My 85 yr old dad has been riding with me for the past few years, up here in N Central PA. I can find LOTS of back roads with nice riding where he'd be comfortable with hardly any traffic. He & my stepmother are now at The Ballentine in Norfolk. He'd love for me to ride down sometime, and take him for another ride, but I don't know the area. Any "roads less traveled" down there where I don't have to get him out onto 64, or heavy traffic like beach traffic on a Friday night? They live on Granby St., which is route 460. What about 460 going north? Thanks for any help. He's nervous on the interstates. Would like to get into the country. He's good for a half hour to 45 minute ride, but he loves it.

 

Good luck. Nothing but surface streets with endless red-lights.. Just kicks your butt getting out of there and get caught in Base, Shipyard, or a wreck in the tunnel dumping traffic on the surface streets is a real pain. Forget the motorcycle. Or bring a trailer, haul his bike to Yorktown Va and get on the Colonial Parkway to Jamestown and return to trailer. Eastern shore is a possibility once thru the bay bridge tunnel but it is just a big open 4 lane..Pretty boring.

We take the Parkway to Jamestown quite often. 45 mph along the river and no red lights. Right before Jamestown, you hang a right and then a left and you can take the free ferry across the James River. Few miles up the road is Surrey. Take the second right at the second red light and a few miles down the road is a small roadside store that sells hams and other local stuff. They make a great deli ham salad sandwich, vinegar chips and a Dr Brown's Soda. Cain't go wrong there for $10.

 

As I suspected! After my first couple of trips down there, I told him I'd probably be visiting on 4 wheels rather than 2. He'd never be able to ride long enough to do the BRP or anything like that. It's about all I can do to get him up onto the bike in the first place. 45 minutes to an hour tops would do it. Thanks for the info.

 

Of course I always miss the point and though he had a bike to. Nice day and it did not bother him, he's not far from the Bay Bridge Tunnel to Eastern Shore (think $30 round trip without easy-pass) . Just doing 1/2 the bridge and tunnel stopping in the middle on fisherman's Island would be cool and only $15. Not far across the bridge is some places to stop to lunch. Pretty far on up the road is Chincoteague Island were they do to pony swim. Nice boat ride around the Island. Just did that. PS .. Those bridge rises scare RIP.