On Sunday, December 8th, I picked up my nieces and we headed off to decorate the various family plots for Christmas. We have a tradition, we shop for the decorations, visit each grave and then go to lunch at our favorite Chinese restaurant, Jasmines.  We used to try and do gravestone rubbings but after 3 or more times of near frostbite, moved that activity to the summer time. 
However, this year they were calling for bad weather and while I don't mind driving myself in a snowstorm, I would rather not with 2 precious 12 year olds in the back seat. So we headed out earlier then usual and agreed to postpone our lunch until after Christmas.  
We completed our task in good time and I had the girls back home just as it started to snow. That's where I made my mistake - I stayed visiting with my sister-in-law and her mom for 45 minutes so when I left their house - the roads had already turned into a driving nightmare. 
422 and 202 were pretty good - everyone was driving slow but in a careful manner. Then I hit 76 which basically turned into a parking lot. Believe it or not - this was the SECOND time in my life (the first being in 2007) that I managed to get myself trapped on 76 in a snow storm. Gah! So when I got to the first exit, I decided to take it and try the back roads for getting home.
Part of the problem was the ice under the snow.  Even though the roads were treated, everything froze so fast and then was covered with snow which made for tricky driving. Well, after sitting at the bottom of the exit ramp for nearly 30 minutes, I gave up and got back onto the highway...which proved to be an excellent move - until I got to the exit for 476.
I need to take a minute here to stop and praise my Ford Focus. It was a DREAM to drive in this storm - I can't say enough about how good it was to feel safe in these dangerous conditions.   However, I can't say the same for EVERY BMW I saw on the road (and I saw a good number) - every time they would take their foot of the brake, their rear-ends would slide out from under them - can you say 'involuntary near crashes?' So glad I did NOT buy a BMW!
So when I got to the exit ramp, I was greeted with this:

I'd like to say these were slow moving trucks - but they were PARKED.  Took me a good 10 minutes or so to figure out that they drivers of the first two rigs were actually out on the highway checking out a jack-knifed tractor trailer on the far right shoulder and also helping push stuck motorists up the ramp to make way for the rest of us. Thank you professional drivers!

Luckily, a couple of salt/plow trucks also made a pass on part of the ramp which helped a great deal.

So we sat for a bit in frustration, but after the tankers & the banana truck got going, I passed the BMW (it has slid into off the ramp onto the shoulder) and carefully got up the ramp, onto the highway and home!  Final tally: 2.5 hours to drive 23 miles.

All in all - was wasn't a bad snow-trip - 
I just didn't have any drinks or snacks. O.o.

     My niece, Sam (I've mentioned her in other road trip posts) is a transfer
student to the Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) which is located in
Indiana, PA - which also happens to be the county seat of Indiana  County!   Orientation for transfer students took place a few days ago  and during a lull in my job hunting, I offered to give my sister and niece  a ride.
     I like to plan for road trips - even short ones - so when I picked up the girls, I was prepared with a cooler with snacks (some healthy, some not - this is a road trip after all) and drinks.  the car was also gassed up and ready to hit the road and I had picked up a Dunkin Donuts iced coffee for my sister (she and my dad LOVE Dunkin Donuts coffee - I like it but I had WaWa coffee). We headed out around 11am and with the blessings of EZ Pass, good directions and not much traffic, made great time. 
     Pennsylvania is really a lovely state and even though I have been lucky enough to have driven through a lot of it, I can still be impressed with the scenery.  I was also very impressed with my Focus's gas mileage!  We have been suffering greatly from the heat these last few weeks and while I don't usually drive with the air conditioner running, it got quite a workout on this trip!  Average MPG going out - 36.4!
     We stayed at a lovely Holiday Inn just outside of town and after we unpacked, we drove through the campus and past the apartment where my niece will be living and then went here for dinner:

My sister had remarked that while we had seen these restaurants through many a car window, neither of us had ever eaten there, so we should give it a try.  They actually made a pretty good steak!  Mary & Sam were thrilled with the salad bar and mused that next time they would be happy with just the soup & salad offerings!
     After we went back to the hotel and thought of taking a swim, but the pool was a bit full for our tastes, so we caught up on some cable TV while my sister worked on her laptop in the lobby on WiFi.
     It was early wake up call for the three of us - Sam & Mary had to be at their respective orientations by 8:00am.  I headed back to the hotel to suck up more cable TV (I don't have any tv service at home, cable or otherwise) and then get cleaned up, pack up our stuff and check out.  I indulged in hotel breakfast (boy was that a bad idea) and thought about a swim but there just wasn't time. Then I had a full day of exploration ahead of me.  I visited Sheetz and got ice for our cooler; uncovered the location of all 3 grocery stores and drove around the mall.  I also visited IUP's book store and bought myself a hoodie - a bit of a challenge because IUP has about a 100 different kinds of hoodies but only about 3 of them zip all the way up the front and that's the kind I prefer - and there's the whole plus size thing (I like my hoodies big and comfy).  BUT - I did score a hoodie and I'm looking forward to chilly weather so I can proudly display my IUP love!   

     Checked in with my sister and she was on lunch break and dying for coffee.  I found the ONLY Dunkin Donuts in Indiana, PA, grabbed a cup of her favorite and swung back to the college to pick her up.  We headed to the book store so she could do her shopping and then we drove around town a bit before dropping her back off for more orientation.
     It was about that time that I was ready for lunch, so I found a fast food joint and parked with my burger and watched it rain and rain and rain.... did you know that Indiana, PA gets more rain every year then Seattle, WA? Sad but true - I say sad because my niece is such a sunshine/warm weather girl (I didn't mention snow....).  

