The road trip from New York to Tennessee - Day 2 @ Shenandoah National Park

We both were quite sick during this road trip(flu and cough for almost a week), thank goodness we had a good night rest on day 1.... feeling slightly better we continued our journey to the Great Smoky!

Early morning we had our breakfast and headed to Hawk Mountain Sanctuary which was about 10-15 minutes drive from our inn in a nearby town (i think it's Hamburg, remembering hotels in Jim Thorpe is quite pricey)

Upon arriving to Hawk Mountain Sanctuary weather was nice and cool. Entrance fee was $8/pax it's quite pricey to be honest as it's not really a large area

i was so fustrated here though smiley face....my GoPro Hero 5 couldn't turn on although I've charged it full the previous night (usually the GoPro battery only last half day for me) so pissed that i had to use my smartphone to take this picture...not too bad

It's a nice short hike up to the summit with a nice view and good place for bird watching

it's nice to bring some snacks to nibble while enjoying the view.

I would recommend this place if one has at least 1 day to spend here ( there is a longer hiking trail available) or else it's just not worth the price tag.

Moving on, i did plan to make a short stop over to Centralia, Pennsylvania  (about 45 minutes drive away from Hawk Mountain Sanctuary) where the movie Silent hill get the idea from. Centralia has from more than 1,000 residents in 1980 to only 7 in 2013 because of the cold mine fire which has been burning beneath the borough since 1962. Some scary stuff!! unfortunately my travel mate don't want to drive all the way there to see some graffiti on the road, also we do have a rather tight schedule to drive 4-5 hours to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia.

photo quality from GoPro Hero5

i got to say rather disappointed but it is handy but nothing a good smart phone can't do

And so we Manage to Arrive the North part of Shenandoah NP(Entrance Fee of $25/car valid for 7 days) at about 5pm a little behind schedule but we had a nice drive along Skyline Drive accompany with beautiful lushes green scenery and managed to hike a little @ Compton Peak trail (recommended)

at Dickey Ridge Visitor Center...unfortunately they close @ 5pm

photo take with my Nikon D90,

i still prefer my DSLR

scenic overlook

After a spending half the day driving, it's really rewarding to see this amazing view

Compton Peak trail

the hiking trail head doesn't really have a big sign from the Skinline Drive and we had to really pay attention to this small headstone with the trail name written on it

for more into--->  https://www.nps.gov/shen/compton-gap.htm

it was getting dark , we only manage to hike part of it and called it a day...don't want to risk being clawed by bears but the trail was not that bad...some rough area but nothing too strenuous 

one of the overlook

same location but with my D90

beautiful view of the Appalachian mountains

maybe one day we are crazy/sane enough to do the Appaclachian trail for now we just do parts and bits of it

we spend the night at a town called Luray @ Days inn which was really just outside north west part of Shenandoah NP. Day 3 more hiking in Shenandoah NP

~ to be continued~

The road trip from New York to Tennessee - Day 1 @ Jim Thorpe Town

Our big road trip of the year from New York - Tennessee, it's by far our furthest road trip ever planned to date and it's a 9 days trip. This time around our focus would be the 3 National Parks of the East, Shenandoah National Park(In Virginia), Great Smoky Mountain National Park(Tennessee) and Mammoth Cave National Park(Kentucky)lot of driving(it's all in different states)lots of hiking trails and highway inns/motel! I even bought a Gopro Hero5 especially for this trip

road trip check list

car? check!

travel mate? check!

camera? check!

out we go!!!

Day 1

start early morning from home(NY) went to New Jersey for a nice ramen @ Mizuwa Marketplace before heading to Jim Thorpe Town in Pennsylvania (our 1st stop)

Jim Thorpe town, it's a beautiful little town

i love the architecture and the colorful colors of the buildings, It's really nice to just walk around

There is so much to do here! Frantastic place for biking, bring your own or rent. Cycling along the Lehigh Gorge State Park trail and take the scenic railway. Hiking @ Glen Oneko Trail(proper footwear are highly encourage) too bad we didn't have much time

Old Jail Museum(Carbon County Jail Musum) entrance fee $8

It's a small jail built in the 1869-1870. There is a famous handprint left by a prisoner(Alexander Campbell), a "Molly Maguire" who was hanged in 1877, to proclaim his innocence "This handprint will remain as proof of my innocence". Legend has it that despite many attempts to remove it, including building a new wall, the mark still remains today.

did a video with my Gopro Hero5 too bad the file is too freaking big!!!!

the building was designed by John Haviland's son. John Haviland was a Englosh -born architect who designed the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia. The architecture between both buildings are very similar. I would suggest yo skip this Old Jail Museum if you have visited the Eastern State Penitentiary which is way bigger

----->  https://cemzie.blogspot.com/2016/06/eastern-state-penitentiary-philadelphia.html

had dinner @ Jim Thorpe town and headed to highway motel at the next town.....hotels in Jim Thorpe is slightly on the pricey side....as usual our budget is tight...haha

nite nite

~to be continued~