Happy happy....
Happy birthday, blog! There were lots of events calling for celebration this past week; the fourth of July, of course, Matt and I’s five-year anniversary, and my birthday! It’s been quite a week.
For years, my mom’s side of the family has been gathering at my grandfather’s house in York, PA on the weekend of the fourth. He is sadly no longer with us, but his wonderful wife still carries on the tradition of having us all there. As it was when I was little, the kids get into the pool until their lips are blue, dry off, and eat lots of dessert. I don’t usually swim anymore, but I do eat lots of dessert! In honor of my grandfather, my cousin lurked around in the field below the house, waiting for an opportune moment to set off cherry bombs and make all the rest of us jump. It’s always good to see my aunts and cousins that I only see once or twice a year.
Being as the VT to PA drive is a decent one (6+ hours), Matt and I decided to go the night before and stay in a cute little B&B to celebrate our anniversary. We decided that the Poconos would be a good more-than-halfway stopping point. What we had neglected to factor in was the busyness of the area for July fourth. After stopping in the sweet town of Milford, we sat in traffic for two hours to go the no more than thirty miles to where we were staying! That didn’t get our visit off on the best foot and an overpriced dinner continued the decline. We tried to redeem the trip by hiking on Saturday morning at Big Pocono State Park, where Camelback is located. After passing the water park on the lower part of the hill, we kept driving up to reach the top, only to find no information or signs besides arrows designating parking areas 1-4. We chose to park in parking area one, then got out to find trails. After a little exploring, we found a crudely drawn map. Attempting to follow it plopped us into parking area 3. After three failed paths (all of which led us back to the parking areas), we found a little 2 mile loop that fulfilled our need for some exercise. I hope it’s a better-marked ski hill than it is summer hike!
I guess this birthday year places me firmly “in my thirties.” I’m not sure how I feel about that quite yet.
Posted on Sat, July 11, 2009
by emilygold