     I also discovered an A&W Root Beer place and while I am positive they had amazing root beer floats, I didn't head over there and find out. 
     Then it was off to Wal*Mart for a wee bit of shopping (I have a hard time resisting the lure of fresh school supplies...crayons, virgin note books...the smell of fresh ink...<3) but I also gassed up the car and headed back to campus.  The girls were finished earlier then expected and we headed for home.
     It was an uneventful trip home despite the dangerous downpours that left me with about zero visibility to the point where I was navigating by the reflectors embedded into the paint on the highway.  I mentioned to my Dad later that I had the wheel gripped so hard my fingers hurt after and I think he thought it was because I was afraid - I explained it wasn't that I was afraid since I've driven in blizzards & hurricanes before - but I had my sister and niece in my car and was responsible for their safety which made me hyperaware of the situation.  Have to protect my girls, you know?
     We stopped in Carlisle, PA at the Route 11 Diner where we consumed some excellent cream of broccoli soup, omelets and a hot turkey sandwich with gravy fries. There was a whole (funny) incident with my niece losing her footing off a 6 inch curb much to her friend's amusement (thanks to text and twitter) but we made it back safely and in good time (though not as good gas mileage).  Many thanks to the ladies for letting me come along on their adventure and drive (which is one of my favorite things) and explore! Much love!
     I am sure there will be more road trips to Indiana, PA to visit Sam - I personally am looking forward to one with lots of SNOW!!

    My parents live in western Berks County, almost into Lebanon County. It is 75 miles from my house to their house which can take anywhere from an hour and a half to two hours depending...so I love to leave early in the morning to drive there - its all about the open road, a definite decrease in bad drivers and this feeling of peacefulness I find driving early in the morning.
    So I left about 6:00am and my first stop was in King of Prussia at a local WaWa for coffee and a toasted bagel and then it was the Pennsylvania Turnpike West! The Turnpike is lovely early in the morning - many days you can see deer frolicking along the verge and further out, horses and cows grazing in fields and meadows of the farms that become more frequent then housing developments.  My first turn is at Morgantown, where I take 176 north towards Reading - but I don't go all the way because I just can't stand driving through Reading (and when you don't like driving on a particular road or through a particular area, it doesn't make for a great road trip); from there I weave through beautiful Berks county and pretty little towns like Shillington. Then its 422 and on to Womelsdorf!  
    Usually when I visit my folks, I like to go with my dad to Horning's Market in Bethel, and as I mentioned in my last post - Hornings needs a post of its own! This time, I needed to hit the market before getting to the farm, so I headed to Bethel first and was in line waiting when the store opened. I got my shopping done and headed back to Windy Knolls (my parent's place).  The girls helped my dad fill the bird feeders (dad has a special garden for the birds, bees & butterflies). I printed the directions to the park from the internet and then we packed the cars and headed out for Knoebels!

Side note: my family might argue that my parent's place isn't a farm - but to me - any place with a house, several acres, a barn with a working farm tractor, and plots of growing things (say a garden) makes it a farm. Thus - my use of farm to describe Windy Knolls.

    Now, I had been listening to my mix all the way up to the farm but I really began to appreciate it on the drive to the park.  It was a beautiful day - sun shining, breeze blowing - perfect for a road trip!  And my mix was PERFECT!! 
    My dad was leading and it was great to just follow and not have to navigate or fuss with directions. It was just over 50 miles from the farm to the park and many mountains to cross, so we had some fun driving to do. Now while the mountains may not be as high as the Rockies we crossed on a family trip when I was a kid, they are still high enough to make your ears pop!

    In a little over an hour and a half, we arrived at the park and I have to admit I was shocked at the huge number of acres filled with parked cars!! But the first awesome thing about Knoebels is that you don't pay to park. Not a penny.  There are also stations set up through the parking area and a regularly scheduled tram drives through the parking lot to take people to the park entrance (no cost for that either!).
    As soon as we got to the park entrance, my dad found a ticket booth and purchased tickets for the rides - see, there isn't a fee to get into the park - you just pay for rides and concessions, gift shops, etc.  My dad had a great time going on some of the rides with my nieces (the root cause of this great adventure).  It didn't take us too long to meet up with some of my other siblings and their families who met us there to enjoy the day.  The adults took turns taking the kids to various rides and all my nieces and nephews in attendance had a great time.

    Other tidbits about Knoebels that I found impressive:
    $2 for a 20oz bottle of water
    $3 for a cheeseburger (a DELICIOUS cheeseburger I might add)
    Didn't catch the price for fries, but I had some of my brother David's and 
    they were also delicious!
    CLEAN! The park was really clean!
    Lots of places to sit both in the shade and in the bright sun
    Everyone was treated with respect - be it adults, children, people with 
    disabilities, etc.
    The lines at the rides moved incredibly fast - no agonizing waits
    Dogs on leashes are allowed in the park, but their owners are responsible for 
    cleaning up after them at all times!

    We spent hours in the park and when it was time to go home, we had a pack of exhausted and soaking wet children so again, that tram to the parking lot came in supper handy! 
    The only drawback I could mention about the park is its location - which is way out in the middle of somewhere Pennsylvania (actually between Danville and Bloomsburg) so for folks closer to the Philadelphia area, it will take quite a long time to get there but I cannot stress enough how worthwhile experience it was - for everyone of all ages.  The clincher? I am not fond of amusement parks - but I am very glad I went along on this adventure and I can definitely say I would visit this park again (only this time I want some of that delicious ice cream I saw people eating along with my cheeseburger!)!!

Do yourself a favor and make this road trip and have a great time for yourself!  
http://www.knoebels.com/