I’d worked for three months without much of a break as the pandemic lingered. Workdays lasted longer and blended into weekends. Little separation existed between home and office in a full-time telework world. Nonetheless I felt fortunate even if I needed a respite from the churn.
The drive to Pennsylvania went well and traffic seemed unusually light. We did need to stop at a rest area on the Pennsylvania Turnpike for a brief time. However nearly everyone wore face masks and we avoided our fellow travelers. It seemed safe.
I didn’t start the county counting project immediately upon arrival. Honestly, I had to take a couple of days just to unwind. For the first two days I captured only a single new county, the one we used as our base, Clearfield County.
On the Lake
We holed-up at Treasure Lake near the town of DuBois (map). It turned out that the house we rented had appeared on one of those real estate programs on HGTV called Lakefront Bargain Hunt. Feel free to peruse Season 7 – Episode 5: “Triple Fun in Treasure Lake” if you’re into that kind of thing. It followed the usual script. A house-hunting couple walked through several properties, pointing out the good and bad, then made a selection. They did choose the one we stayed in, by the way.
Treasure Lake felt like a typical pre-planned lakefront community full of vacation homes. Someone plugged up a valley in the middle of nowhere to form a lake, added a couple of golf courses and sold building lots at a nice markup. None of that concerned me. I simply wanted an attractive place to hide for awhile. This worked.
Relaxing
I took full advantage of having nothing to do. Unfortunately, I confirmed that I’m not particularly good at that. I’ve never been a “lay in a hammock and stare at the water” kind of person. The house included a ping pong setup and a foosball table so I did that for awhile. I went out on the lake in a kayak and a paddle boat with the kids. Then I got a bit restless.
One morning I went for a run around the lake as my GPS watch tracked me. Treasure Lake isn’t huge. I made it around the perimeter in about 7.5 miles (12 kilometres). Then I tacked-on another 2.5 as an out-and-back to make it an even 10. Naturally, a place hilly enough to hold a lake should make for a challenging run, and my legs felt it for the next couple of days.
By then I’d done pretty much everything I could at the lake.
A Most Surreal Experience
I’d done most of my relaxing — if I could call it that — on our first full day. It lasted most of the morning and then I had to go do something else. Meanwhile, central Pennsylvania began lifting its quarantine restrictions. I used that as an opportunity to enter a retail establishment for the first time since the pandemic began.
My relentless need to add to my lists outweighed my overwhelming germaphobia. Boxcar Brew Works beckoned only a few minutes away in DuBois (map). It was part of a larger conglomeration known as Doolittle Station. The entire facility focused on a railroad theme with repurposed rail cars spread around the property. Each section catered to a different need: ice cream stand; pizza parlor; bed & breakfast; traditional diner; miniature golf; brewery; and inexplicably an animatronic dinosaur “museum.”
It sprawled over a large area with plenty of well-distanced outdoor seating featuring excellent ventilation and plenty of sunlight. All the staff wore face masks. They also cocooned the bar area with plastic wrap at facial height. We picked up drinks there and took them outside. It felt very low risk. Ten days later I remain COVID-19 free so I think it worked. And it was nice to finally have an actual draught beer after three months.
Bilger’s Rocks
We explored a little more of Clearfield County the next day. Most visitors to the area stopped at a place called Bilger’s Rocks near the town of Grampian (map). It looked interesting and I figured it wouldn’t be crowded. I was correct on both points.
The sandstone of Bilger’s Rocks formed during the Carboniferous Period about 320 million years ago. Subsequent tectonic forces caused fractures over time. Eons of repeated freezing and thawing widened the cracks. Tree roots pushed into them too. Eventually large chunks began to break off, creating fissures, passages, tunnels and other interesting formations. Visitors could move freely through the broken terrain limited only by their climbing ability and physical size.
I felt relaxed enough by that point. I got serious about county counting the next morning.
Articles in the Finishing Pennsylvania Series
See Also: The Complete Photo Album on Flickr
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