We spent four days road tripping around eastern Pennsylvania. We began with a short stop at the Northern Central Railway of York, which is a recreated Civil War Era railroad. Elizabeth was allowed to watch the workers polishing steam locomotive #17 (William H. Simpson) for an upcoming excursion. President Abraham Lincoln traveled on this railway on his way to commemorate the cemetery at Gettysburg where he delivered his famous address. We visited the depot at Hanover Junction where Mr. Lincoln changed trains.
We drove east along the original Lincoln Highway between York and Lancaster, stopping in Columbia to tour a visitor center for the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail and view the historic Columbia–Wrightsville Bridge.
Two days were spent in the Lancaster area where we saw the 1828 home (called Wheatland) and burial site of President James Buchanan (the 15th president). We saw the Willows Covered Bridge and played a game of mini golf at Lost Treasure Golf. This was Elizabeth's first time playing mini golf and she loved it. The Lancaster area is the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch Country, and we observed many Amish with their horses and buggies. We all had a great time staying at the Eden Resort with both indoor and outdoor pools, a waterpark, and a great meal at Arthur's Terrace.
We rode the historic Strasburg Railroad on a 4.5-mile journey through the Amish countryside. Strasburg is the oldest operating railroad in the country (and the most visited tourist railroad) and our train was pulled by steam engine #89 which was built in 1910. Across the street, we toured the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, which has an impressive collection of over 100 historic locomotives and rail cars (some being over 150 years old).
Near Reading we toured Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site where the working water wheel was a definite highlight of our visit. We also stopped to see steam engine #225 on display at the Reading, Blue Mountain, and Northern Railroad (as well as the historic depot in Port Clinton).
Driving north to Scranton, we toured the 1902 roundhouse and train yard at Steamtown National Historic Site. The site contained several historic locomotives, and Elizabeth especially enjoyed climbing into the cab of a Union Pacific Big Boy (the largest steam locomotive ever built). We also rode the short 3-mile train ride on the Scranton Limited to see the Steamtown yard, Lackawanna River, and the historic Lackawanna Station.
In Milford we visited Grey Towers National Historic Site, which was the home of Gifford Pinchot, the founder of the National Forest Service. Next, we drove through twenty miles of Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, making several stops for hikes to the many impressive waterfalls. Raymondskill Falls is the tallest waterfall in Pennsylvania, and if you add the drops from each tier together, the waterfall is only a few feet shorter than Niagara Falls. Dingmans Falls is the second highest waterfall in Pennsylvania, and along the hike to Dingmans Falls we also saw the narrow 80-foot drop of Silverthread Falls. At Bushkill Falls we hiked the boardwalk through Laurel Glen to the spectacular Main Falls. After hiking to all the waterfalls, we ended the day with a great dinner at Alaska Pete's near Stroudsburg.
Our final stop in Pennsylvania was Valley Forge National Historical Park, where we drove the Encampment Tour Route through the park. Shortly after leaving the park a thunderstorm rolled in and before we knew it, we were stuck in a tornado warning. We waited out the storm, then drove south to Maryland.
We drove to Pittsburgh where we rode the Duquesne and the Monongahela incline railroads from Station Square to the top of Grandview Avenue. At the top, we had a great view of downtown as well as the three rivers: Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio.
East of Pittsburgh, we visited Flight 93 National Memorial, then drove to Harrisburg to see the Pennsylvania State Capitol. In Hershey, we toured the factory at Hershey's Chocolate World, and purchased a few sweet treats.
In Philadelphia we visited Independence National Historical Park where we saw Independence Hall and the Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial. After lunch at National Mechanics, we toured the United States Mint and took a Phlash Bus around town to see the sights. Finally, we stopped at the Franklin Institute to view the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.
We drove along the shore of Lake Erie in the northwestern corner of the state and spent a night in Erie.
On a summer vacation we drove to Gettysburg National Military Park for the 150th anniversary of the civil war battle. We also toured the Gettysburg National Cemetery. We also drove through Valley Forge National Historical Park to see the site of the winter camp of George Washington and the Continental Army during the revolutionary war and the Washington Memorial Chapel.
Next, we drove to Philadelphia to visit Independence National Historical Park where we toured the Liberty Bell Center and Independence Hall, visited Benjamin Franklin’s Gravesite, and walked to Penn's Landing. Before leaving the city, we enjoyed some authentic Philly Sandwiches at the Monkey Bar and climbed the 'Rocky Steps' at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.