After spending a weekend at Lake Fairfax Park in northern Virginia, we made our way into Pennsylvania to visit with Dave’s mom and sister. Our next stop took us west to Lancaster County and Amish country, arriving a day early to avoid traveling through Debby’s remnants as they passed through.
French Creek State Park Family Time
With a plan to visit Dave’s mom and sister, we moved the RV from northern Virginia to French Creek State Park in southeast PA and about an hour drive from Allentown PA. This was our first to return the park in 3 years, and we made sure to avoid some mistakes we made on that visit. This time, we made the approach from the east, instead of the narrow winding road coming into the west side of the park. And during that visit we had made notes of acceptable sites after a near disaster positioning the RV in the narrow site back in 2021. This time we had enough room to maneuver and set up.
With a plan to visit Dave’s mom and sister, we moved the RV from northern Virginia to French Creek State Park in southeast PA and about an hour drive from Allentown PA. This was our first to return the park in 3 years, and we made sure to avoid some mistakes we made on that visit. This time, we made the approach from the east, instead of the narrow winding road coming into the west side of the park. And during that visit we had made notes of acceptable sites after a near disaster positioning the RV in the narrow site back in 2021. This time we had enough room to maneuver and set up.
We had a good visit with Dave's mom and sister and Pam. The next day, we made the drive north for a visit. Over the next 2 days, we had time to catch up, see the latest in craft projects underway, help out with a few issues that we could handle in person, and just generally enjoyed each other’s company.
Longacre Creamery sundaes Our trips back and forth to French Creek gave us an opportunity to analyze our route for our next travel day when we would be heading west to Pinch Pond Campground near Manheim PA. We also passed by Longacre Creamery each day, which had ice cream that was just too good not to stop and sample each day.
But we started looking at the weather forecast for the end of the week with concern. Several days of heavy rain were being forecast, with the worst conditions forecast for Friday, our planned departure date. Our conclusion was that we needed to leave a day early, on Thursday, for our next stop in central PA’s Lancaster County. Our decision seemed to be the right one. If we had waited until Friday, we would have had to drive through Debby’s wind and rain. Instead, we were already in place and just hunkered down and let the storm pass over.
But we started looking at the weather forecast for the end of the week with concern. Several days of heavy rain were being forecast, with the worst conditions forecast for Friday, our planned departure date. Our conclusion was that we needed to leave a day early, on Thursday, for our next stop in central PA’s Lancaster County. Our decision seemed to be the right one. If we had waited until Friday, we would have had to drive through Debby’s wind and rain. Instead, we were already in place and just hunkered down and let the storm pass over.
Our peach cobbler sundae was worth the wait. Lancaster County, PA
As Friday’s rains began to ease, we headed out to begin our exploration of what Lancaster County had to offer. This was the night of the Peach Festival at the nearby Cornwall UMC. Even though we arrived “early”, we took the last parking place on the main road. The long line for the Peach cobbler sundae went pretty quickly and, given its size, we were glad we decided to split ours between us.
As Friday’s rains began to ease, we headed out to begin our exploration of what Lancaster County had to offer. This was the night of the Peach Festival at the nearby Cornwall UMC. Even though we arrived “early”, we took the last parking place on the main road. The long line for the Peach cobbler sundae went pretty quickly and, given its size, we were glad we decided to split ours between us.
Historic Keath house in Manheim. On Sunday, we visited the Manheim Historical Association, which had opened up 2 of their historic log homes for tours. We arrived just after a speaker had begun a talk about Ham Radio, its history, the local operators, etc. Afterward, Dave spent time sharing our experiences using the ham radio during our travels on Orion and Orion Jr.
Fasig house interior The 2 log homes sat side by side and had been moved to this spot from nearby locations in town. They were examples of mid- to late-eighteenth century homes, which were furnished with period pieces or reproductions to give the feel of the life of these early settlers. We were greeted in each house by a guide who explained how these families would have lived.
Lancaster County has miles and miles of farmland. So, we were intrigued by the possibility of touring a working dairy, called Kreider Farms. It was a huge operation, and the tour was an excellent overview of the working of the dairy. And we did get a free sample of some chocolate milk, which was a big plus. The video below will give you a taste of the tour.
| | Our next stop was Wilbur Chocolates in Lititz, where you can watch the chocolate confections being made while you shop. |
A Peanut Butter Chocolate sundae at The Jigger Shop in Mt. Gretna. And, of course there is the food in this part of the country. We made our annual pilgrimage to Shady Maple for the “world’s largest smorgasbord”, and also had some more Amish food at Dienner’s Family Restaurant. On our way back from a couple of hikes on the Lebanon Valley Trail in Mt. Gretna, we rewarded ourselves for all that exercise with a sundae from The Jigger Shop. Not sure if that’s exactly the right reward. . .
Baked Alaska sundae
What happened to the power?
We had been at Pinch Pond Campground for several uneventful days when we awoke to the sound of the power cycling on and off. Looking at our Power Watchdog app, it was apparent that the voltage was dropping too low on one leg and raising too high on the other. This caused the device to protect the RV by shutting down the power. We did some testing to see whether we could isolate the problem and rule out any of the RV’s systems as part of the problem. When we concluded all of our systems were good, we left the RV unplugged and reported the problem to the campground staff.
We were pleasantly surprised at how quickly someone responded. The maintenance staff opened up the power pedestal and discovered a loose ground that was quickly repaired. And we were able to plug back in without any more problems.
We had been at Pinch Pond Campground for several uneventful days when we awoke to the sound of the power cycling on and off. Looking at our Power Watchdog app, it was apparent that the voltage was dropping too low on one leg and raising too high on the other. This caused the device to protect the RV by shutting down the power. We did some testing to see whether we could isolate the problem and rule out any of the RV’s systems as part of the problem. When we concluded all of our systems were good, we left the RV unplugged and reported the problem to the campground staff.
We were pleasantly surprised at how quickly someone responded. The maintenance staff opened up the power pedestal and discovered a loose ground that was quickly repaired. And we were able to plug back in without any more problems.
Parting Shot
We found this covered bridge down a country road, but decided its weight limits weren’t going to allow us to cross safely. Since there was no parking around the bridge, it was a little challenging to turn around, but Cathy got the picture at least.
We found this covered bridge down a country road, but decided its weight limits weren’t going to allow us to cross safely. Since there was no parking around the bridge, it was a little challenging to turn around, but Cathy got the picture at least.
