Misc. Notes

I've forgotten to include these in my blog entries...

Montana
Despite being an underpopulated state, the major roads (US routes and interstates) are very well maintained. They're very smooth. When I got to Montana, I was expecting roads like those in Nebraska and Oklahoma, which are horrible with bumps and ruts. There are places with notices about construction and speeding fines being doubled, though no evidence of actual road construction. Where there is definite road construction going on, the speed limit is typically REDUCED to 65 mph. If they have to bring an interstate down to just two lanes for east and west, they will reduce it to 45 mph.

Washington
Each state has a graphic to identify their state routes on road signs. Some states use boring symbols. Connecticut uses a square. Oregon uses a circle. Other states are more creative. Kansas uses a sunflower (even though other states such as North Dakota have more sunflowers). North Dakota uses the profile of a Native American. Montana uses an arrowhead. But Washington was my favorite. They used the profile of George Washington to identify their state routes.

Oregon
Oregon is one of those few states which require gas to be pumped by an attendant, not the customer. It was a bit of a surprise when I experienced that the first time.