visible in the distance:


Wandering around Gaslamp Quarter:



And getting back on 5 towards Pacific Beach to end the night:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 8: Heading back up towards LA from San Diego, with stops in Laguna Beach & Anaheim

Heading north on I-5 bright & early (some fogginess prior to sunrise):




Switching to CA 1/PCH at Dana Point:





A quick look around Laguna Beach while getting coffee & breakfast:


Heading thru Laguna Canyon on CA 133:


Passing CA 73 & I-405:



And getting back on I-5:



Continuing towards Anaheim - the carpool lanes proved useful this morning:







Exiting at Harbor Blvd/Ball Rd - wonder where we possibly could have been going:




A lil roadgeekery from within Disneyland - the car ride definitely seemed to be geared towards a SoCal freeway theme and even had a replica of the Figueroa Street Tunnel facade:




And even a not-bad Caltrans impression for this sign in the San Fransokyo section of DCA:


Finally hitting the road again - the upside of spending all day at Disney was that congestion thru DTLA this late was no issue:


Passing the CA 91 interchange:



Followed by the I-605 interchange - the camera focused well on the roadway but at the expense of the overhead signage:


Somewhere between 605 & 710:


Passing 710:


Followed by the East LA Interchange - the 2nd turned out much better than the 1st:



DTLA as viewed from the 10 west:


Approaching the 110 (for reference, this was about 3 1/2 weeks before the pallet fire that closed this stretch):


Hitting the slot on 110 - midnight was the perfect time to do it:



Approaching & passing 101 at the Four Level Interchange:



And finally, the Figueroa Street Tunnels:

[jmacswimmer]

California Day 9: LA, Hollywood & Bev Hills

Approaching & entering the Arroyo Seco Parkway at its northern terminus:





Taking in the parkway SB with daylight after hitting NB at dark the night before:









Passing the 5 interchange:




Approaching downtown & the 101:








Heading up the 101 NB to Hollywood:




Entering Hollywood along Highland Ave:



A view from Sunset Blvd:


The sign, as viewed from near the Dolby Theatre:


A historic US 66 sign along Santa Monica Blvd in Beverly Hills:


Rodeo Dr:



A Santa Monica Blvd streetblade:


Looking down a nicely-landscaped Beverly Dr from Santa Monica Blvd:


Burton Way with a wide median:


The Burton/San Vicente intersection with a La Cienega streetblade:


This Marylander was excited to spot this streetblade along Fairfax Ave near the Grove:


And speaking of the Grove, had to check that out as well - apparently Taylor Swift as at the Grove's AMC a week earlier and my wife was extremely bummed we missed her by a week:



Fairfax Ave directly next to the farmers market:



A Sunset Blvd streetblade:


Looking down Hollywood Blvd:




And finally heading to Thousand Oaks for the evening - descending from Cahuenga Pass on the 101:


The 101/134/170 interchange:


Congestion passing thru the 405 interchange:


Exiting at Hampshire Rd just over the Ventura County line into Thousand Oaks: