A two-day 4th of July weekend trip out to Pittsburgh and back to Lancaster using the original Lincoln Highway was the plan. Armed with the Minolta XG7 and Nikon FG-20 loaded with Harmon Phoenix 200 and Ilford HP5 400 respectively, we set out under the guidance of an app detailing the old highway route. The Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor non-profit maintained a portion of the highway complete with a museum in Latrobe. The normally under 4 hr. trip to Pittsburg would now take about 6-8 hours now including stops.
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classic crossing from Lancaster to York  | | old route sign |
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I alternated between the color Harmon and black and white Ilford. Extra attention whenever the Nikon and Ilford were shot, as my shutter speed would change when I advanced the roll. I adjusted settings on the fly, and with it being a bright and sunny day, my aperture remained pretty narrow.
Following information from Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor, we would be able to locate points of interests including old road signs and roadside attractions and historic buildings.
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| present day Lincoln Highway sign |
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| old commemorative gas pump |
Our first big stop of the first day was Gettysburg, fitting for that July 4th weekend. This was my first time in this historic city and we took a little time to visit some monuments and walk a few battlefield trails. One soldier stood by his cannon.
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| soldier by cannon |
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| general surveying battle |
Unbeknownst to me at the time, only my black and white images would ever make it out of the camera. Months later, the attempt to develop two color rolls simultaneously would backfire when the solution turned out to be spent. A trip to New Hampshire and Maine also fell victim in that development tank.
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| cement marker from 1928 |
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| roadside attraction |
With a Lincoln Highway address, our last major stop before Pittsburgh was the Flight 93 Memorial. My second visit, this time we had the chance to explore the inside exhibits as well as revisiting the grounds.
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| Tower of Voices |
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| visitors walking the flight path |
One of my favorite stops of the day was a visit to the Koontz Coffee Pot, a former dining place built in 1927. We spent a few minutes walking around the structure, another chance to spread legs. Glad I had chosen the black and white.
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| former diner |
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| novelty design for attraction |
After checking in, we walked to dinner then watched fireworks from the hotel that evening. Hotel breakfast the next morning, then off again following the route back to Lancaster. A few new planned stops and a chance to catch some missed sights.
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| old gas station, pumps removed |
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| roadside attraction |
The biggest stop of the return was the Lincoln Highway Experience Museum. The entrance fee included a guided audio tour and a slice of pie in a restored diner. We took our time through the exhibit, intrigued by the history, then enjoyed a coffee, pie on my end, and conversation with the friendly server.
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| original classic in museum |
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| old cigarette dispenser |
One distinct set of photos that I do remember shooting in color and subsequently losing was from the return trip. Near the Flight 93 Memorial was a garden that contained pieces of the wreckage and memorials and a waterfall. The colorful flowers had led me to choose the Harmon loaded Minolta for that walk.
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| restored diner |
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| museum exhibit |
After the disappointment of the color develop and loss of two rolls, I was on edge when I decided I decided to develop the Ilford roll. Still not completely sure what went wrong the c41 process and not-used-in-months chemistry, I was a bit more confident with the df96 monobath. My confidence proved correct and joy of film photography and home develop was restored.
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| shoe house |
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| Mister Ed's Elephant Museum & Candy Emporium |
Though the two-day, 16 hours of driving, old highway jaunt sent me to urgent care a few days later with a tweaked back, I plan on exploring the old highway a bit closer and slower.
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