Miata Mailing List: September 1996, Message #0141
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   From: Michael.Opalak@xcellenet.com

Subject: Atlanta to Canada, Day Two

   Date: Mon, 2 Sep 1996 10:35:19 -0500



Stephanie and I managed to get up and get to the Waffle House in Roanoke by 

7:45am.  By 8:15 we were back on the Parkway.  The Parkway has to be the 

best in the early morning or in the evening.  Traffic is almost nonexistent 

and the temperature is perfect.  Crisp and cool.  We quickly climbed up 

above the cloud level and captured a couple great photos of the peaks of 

various mountains poking up through the clouds.  By 10:45am we had reached 

the end of the Blue Ridge Parkway.  We could have continued on Skyline Drive,

 which goes north into the Shenandoah Valley, but we decided to hop straight 

to highway 81 to make up some lost time.



Trip Observation #1.  A kick butt stereo is a must on long road trips.  

Whenever we would start to get board or a little sleepy, in went a Greenday 

CD and we were soon singing along and laughing.  Its also perfect once the 

sun goes down and the temperature drops.  Just drop in some Dire Straits and 

all is well.



At 11:55am we made a quick stop at Taco Bell for some lunch.  We figured we 

would save time by eating in the car on the freeway.  We stopped on an exit 

ramp when we realized that the time saved eating on the road wouldn't be 

worth the money we would have to spend getting taco sauce out of our shirts.



By 12:35 we entered West Virginia, by 1:00pm we entered Maryland and by 1:

11pm we entered Pennsylvania.  No, we weren't doing 400mph, highway 81 

simply clips the corners of these states.  Pennsylvania is a beautiful state 

to drive through.  Lotsa rolling hills and farms, all very green.  Finally 

at 4:45pm we entered New York.  For some reason this is a heavily patrolled 

area.  We saw police car after police car on the side of the road, on on-

ramps and sitting in the medians.  So be careful.



Trip Observation #2:  You can pack anything in a Miata, if you put it in a 

soft sided duffel bag.  (Well maybe anything.)  Those who say the Miata is 

too small for long trips have obviously never tried.  We managed to fit a 

large duffel bag, two smaller duffel bags, a bottle of single malt for after-

drive recuperation and a shoe bag in the trunk, with two coats in the spare 

tire.  Behind the drivers seat we keep 132 CDs, a purse and some pistachios. 

 Three backpacks fit perfectly on the back shelf.



At 6:15 we stopped in Syracuse, NY for dinner at the Ponderosa steak house.  

 A dining pleasure, I can assure you.  If you go, ask for Evan.  The rest of 

the drive through New York was in the dark.  The temperature dropped 

significantly, but we put our coats on and turned the heater up and all was 

well.  We finally arrived at our destination, Oak Point in the 1000 Islands 

at 9:00pm sharp.  All in all, we did 1275 gorgeous miles in two days. From 

the back deck of our cabin, which litteraly touches the St. Lawrence River, 

we can see the south shore of Canada.



Look for more updates later in the week, when we turn around and do the 

whole thing over again in reverse.  (Not actually using the reverse gear, 

but returning to Atlanta.)



Michael Opalak

'91 A Classic Red

Peachtree Miata Club, Atlanta GA



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