A road trip through strange, beautiful, and scary Pennsylvania

Ah, spring. The season for love, flowers, and one of the greatest American traditions…road trips! Although one of the most frequent complaints by Wilkes students seems to be that there is nothing to do in the area, for those who are willing to venture off the highway a bit there are actually plenty of hidden attractions and natural wonders in Pennsylvania well worth an afternoon or overnight trip. Few people know the concealed marvels of the Keystone State better than Ed Tettemer, curator, writer, and photographer for The Shunpiker's Guide, a publication with a name requiring some explanation. According to Tettemer, "It's very simple, a shunpiker shuns the turnpikes." Tettemer's job involves taking a week every month to journey to a different region of Pennsylvania and and explore the hidden landmarks, independently owned restaurants, and charming bed and breakfasts that lie off the beaten path. Throughout his unique travels, Tettemer has found a plethora of interesting places that he recommends to students looking for an interesting way to spend a weekend.

Cherry Springs State Park One natural site that Tettemer strongly recommends visiting is Cherry Springs State Park. According to this park's website, (http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks /Parks/cherrysprings.aspx) it is Pennsylvania's first official Dark Sky Park and one of the best places along the east coast for stargazing. The park owes its exceptionally dark skies to its high elevation, small surrounding towns, and the precautions the park takes to keep all light at a minimum. "You can see so many stars! The sky almost gets red at night with the amount of stars. It's unbelievable, and you can see Andromeda with the naked eye. There are all these astronomers that show up with enormous telescopes and they have big star parties there…It's unbelievable, it looks like a Steven Spielberg movie," says Tettemer. Camping is available inside the park on a first come, first served basis from April 11 until December 14, and according the website www.mapquest.com, the park is only approximately a three-hour drive from campus. One important tip is to check the lunar calendar and plan a visit for the dark of the moon, when the stars will be the most visible.

Seven Tubs Nature Area For those who want to visit a unique park that is closer to Wilkes, Dr. Sid Halsor a Professor of Environmental Engineering and Earth Science, recommends the Seven Tubs Nature Area. Located just a few minutes from campus, Halsor uses the park as a geological laboratory for three of the classes he teaches. "Its claim to fame is that right along the base of the stream; it's called Wheelbarrow Run. There are a series of fairly deep, what we call potholes. They're excavation holes in the base of the stream channel. The stream comes down and it flows down through a narrow slot in the bedrock, so the water flows pretty quickly and then it gets into these pothole areas and it swirls like a whirlpool," says Halsor. Hiking trails and beautiful scenery abound as well according to Halsor, who was also on the committee which helped create this county park. "Swimming is not allowed there because it's, we thought, too dangerous…There are plenty of access points where you can get cooled off and just put your feet in the water…The water is always really clean and clear and it's fed by groundwater, so it's very appealing during a hot summer day," says Halsor.

Archbald Pothole Approximately 45 minutes from Wilkes is another geologic pothole of note, but one which was formed under different circumstances. Kristin Klimchak, a P1 pharmacy student, says about the Archbald Pothole, "It's nothing but a big narrow hole in the ground and everybody thinks it's so fascinating because it was made by a glacier." This may not sound like a particularly interesting place to visit, but the site has considerable geologic significance. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources website (http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/), the Archbald Pothole was formed about 15,000 years ago by a glacier. The 38 feet deep hole was created by melt water on top of a glacier which fell hundreds of feet down through a crack in the ice with enough force that over time, it created the huge pothole in solid rock. Today the pothole is the main feature of a 150-acre state park called….you guessed it, Archbald Pothole State Park.

Whistler's Mother Statue Natural wonders are not Pennsylvania's only attractions. There are also plenty of odd, manmade landmarks. Upon driving into the town of Ashland, PA, the unsuspecting traveler may be a little surprised to find a large statue, possibly resembling their grandmother, glaring down upon them from atop a hill. "I pulled into a stop light, looked up, and there on a hill was the world's only three dimensional replica of the painting "Whistler's Mother. It's a really famous old-time painting of this stern-looking woman in a rocking chair…She's looking down over the town scowling and it says in foot high letters carved in granite underneath her, 'MOTHER' and then it says, 'A mother is the holiest thing alive,'" says Tettemer. This statue, which was erected in 1937 by the Ashland Boys Association, was meant to honor all mothers in Pennsylvania, but according to Tettemer, it looks a bit creepy. For the complete story of what inspired this town to play host to such a creation, Tettemer suggests walking across the street to the local Historical Society, or there is also the option of checking out Danny's Boulevard Drive-In, a restaurant from the 1950s which still serves burgers to customers seated at a quaint lunch counter.

