Day 20: June 21st, Madawaska, True X Completed!

On the road at 8AM I was excited to be within reach of finishing the True X.  This has been a long hard ride!

I-84 took me through Waterbury and Hartford to MA’s I-90.  Traffic was light all the way and I was clipping along pretty well.  Taking the very first exit on I-90 I took 295 north to I-495 that runs around Bahstan.  Actually, I think I joined onto I-95 somewhere very close to the NH border.  And of course, I’m in that part of the USA where the states charge tolls to ride the interstates!

My spirits were buoyed by the great time I was making and the thought of successfully completing the event in 20 days.  Oh, I did have one little goof up. Just south of Portland ME one can continue on I-95 (longer route) or take 295 (Toll road but shorter and faster).  I elected to take 295 and, with the traffic at the time, managed to get into the EZPass lane by mistake.  I stopped at the Toll Booth expecting to see a person to collect my $1 but no one was there….sure confused me.  Then cars behind me started honking their horns (for a supposedly laid back state these commuters are sure impatient!).  That’s when I realized I was in the wrong lane so I continued through and pulled off to the side of the road to park the bike.  I walked back to the manned toll booth and the fella there gave me a card with a phone number to call to make an on-phone payment thereby avoiding a fine….Whew!  Am glad I went back to clear things up!

The rest of the ride was uneventful until exit 276 where the interstate is closed.  Traffic was detoured through the countryside to Dyer Brook on ramp back onto I-95.  Houlton was finally reached and I ate a quick sandwich, refueled and was on US-1 north to the final destination!

I was a little anxious however, as it was already 6:15 and I know that this road can be a very slow one.  But not today….it traveled well, even through the towns including Presque Isle.  Many sights from my prior rides through here were recognized and soon Madawaska showed up over the handle bars!

Yaaayyyy!  I made it just before sunset! 

First priority was to refuel and obtain my gas receipt to close out the ride in 20 days.  Second priority was to get a tall beer, chips, hot sauce and then scoot over to Martin’s Motel where I sat on the porch rewarding myself with Bourbon Boiler Makers while eating chips and sauce and talking to my buddies who were so instrumental in helping me finish this ride.

Ahhh, now I can go back to riding “Gonzo Style”; low mileage days, photo taking, meeting fellow Americans, and smelling the flowers !!

Tomorrow I'll get photo's at the Park with Joe.

C ya mañana,
Gonzo
Twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
Email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com
Cell: 949-433-0761
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