Tag Archives: virginia

Travelling to Pennsylvania, Summer of 2025, From Virginia to Pennsylvania

Leave a comment

Working Our Way to Pennsylvania, Day 3

State #4: Virginia

This Quality Inn motel was restful and the fact that it had breakfast was a big plus. I devoured sausage, eggs, and a few bagels and Wesley had a waffle and a bagel. Abby had some sausage and I am not sure Brandi even ate anything.

After we ate, we headed out. Our next stop is in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, but we do have one more state to visit, even if it is for just a second…

Thank you, Adobe, for your tremendous AI. LOL. It was so bad I had to use this.

State #5: West Virginia

I honestly did not think we were going to hit WV, but there we were. We visited the welcome center in Bunker Hill, stretched our legs and saw a lot of different dogs. I guess this is the place to take dogs because it was so large.

Wesley puts the flag of West Virginia on the F tier. Very critical!

State #6: Pennsylvania

We finally arrived at Pennsylvania’s welcome center in Greencastle. We are extremely close to Maryland, and Wesley actually thought we were going through it. We may have, and we just missed the welcome sign for all I know. We were headed to the Great Wolf Lodge in the Pocono Mountains, and I was tired. My eyes were heavy, and we made a good drive out of it. A few vast, beautiful vistas were driven through (those spots really needed pullovers), and the trees here were pretty. Seeing the sign welcoming us to the Poconos was a relief, and we finally made it. We finally made it.

Abby has low confidence, but one of my favorite things about our relationship is that I believe in her and she trusts me. She wanted to climb the rock and I said she can, and she shrugged her shoulders and climbed it.

We rolled through Pennsylvania and into those Poconos, all the way to the Great Wolf Lodge. We arrived early, unloaded, and went to our rooms. We did some exploring and we did some resting. The kids were excited, but I think everyone was exhausted. Abby and I did some exploring and I got one final pic for the day…

Travelling to Pennsylvania, Summer of 2025, From Tennessee to Virginia

Leave a comment

Working Our Way to Pennsylvania, Day 2

State #3: Tennessee

I never thought Econolodge would be such a restful spot, but I slept like a log. The room was nice, the air conditioner was armed with the coldest of polar blasters, and the room did not have an off-putting smell. I can’t really speak on the amenities of the place, except that coffee? Fuhgeddaboudit. The coffee available was decaf and tasted like someone screamed the word coffee into a pot of boiling, brown water.

I went right over to McDonald’s, picked up breakfast and coffee, and we were on our way. We wasted no time.

The drive through Tennessee took a minute, but every second was worth it. The scenery that this little pancake-shaped state offers to drivers is constantly changing from busy cities to the Smoky Mountains. We made one more stop, and it was one of the busiest Buc-ee’s truck stops I have ever seen.

Abby REALLY wants McDonalds for breakfast!
The busiest Buc-ee’s I have ever seen.
I have given this beaver enough money to get more than a hug, but I guess I will have to settle.

We killed about half an hour at the Buc-ee’s in Sevierville, TN, and loaded up on snacks. I got a little bit of gas from there, and I wish I had gotten a complete fill-up because they had a deal that if you purchased the premium car wash, you could pay $1.44 per gallon. Missed opportunity!

State #4: Virginia

We rolled into Bristol, Virginia and visited the welcome center. It was a small place with some things to see, but not a ton to do. A good leg stretching and some quick photos and we were back on the road. Oh, and on the way through we actually drove on a road with funny name…

Abby really wanted to take this photo!
Thus Always to Tyrants
We drove on Butt Hollow Road. I had to get a shot of this street sign. Had I had a wrench and a minute, I would have straight up stolen that sign.
Quality Inn in Verona, Virginia

We checked into a Quality Inn motel in Verona, VA, and we crashed. Brandi thought it was a hotel and was worried once she found out it was a motel. We have pretty crummy luck with motels, but I was tired and could have slept in the van. It was actually a nice place, and the funny smell was gone quickly.