Hibernian House Tavern For the road tripper whose thirst for the strange is still not quenched, Tettemer notes that not far from this eccentric statue is the Hibernian House Tavern, a bar that was once owned and operated by the leader of the Molly Maguires, Jack Kehoe. "The Molly Maguires was this band of Irish union guys who were activists during the coal miners' struggle with the coal companies back in the mid 1800s… Jack Kehoe was one of the leaders and he and some of the others guys were brought to trial, run through a kangaroo court, and were hung in Pottsville….His great grandson still runs the tavern and inside is Jack Kehoe's cell door and this big concrete anchor that was shackled to his ankle when he was in jail," says Tettemer.

Gravity Hill/ Jean Bonnet Tavern If a giant statue honoring mothers and a tavern using jail cell decor is still not strange enough, consider a longer trip to perhaps one of the most puzzling places that Tettemer recommends, Gravity Hill. Although this attraction is almost a four-hour drive from campus according to www.mapquest.com, the mystery seems to be well worth the trip. According to the website www.gravityhill.com set up by the Bedford County Visitor's Bureau, "Gravity Hill is a phenomenon. Cars roll uphill and water flows the wrong way. It's a place where gravity has gone haywire. There is no fee to venture onto Gravity Hill. It is, quite simply, a road in a remote corner of Bedford County." The website offers no explanation for these occurrences, but Tettemer attests, "I went there and in fact, you put your car into neutral and you will start drifting uphill. We got out and we spilled some water out of a water bottle and it ran uphill. We put a ball down and it started rolling uphill. I thought I was going nuts." According to Tettemer, the place can be a little hard to find, but the website offers great directions and also a few reminders on Gravity Hill etiquette, such as being sure to check the rearview mirror before you put your car in neutral, and not turning your car around in someone's yard. If an eight hour drive roundtrip is too much for one day, those who are not afraid of an otherworldly encounter could stay at the nearby Jean Bonnet Tavern, recommended by Tettemer. According to the tavern's website (jeanbonnettavern.com) it was built in 1762 and is on the National Registry of Historic Places. With a building that is nearly 250 years old, more than a few guests and workers at the tavern have claimed to have ghostly experiences there. "I got there and my door was open, and then I went outside and when I went back to my room the door was closed and locked. I went down to get it opened and they came back to open it for me and the door was wide open. Freaky stuff happens," says Tettemer. Rooms at the Jean Bonnet Tavern run from $85.00-$120.00 per night and include a full breakfast. More information is available on the website along with a picture taken at the tavern in which some see a ghostly image.

Tunkhannock Viaduct As for those road trippers who have no desire to spend quite so much money on gas, there is still the chance to see what was once described as the eighth wonder of the world, according to an article entitled "Lackawanna Intends Going Ahead with Improvements" published in the Scranton Times on November 8, 1915. Andrew Franko, a senior history major, says about the Tunkhannock (Nicholson) Viaduct, "It's just amazing. It's a train bridge that goes across a valley from one mountain to the other. It's huge." According to www.northeastpennsylvania.com, this behemoth concrete railroad bridge spans 2,375 feet in length and crosses the valley at a height of 300 feet above the bedrock. It is the largest poured concrete bridge in the world and at the time of its construction, the most expensive railroad bridge ever built according to the Pennsylvania State Website (http://www.pa.gov/portal/server.pt).

While visiting any of the other previously mentioned places can serve as the basis for a great road trip, there are also plenty of other attractions waiting to be discovered by those who want to look for them. For those who are more inclined to explore, Tettemer has some suggestions as to how he goes about finding the "hidden gems" of Pennsylvania, "When I talk about shunpiking, I have a couple rules. Number one rule, no four lane roads whatsoever. Every road must be two lanes. The other rule is if you see smoke in the distance, stop because it probably means somebody's cooking barbeque and that's always a good thing, and no chains. So, no Holiday Inns, no Denny's, and no Ruby Tuesdays," says Tettemer. One thing he says to do is ask the locals where the best places to eat and stay are, and if they give the name of a chain establishment, to keep on asking. According to Tettemer, if you do this, "You'll find that you'll eat really well, sleep in great places filled with stories, and you'll meet people who you'll never forget because they have such great tales for you. They'll make you feel so welcome, no matter how old you are."