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EPIC Wrong turns

Started by djsinco, February 16, 2013, 03:09:51 PM

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Scott5114

That could have easily resulted in a really bad situation. Crazy thing to do.
uncontrollable freak sardine salad chef


Brandon

Quote from: getemngo on October 04, 2013, 04:02:20 AM
Quote from: Road Hog on March 25, 2013, 05:23:48 PM
You used to not be able to do U-turns at service plazas on Florida's Turnpike, unless you drove through a service bay door. With the lack of exits, some U-turns or sort of intermediate exit are sorely needed though.

Ugh, Florida's Turnpike. My mom had the opposite problem when I was too young to remember many of the details - she couldn't find a way to enter it.

I went on a band trip to Cedar Point as a high school freshman, coming from the west, when our charter bus exited the Ohio Turnpike at OH 51 (exit 81) instead of OH 53 (exit 91). So, back to Toledo we went before heading east again! It was only a 25 mile detour, but of course it felt longer, and it's really baffling that a professional company would make that mistake.

I'm surprised they wanted to use O-53.  We usually go over to US-250 (Exit 118, Old Exit 7) to get to CP.

QuoteThen there was my willful act of ignorance. In 2007, I drove from college to Mt. Arvon, Michigan's highest point, by myself. Mt. Arvon is in the Huron Mountains, an area about the size of Rhode Island without a single through paved road. The official marked route involves swinging far to the north on the paved part of Skanee Road, then heading due south on logging roads to the summit. That was the route I took to get there.

However, I noticed that part of the route followed a posted snowmobile trail, one that I'd seen signs for in L'Anse and would have been much more direct. Without a map or GPS, in an area with weak phone reception, I decided to take it west. It went okay until I got to a 4-way intersection (unmarked, absolutely no roads are marked once you leave the pavement) and saw that ahead, the trail was too overgrown to take a sedan through. I arbitrarily took a left and tried to follow the most traveled road at each fork. Some of them were pure guesses. I worried about how if the road forced me east, I'd be in 4x4 only territory, and if it forced me south, it was a long way to Michigamme with no guarantee of being passable. Finally, after 45 minutes, I reached pavement by sheer dumb luck... and came within inches of hitting a deer about a mile later. I was never happier to reach US 41 after that.

Heh.  We've taken university (MTU) 15-passenger vans back there.  There's no signage once one leaves Skanee Road, even at the end of Skanee Road before Big Eric's Crossing.  Although, Big Eric's Crossing is a nice place to visit if you can remember how to get back there.  We even went east of there along logging trails to a few of the mountain tops for geology field trips.

If you don't know the back roads of the UP well or have a detailed map, it can be a right royal pain in the ass to figure out how to get around.  Shoot, even in 1997 H-58 was dirt and barely signed.  It took careful map reading to find the road to the Miner's Castle in Picture Rocks NL.
"If you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention." - Ramsay Bolton, "Game of Thrones"

"Symbolic of his struggle against reality." - Reg, "Monty Python's Life of Brian"

getemngo

Quote from: Scott5114 on October 04, 2013, 05:15:22 AM
That could have easily resulted in a really bad situation. Crazy thing to do.

Yes. Yes it was. Here's a story about getting lost hiking about 10 miles from where I was. But now I always know where I'm going beforehand, and the worst that ever happens is I get stuck in snow on a seasonal road. (And that has happened more than once.)


Quote from: Brandon on October 04, 2013, 11:12:00 AM
I'm surprised they wanted to use O-53.  We usually go over to US-250 (Exit 118, Old Exit 7) to get to CP.

Yeah, the bus company was weird. I can remember in a later year exiting the turnpike at OH 4, then going east on OH 2 to US 250.

QuoteHeh.  We've taken university (MTU) 15-passenger vans back there.  There's no signage once one leaves Skanee Road, even at the end of Skanee Road before Big Eric's Crossing.  Although, Big Eric's Crossing is a nice place to visit if you can remember how to get back there.  We even went east of there along logging trails to a few of the mountain tops for geology field trips.

If you don't know the back roads of the UP well or have a detailed map, it can be a right royal pain in the ass to figure out how to get around.  Shoot, even in 1997 H-58 was dirt and barely signed.  It took careful map reading to find the road to the Miner's Castle in Picture Rocks NL.

