Sunday Fun!

 Today we decided to take a trip to Columbia, simply because it has a lovely bike trail and scenic views of the Susquehanna River. We packed a picnic lunch and headed out early in the day to try to avoid some of the heat and humidity.

The visitor center is quite large, sitting adjacent to a water treatment facility, and the grounds lead down to the edge of the river.  This is listed as a National Heritage Area, and along the trail, there are placards that tell the story of the canals that were built along the water's edge, and how they played a part in history.   

Canals had been built along the river as early as 1832, linking Columbia to the areas north and west of the Susquehanna.  In 1840, a canal was built along the York County shoreline, on the opposite side of the river, known as the Susquehanna and Tidewater Canal.  It connected Wrightsville, across the river from Columbia, to the Chesapeake Bay.  People as well as goods were transported.  In the mid nineteenth century, there was a large African American as well as Quaker population living in Columbia, who helped to establish a way station on the Underground Railroad.  Runaway slaves from the Chesapeake Bay region found save haven here by traveling along the canal.

As you can see, the view of the trestle bridge from the path is quite lovely.

And, it appears that we weren't the only ones out for an adventure, although our's did not involve actually going out on the water.

Lucky Dog!

We were amused by this bike rack, , entitled, "May Fly".   It was actually designed by a 3rd grader, and certainly does make quite the recreation on a large scale!

Outside the center there is a huge pavilion, with picnic tables, where we enjoyed our lunch, 

and rocking chairs to enjoy the beauty of the river.

The inside told some history of the river, and included some entertaining duck decoys.

We decided to head on home, since the weather was heating up, but Joshua wanted to stop and take a peek at the Turkey Hill Experience, since he had seen the huge sign on the water tower by the road.  Marty and I had jested that we were eager to tour the facility some day, so this seemed like an excellent opportunity.

Unfortunately, the place was extremely crowded and we decided that it was best to attempt it on a future weekday.  But, we did get a photo of Marty and Joshua next to the cow that stands next to the entrance.

That was certainly entertaining!

We came home and decided to make some chocolate pizzelles to hold our home-made peanut butter ice cream that we were making for dessert.

Joshua was the timer.  

Becky was the molder. Not bad for a first attempt.

And certainly quite the treat when all was complete.  Becky made some "hard shell" chocolate to drizzle over the top.

This smile certainly tells you how excited he was at the finished product!

 I probably don't have to mention that they were delicious!