Busch Gardens Trip - Day 6

After a wonderful (almost) week of visiting my daughters, it was time to head back to New Hampshire.  I was awake at 0500 this morning and quickly got ready to depart.  Mollie had asked me to wake her up before I left and we were able to chat a bit as I was packing up the car.  By 0600, I departed Fredericksburg (via VA-3) and headed north on I-95.  Traffic was light and I made great time around DC (via the west side on I-495) and onto I-270.  My breakfast was the Chick-fil-A sandwich (Mollie had graciously given it to me).  The drive reminded me of many, many hiking trips I'd done over the years and the miles clicked quickly by as I drove through Frederick and got on US-15.  Passing through Thurmont, Emmitsburg, Gettysburg and Dillsburg, I enjoyed the voyage down memory lane...  I listened to audiobooks along the way and was soon in Harrisburg (PA-581, I-83) and on I-81.  From there, things continued to be pretty easy - driving wise - and the weather was beautiful.  I'd made plans to meet up with Carolyn for a late lunch so targeted Albany for my route towards home.  The only stops I made before then were for a short break at the NY Welcome Center (just south of Binghamton, before I got on some back roads to cut the corner to I-88) and at the BJs (gas fillup) and Walmart (can/bottle redemption) in Oneonta (1215).  Otherwise, my trip on the Interstates went quite well and I was on I-90 by 1300.  Taking a gamble (like my last trip) on possible tolls, I drove south to NY-7 and then was very careful as I drove across Schenectady and Niskayuna to reach Latham, where Carolyn lives.  I met up with her by 1345 and we drove a short distance to the Metro 7 Diner so we could have lunch.  The food was really good and we had a nice conversation.  Finished up at 1430, we drove back to her house to chance into some hiking gear so we could take a walk on the Mohawk-Hudson Bikeway (part of the larger Empire State Trail and Erie Canalway systems).  The weather was wonderful and, after parking near the intersection of River Road and Buhrmaster Road (1455), we ended up logging just under 4.5 miles on the trail in about 1.5 hours.  Our out-and-back route took us along the Mohawk River and all the way to eastern access road (Onderdonk Avenue) for the Water Treatment Plant.  We saw lots of birds but the most interesting one was a type I'd never encountered before: American Redstart.  It was very cool to note another new species for my eBird account and Carolyn got into the action as we encountered others.  Finished at 1625, we returned to Carolyn's so I could get back on the road - we said goodbye by 1635.  From Latham, I drove east on NY-7, north on I-87 and then east on NY-7 to Troy.  During this time, I talked with Brenna (who'd called while I was walking on the trail).  At 1650, I stopped at the Friendly's in Troy for my free birthday sundae (mmmm) and then ate it as I continued east into Vermont.  The rest of the drive was the typical route (NY/VT-279, US-7, VT-11/30, VT-103, I-91 and I-89) that has been so common since I've been living in New England. The best part of the drive was when I realized how cool the temperatures had gotten as I crossed the Connecticut River (70s - nice).  I arrived at my condo by 1930 and quickly unpacked the rental car.  Feeling quite good about getting the drive completed early, I relaxed with windows open (and a light breeze).  It was a great trip!