Well, here it is Sunday, and I am finally sitting down to finish Day 10 of our Crazy 8 adventure!
We actually arrived home Friday evening, but after ten days on the road, approximately 2,035 miles, countless pictures, nine previous blog posts and more unpacking than I care to think about, the final blog just didn't happen Friday night. 😂
So, two days late or not, I couldn't leave our Crazy 8 hanging somewhere between New York and Virginia!
Here's how our final day went...
First Mark grabbed this picture of the sun coming up at our hotel!
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We pulled out of our hotel Friday morning at 7:55 a.m., headed for home.
But first things first.
Dunkin'! ☕
Some things remained consistent throughout this entire trip. 😂 Coffee in hand, we got back on the road just like that, we were really headed home — crossing the Hudson River on the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, with one last pretty New York view from the road.
Just when we thought we were finished collecting states, we managed to add another to the list. New Jersey! Of course, I missed the sign, so no picture of that one. 😂 At this point, we had collected states almost as successfully as we collected ice cream stops. 🍦😂
Lunch in Jonestown, Pennsylvania
By lunchtime, we had made our way to Jonestown, Pennsylvania, where we stopped at Moose's LZ Bar & Grill. And apparently we were right at the entrance to Fort Indiantown Gap — you can even see the sign pointing the way in our photo!
Jonestown turned out to have some history of its own. The community dates back to the 1700s and lies in Pennsylvania's historic Lebanon Valley, which was heavily settled by German-speaking immigrants. It's another example of something we discovered over and over on this trip — even the little places we passed through or stopped in for a meal often had a story behind them.
Of course, history wasn't the only thing on our minds at that particular moment.
We were hungry! 😂
Moose's LZ took care of that nicely. Our table was soon filled with soup, sandwiches, onion rings, fries, sweet potato fries and plenty more.
Nobody was leaving there hungry!
And One More Ice Cream Stop 🍨
After lunch, it was back into the cars and onward toward Virginia.
But there was still one important piece of unfinished Crazy 8 business.
Ice cream! 🍨😂
Yes, we managed to squeeze in one last ice cream stop before getting home Buster's in Leesburg.
After ten days and all the ice cream shops we had managed to find between Virginia and Maine, it would almost have been wrong NOT to stop one more time.
We had a reputation to uphold! 😂
Our Trip Had Matching Bookends 😂
There was also one last funny coincidence that Mark reminded me of our hotel in Lake George.
At the beginning of our trip, we came out to our legally parked vehicle — handicap tag displayed — and discovered another vehicle parked right between us in the striped access aisle beside us.
And then, on our last morning, wouldn't you know it?
It happened again! 🤦♀️😂
Different city same state but different hotel parking lot. Different vehicle.
Same blue-striped access aisle apparently mistaken for a parking space.
The beginning and the end. Our Crazy 8 parking-lot bookends! 😂
2,035 Miles Later...
Eventually the familiar scenery began appearing and we knew we were getting close.
Mark figured that during our ten-day adventure, we drove approximately 2,035 miles.
Think about that for a minute:
10 days.
8 friends.
2 cars.
Approximately 2,035 miles.
And an awful lot of memories packed into every one of them.
We made it home Friday evening before dark, which was a pretty wonderful sight after all those miles.
But before we separated, Mark made a prediction.
He said he was willing to predict that one of the first things Michael would do when he got home was...
LAUNDRY. 😂
Well, Mark knows Michael.
There was one thing that came first.
Murphy! 🐈❤️
Michael had to pet Murphy and make sure he got his Churu. Priorities, after all.
Murphy properly welcomed and treated, Michael proceeded to do exactly what Mark predicted.
He started the laundry. 😂
And that was it.
We were home.
❤️ Looking Back at the Crazy 8 Adventure
Now that I've had a couple of days at home to look back on everything, it's hard to believe how much we packed into those ten days.
We saw mountains and lakes, covered bridges and lighthouses. We visited historic places, museums and little towns. We saw old cars, beautiful scenery and things we never expected to find. We shopped, ate lobster in Maine, discovered some wonderful restaurants and certainly did our part to support the ice cream industry throughout the Northeast. 😂
Some things went exactly according to plan.
Some plans changed.
Some things we never got to do.
And some of our favorite discoveries happened simply because we happened to be driving down the right road at the right time.
There were early mornings and long days, lots of getting in and out of two cars, suitcases that seemed to get heavier every time we moved them, and more photographs than any eight people probably need.
But that's what makes a road trip a road trip.
And now we have ten days of stories that will probably begin with "Remember when the Crazy 8..." for a long time to come.
The Crazy 8 New England Adventure
September 9–18, 2026
10 days • 8 friends • 2 cars • approximately 2,035 miles
And yes, after all those hotels, all those miles and all those adventures, there really was something wonderful about sleeping in our own bed Friday night. ❤️
The suitcases are unpacked. Michael has certainly caught up on the laundry by now. 😂 Murphy has his people home.
And I have finally finished Day 10.
The Crazy 8 are home — and THAT'S A WRAP! ❤️🚗
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