From what little I've seen past the end of Skanee Road, there's a few handmade signs pointing the way to Big Bay.  :-D  Dunno if you've ever been to Mt. Arvon, but there's now blue blazers and the occasional sign taking you the whole way. There's even a 3-way stop a couple miles from the top, and since my last visit, they've cleared some trees to provide a view.

If I host a meet exploring old (proposed) M-35, we'll drive across all this. I already have turn-by-turn directions across the whole thing.
~ Sam from Michigan

hbelkins

I've made a few minor wrong turns due to poor signage, but nothing major that I couldn't correct quickly.

Most recently was when I was traveling north on I-95 in Delaware and wanted to exit so I could take US 301 south to clinch it in Maryland. I figured that there would be a sign directing travelers to US 301 despite the fact that it ends at US 40 and doesn't go all the way to I-95. And I had forgotten that it was DE 296 that led to US 301. Not until I started seeing mileage signs for DE 1 & 7, I-295 & 495 and the Del Mem Br did I realize I'd passed by the exit because there was no signage for US 301. I turned around at the mall and headed back south, noting that unlike on the northbound side of I-95, there is a "To US 301" sign on the southbound side.


Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

Duke87

As part of my trip to my accommodations for the night after a certain wedding in Bel Air, MD, in August, I found myself driving north into PA on PA 74, with the intention that I would then make a right on PA 372 to head east towards Chester County. I of course had never driven this route before (or else, why would I be driving it then? :P), and I didn't really have a good concept of how far into PA I had to go before I hit PA 372.

Well, it was after dark, the junction is in a rural area with no lights, and is poorly signed - there is no "JCT" assembly, just a "EAST PA 372 -->" sign at the intersection itself. Blink and you'll miss it. Yep, I missed it.
I made it all the way to Red Lion before I said to myself "hold on, just how far is it to this turn I'm supposed to make?". I then pulled over, fired up the maps app on my phone, and discovered that I had passed the turn I wanted 16 miles ago. Oops! That mistake cost me a good half hour between overshooting and then backtracking.
If you always take the same road, you will never see anything new.

PHLBOS

#55
My EPIC wrong turn actually happened on a bike (as in bicycle) while in New Brunswick (Canada) back in the summer of 1981 (I was 15 at the time).

On Day Two of the week-long bike trip through New Brunswick & Prince Edward Island near Moncton; one of the bikers had relatives (aunt & uncle) that lived nearby that invited us to stop by for lunch since it was raining off-and-on. 

Somehow another biker & I got separted from rest of the group and turn NORTH on NB 126 and went nearly 15 to 20 miles looking for the other biker's relative's house (he stated that it was on NB 126) in the rain.

Realizing that we may have made a mistake, both of us turned back.  Along the way, we saw one of the supervisors of the trip approached us and directed us back.  It turned out that the house was only about a mile SOUTH of NB 126 intersection/interchange with TC 2.
GPS does NOT equal GOD

wphiii

Quote from: getemngo on October 04, 2013, 04:02:20 AMit's really baffling that a professional company would make that mistake.

I was on a Greyhound from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh once, and the driver just took I-376 around to I-279 and was full steam towards Erie, at which point I felt it would be prudent to ask him what exactly he was doing. He had no idea where he was going. Literally none. I directed him to the Greyhound station in Pittsburgh, and have ever since avoided riding Greyhound except for in desperate circumstances.

And of course, one of the only times I have traveled with Greyhound since then, from Washington to Pittsburgh, the bus was supposed to stop in Baltimore but the driver inexplicably went to.....Silver Spring, instead, at which point we had to turn around and cut back over to Baltimore, adding about an hour to the length of the trip.

I can't even fathom how a professional bus driver would blatantly not even know his or her own route.

jeffandnicole

Those Greyhound bus drivers don't seem to understand that buses are prohibited from the left lane of NJ Highways as well.  They don't know the route, nor do they know the laws of the states they drive in either.

hm insulators

Quote from: jeffandnicole on October 08, 2013, 12:11:12 PM
Those Greyhound bus drivers don't seem to understand that buses are prohibited from the left lane of NJ Highways as well.  They don't know the route, nor do they know the laws of the states they drive in either.

Professional bus drivers not knowing the route? That would be like a computer repairman not knowing how to use a mouse or a carpenter not knowing how to use a hammer! :pan:
Remember: If the women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.

I'd rather be a child of the road than a son of a ditch.


