"To all you Historycon attendees from the Northeast........" Topic

Having done the east coast crawl down 95 the past two years, I finally caved in and had AAA map out a route to avoid 95 coming from Boston.

I went the Mass pike to 84 to 81 to 66 to 17, which dropped me back onto 95 three miles from exit 130B.

WOW, it was a breeze, hit ZERO, as in no, traffic. Well, I shouldn't say that; the last three miles was bumper to bumper on 95, but other than that, it was a great ride.

Took me about 8.5 hours, which is about 2.5 to 3 hours less than the last two trips down here.

One of the best parts is coming down 81, I saw a sign for Antietam, so I took a little detour as well.

From New York and New Jersey, you can also go 78 to 81 to 66 to 17.

I HIGHLY recommend it, you'll thank me later this week; just buy my 1 or 12 adult beverages and we'll call it even.

I do the same thing coming from Canada. I take 81 south from Harrisburg, PA and follow the same route as you. And you're so right. After doing that drive, hitting the last few miles on I-95 is terrible.

Plus #66 is a very nice, scenic drive.

You came down 81 through Pennsylvania?
Better map out a better route on the way home. PennDOT has major plans for 81 around Scranton Friday.
One lane traffic just above the 84 junction which will if course back it up for miles south.

You can take the Pa Turnpike at Pittston to the end in Clarks Summit and pick up 81 South to pick up 84 or get back on 81 north to Canada.

Yes, that's a very scenic route with much less traffic. But from where I live in Philadelphia, it's also 100 miles farther. Think I'll stick with my usual route and hope I'm lucky :) Leaving here in about 30 minutes! See you there

I'm leaving the driving to Amtrak, RI to Fredericksburg

Boston traffic is often murder. We avoid the area by going through Brattleboro up to new Hampshire every year (Route 9). So going your way, you'd maybe take the mass pike down to 91 s and take the Merrit-Sawmill-Hutch-Hudson Pkwy over the GW bridge and back onto 95 across the NJ Tpk. From their it is 95 all the way. I can't stress enough though that timing is everything when you get to DC. Abandon all hope on 95S south of Springfield after 3:00.

If you are coming down 17 DON'T get on 95…..stay on 17 (in the left lane to bypass all the traffic turning onto 95)until it passes under 95, turn right on Route 1 and another right on Cowan Blvd, then right on Carl D Silver parkway and it takes you right to the convention center.

It looks like you could turn right from rt 1 onto Fall Hill Ave. That hits Carl D Silver Pkwy closer to the convention hall.

As a Virginian I can vouch for 17 to 95. Only one exit to travel on 95. The rest is gravy. Y'all Northerners have a nice safe trip. And please bring Yankee dollars. YA-HOO!

I agree with Winston. He is very knowledgeable about traffic in Northeast Pennsylvania.

@Razor – that's a good tip. Cowan is great, but you can also get off 1 a little earlier and get off on Fall Hill Ave, which will take you straight to the hotel area next to the convention center.

If you are getting there at night and want to check in at the convention hotels, that's a slightly better way to go IMO.

Somebody is thinking outside the box.I will try that myself.

Just a word of caution about western Virginia, esp. Rt. 81. The Virginia State Police don't play. You've got a 70mph speed limit, which is pretty generous, but if you go over, you stand a better than average risk of getting tagged. So, drive gently and get there without the PD spending some of your convention budget prematurely.

After posting I thought I should note that 81 is mostly 70mph, but there are stretches of 65mph near metro areas so a bit of vigilance is in order.

The could have routed you a couple miles further into Virginia and you could have come down Rte 3 on the South side of the Rappahannock. Not sure it would have been fast, but you drive right through the Wilderness.

I live 75 miles from the convention, but in an ironic twist tomorrow I will myself starting out in Philadelphia, PA while on company business.

Route 17 is a very genteel way to go, guys, and highly recommended. I just hope there isn't a bumper-to-bumper traffic jam of Historicon attendees on it after all these warnings!

81 in Pennsylvania is 65mph in rural but 55mph around cities.
We also have backward liquor laws.

