One of the older covered bridges in Bucks County, Pine Valley Covered Bridge was constructed in…read more1842 out of native hemlock and pine. Today it crosses Pine Run Creek on Old Ironhill Road in the New Britain portion of Chalfont Township. Covered Bridge Park sits on its southern end, and Peace Valley Park is little more than half mile to the north. As with most other covered spans here, the engineering is a simple latticed town truss design, about 80 feet long by 15 feet wide. It underwent renovation in 2003 to reinforce its weight bearing capacity. This one carries more traffic than most of the others, and the watercourse running beneath it is broader and deeper than those I've visited lately. Pine Valley is too busy to carry the romance of covered bridges as well as most of the others, but it remains charming nonetheless. Yet, in combination with Peace Valley Lake, Peace Valley Nature Center and Covered Bridge Park, the cruise up county to this area was cool and enjoyable.

Cabin Run is a 4.5 mile long Creek running from Bedminster to outside Point Pleasant, PA. In the…read more18th Century it was an early site of log and stone cabins that housed settlers in this backwater of the Delaware River Watershed. At this location 300 feet from where it merged with Tohikon Creek before flowing into the Mighty Delaware, a town truss covered bridge was constructed in 1871. A way was needed to transport grain and flour to and from the mills along these streams that provided safe passage over all the surrounding watercourses in good and bad weather. Things don't look much different than they did 140 years ago. The geology slopes toward the river, gently folding and rolling through a still heavy forest. The bridge painted red and white, 82 feet long and 15 feet wide, grants this bucolic scene a timelessness and peaceful beauty that immediately moves inside to calm the soul. The sound of briskly running water soothes and clarifies the mind. Of course, having a perfect end of May day to cruise the back roads of Upper Bucks County, makes the discovery of this homage to an earlier time when life was harder, but simpler, almost magical.

Willowwood Arboretum is a 130 acre track of land which displays 2100 kinds of native exotic plants…read moremany of which are rare. It is presently administered by the Willowwood Foundation and the Morris County Park Commission. Open daily from 8 am-dusk, you can visit the arboretum free of charge on a self-guided tour. Featured in the arboretum is Pan's Garden and the Rosarie located behind the Tubb's house. An additional garden is the Cottage Garden located near the Shingle Bar. Other structures include the Red Barn. Hoop House, Stone Cottage and Myer's Center Stone Barn. Bamboo Brook is a three minute ride from Willowwood or you can walk the path which joins the property. It is also free to visit. I personally like to run the meadow and wooded paths areas of the property. Unfortunately, Oatie (golden doodle) is not allowed to set foot in either location. Oatie was very disappointed. A map of Willowwood can be found on their website with a description of the various areas and plant identification data. Visitor's can dial 973-349-3020 for a station to station self-guided tour. The clips are short but informative.

This special and beautiful property, open to the pubic, is a must-visit location every Spring about…read morethe first or second week of May. It is a glorious immersion into nature's amazing world of lilacs, tulips, daffodils, wisteria, ferns, trees, fauna and other greenery. And it's FREE! There is a babbling brook and a special garden behind the main house. There is a parking lot and restrooms available. Don't miss this special place!

Coryell's Ferry (now New Hope) is over 200 years old as a crossing over the Delaware River to…read moreLambertville, NJ. An iron truss bridge replaced the flat bottomed boat a century ago, but the site that once was a small village relying on this transport for its survival has become a major tourist attraction for those loving arts and crafts, good restaurants and a weekend away from the bustle of New York and Philadelphia. Those in the know have learned that summer and fall find the borough crammed with visitors and impossible parking. The best time to go is when no one but locals are in town. Winter may be dreary, but the shops, bars, inns and restaurants are dying for customers and no reservations are required. As a local (15 minute drive from home) I love the nearly empty streets and the attention provided by the shopkeepers. Sure there is often snow, ice and wind to contend with, but all that just adds to the charm. Warm weather is a different story altogether, and we avoid New Hope at all costs. Havana, Karla's, The Logan Inn, are three of my favorite hangs for entertainment and decent grub, but there are dozens of other kitchens worth a taste. When I go, I can just walk around and walk into any that strike my fancy; step inside and grab a table without reservations. I will be heading to a new Indian house next week (New Hope Spice Lover) to check out their curries, chaats, Gobi Manchurian and naan. February is a perfect time to visit New Hope. You may be the only out of town visitor around. Maybe that's why Bradley Cooper bought a home nearby.

Cute little town along the river…read more Parking can be tough but definitely are available around- even if you have to pay. This is a good place to park- walk around- have some food and drinks- see some stores- like have crystals, wine, few witch craft, erotic clothing and toys, ice cream, clothing, Indian , chocolates etc. You can also stroll over the bridge and check out Lambertville which also has some nice places to eat/ drink and some stores to check out. Walking over the bridge was nice -saw a dog on a jet ski which was awes

This is such a good spot. If someone said "when in Allentown," where to go this would be it…read more Admittedly there isn't a lot to choose from, but this is a wonderful family friendly place. Here is a joint private/government effort that works. It is a fish hatchery, and you can spend a couple bucks for food. Throw this in the tanks, and watch the mostly rainbow trout go crazy for it. The freshwater version of Jaws. All joking aside spent a couple hours here. I found seeing the grounds neat too. The volunteers here are wonderful. Hoping young folks will step up. You can go inside the store and see animals preserved in formaldehyde. This is educational. What a great spot for families, and people of all ages.

