Drive
I-95: Exit by Exit Info, Maps, History and Trivia ,
by Stan Posner & Sandra Phillips-Posner
The fourth edition of Drive I-95
by Stan Posner and Sandra Phillips-Posner is now available,
and like good wine, this road guide series keeps getting
better and better. For the first time, the guide extends
its extraordinary coverage all the way to Miami, Florida.
In past editions, the guide stopped at about mile marker
14 in the northern section of Florida. Since the 4th
edition is about eight pages shorter than the 3rd and
covers much more territory, I was very curious how they
authors had managed to achieve such a feat. The answer
is: pretty cleverly! They restructured the map portions
so that a reader can use the book in either direction,
thus eliminating the need for a separate set of pages
for northbound maps. At the same time, they added 22
pages of new information about exits and attractions
found at each off-ramp. Also new are 23 more pages of
"stories of the road" which provide insider
tips about places to eat and explore on the 1500-mile
journey along Interstate 95 between Boston, Massachusetts
and Miami, Florida.
I-95, which runs from Houlton, Maine, to
Miami, Florida, is one of the most heavily traveled
routes in the United States. At 1,920 miles, it's the
longest north-south transcontinental route in the U.S.
It has the shortest state segment (.11 mile through
Washington, D.C.), it passes through more states (16)
than any other interstate highway, it was the most expensive
to build, and it passes through six of the top twenty
U.S. metropolitan areas. Every year, the road trip enthusiasts,
on the Great
American RoadTrip Forum, respond to hundreds of
queries from would-be travelers seeking alternative
scenic routes to I-95. But with this book in hand, travel
along Interstate 95 is easily transformed from a grueling
car trip to an adventure in roadside Americana along
one of the great highways in the United States.
 In
each new edition, the authors focus on a particular
category of attractions found along the way. In 2006,
they compiled what is arguably the best directory of
pet-friendly lodging options now available in print
along this popular route. This edition provides the
means to enjoy an on-the-road "chocolate experience,"
with suggestions for stops along the entire route that
will satisfy even the most extreme sweet tooth.
The constant evolution of modern highways
and the businesses they attract means that a slew of
roadside businesses have opened, closed or moved since
last year. The authors continue their admirable practice
of triple-checking every one of the 553 off-ramps to
ensure that the description and location of the hundreds
of restaurants, gas stations, rest areas and car washes
are accurate. This year, the resource guide at the end
of the book has been redesigned, making it incredibly
easy to locate campgrounds, golf courses, auto mechanic
repair centers, independent motels, and B&Bs that
are located in close proximity to off ramps along the
highway. Travelers seeking pet-friendly accommodations
will see a small dog symbol to the right of the name
of animal-accommodating motels. I also noticed that
farm stands selling fresh produce are now shown on the
map pages.
The map portion of the book is designed
so that the locations of services, exit roads, attractions,
and sign posts are positioned so they appear to be in
the "correct" orientation -- in other words,
how they would appear if the reader were to look up
from the book page and look at the highway. To make
things even easier, they have added the phrase "Drive
Up/Down The Page" at the top and bottom of each
page to help those of us who may be "map challenged."
Another element that aids in relating the map pages
to the real world is the addition of water tower symbols
and other easily seen visual points of reference. One
ingenious feature of the maps is that speed limits are
indicated in different shades of gray: the darker the
shade, the higher the limit on that section of the roadway.
A liberal use of landmark icons aid in navigating unfamiliar
roads, and the exit icons provide information about
all the other highway connections available at that
exit ramp. Each of the map pages covers either a fifteen-
or thirty-mile section along the roadway. The fifteen-mile
pages are used for places where the density of the information
requires more room on the page. The book also identifies
the known hiding spots of radar-equipped state police
cruisers along the entire route.
The "white detail pages" in the
center of the book provide information about quirky
museums, appealing B&Bs, historical sites, and fun
places to eat. These write-ups are well done and make
interesting reading. Plenty of trivia and historical
anecdotes are included. The big news this year is that
just about all of the 128 photos are in color, and the
pages have been redesigned to make them even easier
to read when going down the road. By my count there
are a whopping 162 new articles about places to explore
and visit never before covered in this guide. It is
really quite astonishing how many new attractions, lodging
options and restaurants the authors discover each year.
In addition, at the top of each page the authors have
included useful Web links for each of the states.
A few intriguing examples of this year's
additions include a discussion about the tree that "ate
Roger Williams" at his burial spot on a farm in
Rhode Island, and the Garbage Museum located near exit
30 in Connecticut, where visitors can see a transfer
station in full operation. A fabulous eatery you'd probably
never notice without this book is the Bay Gourmet near
exit 100 in Maryland, where topnotch food is served
behind a decidedly nondescript facade. In Florida, the
Alligator Farm Zoological Park in St. Augustine is a
standout with its twenty-three species of alligators
and crocodiles.
Still in business and in the book are appealing
roadside attractions like the spot to find yummy-sounding
shrimp gorgonzola crab cakes in Connecticut. You'll
find information about how to sleep overnight in sailor's
bunks aboard the Battleship New Jersey, and the Roundhouse
Railroad Museum near Macon, Georgia, lets you see a
still-working turntable that was once used to repair
train engines. Many more local landmarks, museums, eateries,
and wonders are profiled, many of which you might miss
without this book. It's also nice to know about the
super-clean bathrooms on the New Jersey Turnpike, the
stories behind the terms "hush puppies" and
"New England," and that the most-requested
recipe at the Lone Star Barbeque & Mercantile in
Santee, South Carolina, is Tomato Pie.
If you are one of the millions of drivers
who dread driving along I-95 each year, reading this
book could be a life-altering experience. It can turn
you into a highway expert with a seemingly uncanny ability
to find fascinating but little-known attractions and
fabulous road food known only to locals. With Drive-I-95,
a seasonal chore might well become one of the best road
trip experiences you've ever had.
Mark
Sedenquist
4/11/08
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