At what age do you tell a highway that it's been adopted?

agentsteel53

live from sunny San Diego.

http://shields.aaroads.com

jake@aaroads.com

vtk

Driving from Columbus to Bellevue for work once, I was on I-71 north, intending to take US 36 west to meet US 23 at Delaware.  Well, I also go to Mansfield for work frequently, so I zoned out and missed the exit.  10 miles later is the exit for OH 61.  I decided to try a new route to Bellevue from there, and it turned out not to take any extra time. That's now my preferred route, if I'm not starting on the west side of Columbus.

Another time I was driving to Bellevue, I missed the OH 61 exit, again because I was used to staying on I-71 for Mansfield.  9 more miles down the road, and I caught OH 95 back to OH 61 at Mt Gilead.  Again, it turned out not to delay me noticeably.

One day going to Bellevue, I was particularly distracted from navigation by the construction projects that have started to widen I-71.  I missed OH 61, and then I missed OH 95.  Of course I realized my mistake shortly thereafter, but it's another 15 miles to the next exit.  After a quick consultation of the map, I figured out how to make OH 97 work for me, arriving at Bellevue with only minimal delay.
Wait, it's all Ohio? Always has been.

HandsomeRob

Trying to drive home from a city park 2 blocks from his grandchildren's house in Dallas, William Gomez and his grandchildren ended up in Wisconsin.
http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/denton/Carrollton-police-issue-alert-for-missing-man-grandchildren-225748551.html

CNGL-Leudimin

It reminds me of that Belgian woman who wanted to go to a railway station not far from her house and ended in Croatia.
Supporter of the construction of several running gags, including I-366 with a speed limit of 85 mph (137 km/h) and the Hypotenuse.

Please note that I may mention "invalid" FM channels, i.e. ending in an even number or down to 87.5. These are valid in Europe.

Sanctimoniously

Quote from: HandsomeRob on October 10, 2013, 12:44:05 PM
Trying to drive home from a city park 2 blocks from his grandchildren's house in Dallas, William Gomez and his grandchildren ended up in Wisconsin.
http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/denton/Carrollton-police-issue-alert-for-missing-man-grandchildren-225748551.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Way_%28Fastball_song%29

I don't think I've taken any wrong turns that could be considered "epic". On my ill-fated trip from Norfolk to West Monroe last month, I was forced onto I-285 in the wrong direction, getting stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic until I could get off at an exit and make a turnaround. I think that's pretty much it.
Quote from: Scott5114 on December 22, 2013, 06:27:29 AM
[tt]wow                 very cringe
        such clearview          must photo
much clinch      so misalign         wow[/tt]

See it. Live it. Love it. Verdana.

Brandon

Quote from: HandsomeRob on October 10, 2013, 12:44:05 PM
Trying to drive home from a city park 2 blocks from his grandchildren's house in Dallas, William Gomez and his grandchildren ended up in Wisconsin.
http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/denton/Carrollton-police-issue-alert-for-missing-man-grandchildren-225748551.html

Quote from: CNGL-Leudimin on October 12, 2013, 12:01:47 PM
It reminds me of that Belgian woman who wanted to go to a railway station not far from her house and ended in Croatia.

How the hell can you get so ludicrously lost?  Wouldn't the simple fact that the trip is taking a hell of a lot longer than it should be a major fucking tip off?
"If you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention." - Ramsay Bolton, "Game of Thrones"

"Symbolic of his struggle against reality." - Reg, "Monty Python's Life of Brian"

mrsman

On a similar note, when I first moved to the Washington area, I dropped off my family at 14th just south of Independence near the Holocaust Musuem. 

I wanted to then circle the block and look for some street parking, so I stayed in the right lane.  Unfortunately, 14th Street becomes an expressway at the next block and leads to the bridge to Virginia.  I had to go all the way into Virginia to turn around.

1995hoo

I got utterly turned around in Edinburgh trying to find the car park the hotel's website said to use. Problem was, the website didn't say where the car park was and there were no signs. I found the hotel easily enough, but I must have gone around the block, and around associated other roads in the area, at least six times, including driving down a "buses-only" portion of Princes Street at one point. I finally came to my senses and parked in the short-stay car park at Waverly Station (located across the street from the hotel) and then walked over to the hotel, checked in, and asked for directions to the car park; I then retrieved the car and went and parked it in the recommended place. When I think of that I still wonder why it took me so long to realize I should do it that way. DUH!!!!  :pan:
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

Laura

Quote from: Brandon on October 15, 2013, 09:49:12 AM
How the hell can you get so ludicrously lost?  Wouldn't the simple fact that the trip is taking a hell of a lot longer than it should be a major fucking tip off?