Please note that Fall Hill Avenue has some construction going on in Fredericksburg, so stick to Cowan Blvd as your way back across I-95 and into Central Park if you are going the 17 to 1 approach.

As an alternative to the I-81/66/US 17, here's also US 15, which joins US 29, and then you can take Rte 3 from Culpeper--but that is definitely slower than the other route(s) mentioned.

Rob

Thanks for the comments and feedback.

And yes, when I went through West Virginia, the speed limit was 70, I did 60 t0 65; Massachusetts plate, West Virginia road, not a good combination.

And on the way back, AAA advised me to go 81 to 78 to 287 to 95 North, which is fine by me………

Thanks for the intel on Fall Hill Ave Rob. I was looking into going that way. Will by pass now.

Matthew

You came down 81 through Pennsylvania?
Better map out a better route on the way home. PennDOT has major plans for 81 around Scranton Friday.
One lane traffic just above the 84 junction which will if course back it up for miles south.

No, I come down 390 and 15. I catch 81 just south of Harrisburg. I am nowhere near Scranton…….luckily. I pass little pockets of road repair, but nothing worth noting.

I appreciate the advice.

Yes, Fall Hill Avenue is closed due to a bridge replacement project. You will have to use Cowan.

There's also some construction on 84 in PA that narrows it to one lane in sections.

Also right off 81 in Carlisle PA is the Carlisle Barracks. They have museum there that ranges from the AWI to Vietnam with some great outside displays…..if you need a break from the drive.

Also right off 81 in Carlisle PA is the Carlisle Barracks. They have museum there that ranges from the AWI to Vietnam with some great outside displays…..if you need a break from the drive.

Damn it, we drove by that on Tuesday, we could have stopped. We saw some pieces sitting out in a field.

Xin

@Katzbalger – thanks for the heads up on Fall Hill! I used that route last year, but I'm not a local – appreciate that intel. :)

Earlier today I was treated to another delightful close encounter with I95. Mapquest projected the trip length at 1hr 50 minutes. A half dozen rolling backups, a disabled State Police SUV, and 2 lane closures later my 1hr 50 minute trip ended up being 2hrs and 45 minutes.

As a mental dodge I figured on a 3 hr trip. So I actually arrived 15 minutes early. If I had been planning a 2 hr trip, I'd have been chewing the steering wheel outside Dumfrees.

Let's start a petition drive. Let's have I95 designated the Spawn of Satan Memorial Highway. How about the Benedict Arnold Throughway? No! I have it. The US Congressional Concourse.

Hopefully things will be better on the trip home Sunday.

Yeah,…right.

I'm sure I95 will be better during the weekend.

I-95 is generally NOT better on a summer weekend! Or was that comment meant to be sarcastic?

Rob

Yes, sarcastic, or sarcasm, as in dripping with it.

There are other ways to get to and from the convention, avoiding 95 in the process, not sure what the problem is.

And Historycon is going to be in the same place again next year, so again, if traffic isn't your bag, they do what I did and find an alternate route.

Your blood pressure will thank you……….

Kpinder, you're a couple of decades late: I95 was named that and worse back in the 90's when they were doing major work on the Beltway and around Franconia. Rolling Backups? You wish! Solid dead stopped bumper to bumper for hours sometimes.
You kids think you got it rough now….muttermutter uphill both ways…muttermutter barefoot through ten feet of snow in July….muttermutter 35 hours a day nine days a week,84 weeks a year….

Sorry, to me there's no convention that's worth fighting that kind of traffic. YMMV. See you at Fall In :)

> And Historycon is going to be in the same place again next year, so again, if traffic isn't your bag, they do what I did and find an alternate route.

Or do what I did, took off Thursday and Friday and played a monstergame at home.

Paul, which monstergame did you play?

It Never Snows from MMP. Here is the writeup on my blog.

link

The Fall Hill bridge is currently closed for repair until next Feb.

For the Civil War buffs coming down 17, there's a back road thru Remington,VA which takes you close to Brandy Station. You can cross at Kelly Ford and take Rt 620 over Elley's Ford and it pops you out in the middle of the Chancellorsville battlefield. Take Rt 3 east and your back near the convention center/Central Park