A Complete Guide to Adventures in Eastern PA
Entrance to Hawk Falls
Hawk Falls
Conestoga House & Gardens
The White Cliffs of Conoy
Twin Valley Coffee
Hello! As per request by queen Gina (@stuffginadoes), I present you with a comprehensive list of adventures in eastern PA!
I say eastern because beyond centralized State College, I have not been to many places in western Pennsylvania if I’m being honest (so Pittsburgh friends don’t come for me, I know who you are hehe).
Disclaimer: obviously, please don’t go venturing to these places right now, while we’re in quarantine. Please stay home and keep your social distance if you have to go out!
So here we go, I will try my best to provide visuals through YouTube links and the photos, since I’ve made videos in most of these places hehe :)
Adventures in Eastern Pennsylvania
Philadelphia
I’ll always love Philly so this is an obvious choice for me hehe. If you’ve never been to the city I would suggest visiting: Rittenhouse Square, The Philadelphia Art Museum (where the famous “Rocky Steps” are located), Fairmount Park, and Old City Philadelphia (my favorite spots in Old City are Elfreth’s Alley and The Franklin Fountain Ice-cream Shop on Market Street).
Bushkill Falls (Pocono Mountains, PA)
According to the internet, this is considered the “Niagara Falls of Pennsylvania.” My mom and I went here and loved it! There were many trails, overlooks, and the waterfall was huge! I will warn you though, there were MANY steep steps - so take caution lol!
Glen Onoko Falls (Jim Thorpe, PA)
Glen Onoko Falls was by far my favorite waterfall adventure I’ve had! When we went, you actually could climb up the cliffs around the waterfall to the top of the falls. Unfortunately, I think this part of the hike has been closed since we went 2 years ago, but I do think the park it’s located in is still open for hikes! It’s a beautiful place to visit regardless, and the info about the park is all over the internet!
Lehigh Gorge State Park
This state park is BEAUTIFUL. We were able to see many things here in one trip because they were pretty close by and easy to get to!
We first went to Hawk Falls (Albrightsville, PA). This trail was super scenic, however, I will warn you that the entrance to it looks super sketchy - HA. It’s literally just a break in a guardrail on the side of the road near a parking lot. However, it is a very well-known trail in the area and very safe! It’s a known tourist attraction so have no fear! We next visited a really cool field of rocks in Lake Harmony, PA. Yes you read that right….a field of rocks. But the cool thing is, as dull as it sounds it was SUPER interesting and the farthest thing from dull. There’s a whole history about how the rocks got there/the spiritual legends around it online. Definitely worth a visit!
Finally, just walk around the park! There’s a beautiful river nearby and many waterfalls in the area.
Raymondskill & Dingmans Falls (Delaware Water Gap, PA)
So these waterfalls are located right on the border of northeastern PA and NJ. Although this is a farther venture, they are bigger falls and definitely worth the trip! The trail has many photo-worthy spots and cute bridges along the way!
Ringing Rocks County Park & Fonthill Castle
I highlighted these areas in this vlog: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRCGHmXDqlA&list=PLCPq-ooVQ7cvyvhKkw-zVx3fZYZ5BuXW5&index=30 .
Ringing Rocks County Park is located in Upper Black Eddy, PA. It’s another park that has a waterfall (only when it’s rainy out though) and another cool rock field. The thing about these rocks is that they make a really interesting metallic/clanking/hollow-ish sound when you hit them with something (a ton of people legit bring hammers into the woods to do this so don’t be alarmed lol) due to the type of rock they are.
Another cute place near here is called Fonthill Castle. This place reminded me of like a Pennsylvania version of the Downton Abbey castle in England. It was owned by a wealthy man who owned a textile company! There are scheduled tours of the inside of the castle you can go on once you’re there (my mom and I didn’t have time to go inside, but it looked super cool)!
If you’re in the area and hungry, I would also suggest going to downtown Doylestown for a quick bite to eat! This is located near Delaware Valley College, so it kind of has the feel of a college town, with a fancier twist on it! Very cute boutiques and places to eat! I loved walking around this town!
Lancaster, PA
Lancaster is a little more west than the previous places I described. It’s less in the woods, and more open land/rolling hills if that’s what you’re looking for.