Often, it's because they know they are lost and are trying to correct themselves...unsuccessfully.

I had a roommate who made a pretty epic wrong turn once. She was from Northern VA and was taking the GRE at a high school in a neighboring suburb while she was home on break. She was pretty terrible at directions, so her father tried to simplify it for her by giving her easy directions that would only require her to make three turns. The key was that she needed to go out of the back entrance of the school.

That day, she went out the side entrance instead. What should have been a 30 minute drive turned into 5 hours because she was too embarrassed to admit that she screwed up, so she kept trying to correct herself, thinking that she would eventually get home...she kept driving in circles. She eventually stumbled upon a road she knew and did get herself home.

Jardine

I have missed getting off at my exit on the Interstate (going home!!) twice.

Both times it was after dark, and I was also listening to Raw Dog on Sirius.


Now I listen to 70s, LOL!

elsmere241

#69
I once had an afternoon in Las Vegas with nothing to do so I thought I'd explore a little.  I turned down a rural road about fifty miles past Hoover Dam on US 93.  I thought the road might cross the Colorado River into Nevada, since the name of the road referenced the town on the Nevada side.  That wasn't the only mistake - I'd also seriously misjudged the scale on the Rand McNally.

After about twenty miles I wound up crossing into Lake Mead NRA (for Lake Mohave, the lake below Hoover Dam) right when it got dark.  The sign said "Stay on the roads" and at that point the road I was on went from semi-paved to dirt.  I got stuck at one point, and then went in circles trying to find the way back out.  The smart thing to do then would have been to turn off the ignition and wait the night to see my way back out.  Instead I kept going in circles and mistook a path for a wash, plowing my car into it, with one wheel in the air.  I got out of the car (without leaving the headlights on)figuring I'd entered a national park on a public road and there ought to be a pay phone close by.  I wound up spending a night and a day going in a big circle on foot.  I was dressed for the day in Las Vegas, and in February in the Southwest it does get cold at night.  I had no food, and didn't have my knife on me, and didn't think to take the tire iron out of the car to cut open one of the many barrel cacti in the area.

Around sunset on the second day I found the road I'd come in on, and started walking the twenty miles east back to US 93 and (relative) civilization.  Not long after sunrise I found a trailer a few miles west of 93 that was inhabited.  The Good Samaritans there took me in. ("Sip the Gatorade!  Don't try to gulp or you'll throw up!")  They found my car and towed it in (I'd put a piston through a valve).  I spent that day there resting, and they washed my clothes (giving me a T-shirt to replace the one I'd shredded), fed me, and let me sleep on the couch that night.  When I couldn't get a rental car they even gave me a ride back to Las Vegas.

jeffandnicole

Quote from: Laura Bianca on November 02, 2013, 10:03:43 PM
...The key was that she needed to go out of the back entrance of the school.

That day, she went out the side entrance instead....

I had a friend from Delaware that did something similiar - he needed to get from my house back to my then girlfriend's/future wife's house to pick up his then girlfriend/future wife (both our houses were in NJ).  I wrote down step by step instructions.  He followed the step by step instructions.   Except - I expected him to go one direction from my house...instead, he went the other direction.  He at least knew the area a little bit, and after seeing a diner that he knew wasn't on the correct route, he turned back the other way. 

Fortunately for him (as it turned out), he was going 53 in a 35 when passing by a cop.  Cop went after him, pulled him over.  Cop approached him, and my friend exclaimed that he was lost and needed to get to my gf's house (which happened to be in the next town over) and gave him the instructions I wrote.  Since these are all small towns and the cops are frequently in other nearby towns, he was familiar with the destination.  The cop gave him new step by step instructions and sent him on his way.  So, not a 5 hour detour, but probably a good 1 hour detour...for what should've been a 15 minute trip!

Quote from: elsmere241 on November 06, 2013, 11:41:24 AM
I once had an afternoon in Las Vegas with nothing to do so I thought I'd explore a little...When I couldn't get a rental car they even gave me a ride back to Las Vegas.

Not that what happened was great, but great story.  Glad those random people looked out for you and took care of you!



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