This was a fantastic attraction. I visited with my parents and sibling, 2 adults, 18 year old, and…read morea 16 year old. We had a fantastic time looking at all the different sized fish A big bag of fish food is only $1, extremely reasonable, and the entire family made a few bags last 20-30 minutes and we fed most of the tanks! We especially liked the "prized fish" tank, which has the biggest fish in the hatchery, and we had a great time gawking at the huge fish. The kids we saw around also all seemed to be having a great time. My only critique is that I feel there should be at least a couple obvious staff present. While we were there, one of the nets on the medium size tank fell in, and fish were getting stuck in the net. One fish was visibly thrashing, while a couple others were trapped with their heads out of the water, dying for all to see. This was clearly not how it was meant to be. There was no place for us to report this clear problem. There was also a dead fish just sitting in the walkway of one area. Now I understand that this is a hatchery, and with large scale production, fish are going to die. I don't mind seeing some dead fish in the water. But one just rotting on the ground or dying in a net (both of which area easily fixable) does rub me the wrong way. I wish I could give this place more like a 4 1/2, because some staff did come and fix the net problem, and the dead fish were not a huge detriment to my experience, but I don't want to rate 5 because it was something I feel could be easily fixed. The pictures don't do this place justice, I highly suggest going and feeding the fish yourself! You can also look at all the fish for free.

Well...We're stuck here in Allentown, where they're their tearing all the factories down. At least…read moreaccording to Billy Joel. We are supposed to be in Philadelphia. Actually...we should have been in London two days ago but that's a long story. For another day. Anyway...just about the time we should have been landing in Philly the pilot announced we were diverted to Allentown. What?$#! After jerking us around with every employee in this podunk airport telling us to go to AA.com because they couldn't help us, making us get on and off the plane and even taxing out they cancelled the flight and took hours getting our luggage to us. We finally got a hotel reservation and a Uber....and both were a struggle. In the morning I got to see the beautiful downtown area. UBER to airport and when I mentioned BillybJoels song, the driver (who was a lifetime resident) had never heard it. So I actually looked up the lyrics, and I better understand why it isn't popular. And back to the airport where they told us they would send us to Philly on bus at 5 pm ( it was 10 am) we called another Uber and fled. Again, another story for another day Sigh.

Do you feel like walking around hearing people talk with expletives, smoking pot, walking around in…read moretheir pjs that don't fit. And their gut sticking out. No thank you.

I'm probably alone on this one but outdoor dining seems to be a vestigial consequence of the…read morepandemic that's sticking around and I am, to put it succinctly, not a fan. Sure, on a beautiful Spring day, who doesn't love relaxing outside over an excellent meal but for the most part, throwing some chairs and tables on the sidewalk is in reality, a hastily arranged birthday party for your third cousin, not a substitute for legitimate atmosphere especially when your plastic is being scorched for some overpriced artisanal, farm to table grub. Now Princeton proper has decided to turn upper Witherspoon Street into a pedestrian mall/outside dining space, writ large. Spare me please. For three months during the Summer, I guess it makes sense but if this past Winter is any guide, most restaurants seem to enjoy the game of how many fools will acquiesce to dinner in their Canadian Goose overcoats under a heat lamp in December? Not this fool. If there's a roaring fire inside why would I willingly freeze my tuchus off stuck in a tundra of my own making. I'd like a cocktail before dinner, not a hot chocolate... but bring one for my third cousin anyway. Cluelessness may be an actual major at Princeton. Two frozen stars.

Still one of my favorite New Jersey towns. All out-of-state guests get a tour of Princeton,…read morecomplete with ice cream from the Bent Spoon, $1 DVDs from Princeton Record Exchange and a stroll through the university campus. Cute shops of every kind are plentiful and if it is nice outside, you won't get tired of strolling around. Stick to Nassau Street, Palmer Square and all of it's many side streets and you'll do great. Go in the summer for ice cream and iced coffee and sunshine or go in the fall for the real college feel around campus but a personal favorite is winter when the Christmas tree is up in the square. Thanks for many wonderful day trips, Princeton!

Hidden Pond Tree Farm is such a hidden gem!…read more The entire vibe is giving LL Bean catalog and it's in the best way. In addition to Christmas trees you'll find a variety of gorgeous wreaths / holiday arrangements, local honey for gifting, a train ride and the cutest little snack shack selling cider donuts, hot cocoa and marshmallows for roasting. Once you've got your marshmallow supplies you can head over to the campfire area where they have the firepit roaring and ready for roasting. But if you are visiting, you are likely here to get a Christmas tree! You can cut down your own or get a pre-cut tree. Cut your own is $125 and pre-cut is $125 for small, $155 for medium and $175 for large. We got a medium tree and we're super happy with it! When my kids are older I think they'll love coming back to cut their own. This is a great place to go for some holiday fun, and I loved that there were things for the kids besides the trees. Prices are definitely a bit steeper than other places around, but I think it's worth it for the cute holiday experience.

Used to be good to get a tree. It's $125 for any tree "regardless of the size." But they are all…read moretiny. The precut the larger trees and sell the for $245 up front. The have a fire pit area which is nice, and employees are nice, but I felt scammed this year