Lancaster itself is such a cute city. It gives off Old Town Philly vibes with cute brick walls and cobblestone streets. It also has the BEST places to eat and get coffee wow. Some of our favorite include: Prince Street Cafe, Rachel’s Crepes, and Square One Coffee - got the best caramel latte of my life here. We’ve made multiple an appearance here in my vlogs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmkf0-DfTw4&list=PLCPq-ooVQ7cvyvhKkw-zVx3fZYZ5BuXW5&index=28
Another really cool place to take photos is a place called Conestoga House & Gardens. It’s literally just a HUGE estate that’s open to the public. This was the place we called “The PA Palace of Versailles” or “The Bachelorette Mansion of PA.” It was super cool and I’d definitely go back! It’s right in the city of Lancaster too, just double check the times it’s open before you go. You are allowed to take as many photos and videos as you want, just not for commercial purposes obviously. Here’s the vlog where we visited the house and gardens: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unP13pxsq_E&list=PLCPq-ooVQ7cvyvhKkw-zVx3fZYZ5BuXW5&index=12
The White Cliffs of Conoy (Bainbridge, PA)
This was the area highlighted in my vlog titled “Surfacing the Moon.” I made this trip right after visiting Lancaster because it’s super easy to get to from the city (we went while we were waiting to pick up my sister from the Lancaster train station).
Located about a half hour outside of Lancaster, it is DEFINITELY a pretty long walk. The walk isn’t hard at all, since the road is paved, but about one way is 4 miles….so just keep that in mind if you’re not up for a long walk LOL. The total trip took about 2 hours to complete (plus videos and pictures of course by the rocks). You feel like you walk for forever, but once you pass the clearing I described in the vlog, the view is so worth it! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFg8a7q-388&list=PLCPq-ooVQ7cvyvhKkw-zVx3fZYZ5BuXW5&index=10
Chickies Rock County Park (Chickies Hill Road, Colombia, PA)
So let me preface this place. Yes, this was the video where Madi and I got significantly lost. The address you’ll see online will take you to the top overlook (where we were in the beginning of the video). There are different trails that you’ll see leading down to the water…where we were trying to get all along.
We ended up going the wrong way and hiking down a very intense trail (WOOPS). When you reach the trail, there is a sign that gives you the option to go to Marietta, PA or Colombia, PA. We chose to go to Marietta, PA which I DON’T suggest.
Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with the area, it was a super beautiful trail. However, this direction leads you back to the road and not down towards the water.
Although we didn’t go to Colombia, PA, we noticed afterwards that Colombia was the address of the water gap we were looking for in the first place…. so dumb move on our part lol!
Here’s the video for reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5THAXQbxoUE&list=PLCPq-ooVQ7cvyvhKkw-zVx3fZYZ5BuXW5&index=27
(We also chose a very hot day to do this hike, so I would suggest STOCKING up on water so you don’t run out like we did haha)!
Twin Valley Coffee (Twin Valley, PA) & Poole Forge (Narvon, PA)
If you follow any of my media, you known that I’m a coffee FIEND. So let me tell you something about Twin Valley Coffee. This is by far one of my favorite coffee shops EVER. They make incredible drinks and the people there are SO nice!
My order (that I HIGHLY suggest you get) is an iced toddy with nitro cold brew and French vanilla creamer. Yes, that sounds like a lot, but the people there will walk you through it all if you’ve never been don’t worry.
Also, if you’ve never been here before, I will warn you that it’s very easy to miss! It’s a tiny gazebo on the side of the road (it’s right across from Sonic for reference). There’s always a TON of cars there, and there will be a sign next to the road saying ‘Twin Valley Coffee.’ Yes, that sounds weird, but TRUST me and any local when I say that this coffee is so worth it!!!!
Poole Forge is a place that’s about 20 minutes out from Twin Valley Coffee. It’s another cute place for photos that is open to the public (once again check the times). The grounds are super pretty and if you’re looking for your next outdoor photoshoot, this is the spot! I took my senior pictures here and can attest that it’s great for photos! The drive there is also very scenic and farmland-y (lol that’s Pennsylvania for ya).
We visited both these places in this vlog: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhq2whCf0GI&list=PLCPq-ooVQ7cvyvhKkw-zVx3fZYZ5BuXW5&index=2
THAT’S IT! That is my master list of must-see places in eastern Pennsylvania!
If you are interested in visiting these places, or have further questions, feel free to shoot me and email or DM on instagram (@marybeefilms)! I’d be happy to give more you specifics! If you do visit these places for an adventure, tag me so I can see!! :)
