Day 11: OH, MI, PA, NY

October 15, 2011

I usually would've left by 7 am local time. But had to do a later start as the car rental company didn't open until 9 am. By the time I hit the road on my new ride, a silver Nissan Altima, it was half past 9.

We were given the opportunity to experience another weather pattern – high winds. All the way from Cincinnati, OH to Buffalo, NY, the winds were extremely strong. So much so that every time we took a break, we could barely spend a few minutes out – had to get back into the comfort of the car.

I had to drive through some shady spots in Toledo, OH before entering Michigan. I quickly got out and back on the freeway and went through the first road toll – Ohio turnpike and subsequently in NY to drive on I-90E.

I didn't realize Pennsylvania calls itself the "Commonwealth of Pennsylvania". One of the most amusing road signs I saw was in PA – it said, "Bridge ices before the roads". A wonderful observation for the motorists who will have to make their judgments based on that critical scientific observation.

The ride today was uneventful – just going through one state after the other. There are a handful of pictures from today below. In a PA rest area, we ran into two lovely Samoyed dogs. Interestingly, when we did a DNA test on Apollo, he was found to have traces of Samoyed in him. I didn't believe it. He is clearly a lab / beagle / basenji mix. Seeing the two beautiful Samoyed dogs only confirmed that.