North Central PA Exploration (Philadelphia, State College: home, unemployed, buy)

[rsrobbins]

I've lived in Williamsport PA all my life but I've only recently begun to explore the area. The economic apocalypse is going to be very disruptive so I've decided it would be a good idea to check out nearby towns. I remember the last time I was unemployed for a long time. I had to find my way to many unfamiliar cities for job interviews.

There aren't many guide books on this part of the state. Most of the guide books on PA only cover Philadelphia and the surrounding area. I did buy the Compass American Guides: Pennsylvania, 3rd Edition book but it was very sketchy on this part of the state.

Recently I have checked out Mifflinburg which frequently has German festivals. I was really impressed by the historic main street and the rural culture. This little town is completely unknown to tourists and strikes me as a well kept secret. I've also visited Lock Haven which has a lovely downtown area.

I plan to visit several other small towns before branching out further afield; Lewisburg, Selingsgrove, Bloomsburg, Mansfield, and Wellsboro.

In general, I find it hard to gather information on these towns. Tourism web sites have nothing at all on the place. I can't find any photos of the restaurant I plan to eat at, etc. It is like an uncharted area. NorthCentralPA.com and Susquehanna River Valley Visitors Bureau are two good resources I am familiar with but let me know if you can think of any others.

[PeeAye Native]

Of the towns on your list, I think Bloomsburg has a picture-postcard like downtown, and it is a nice place to walk around town, or even better, nice to take a long bike ride around the entire town. Lots of wide-open, tree lines streets, without heavy traffic or speeding cars.

You did not mention Eagle's Mere. Relatively close to Williamsport, and worth a visit just to see the quaintness of the town.

I’d add in State College also. Go experience a College Football Saturday. Even if you don’t attend the game in Beaver Stadium, walk around the downtown, see all the fans dressed in blue and white, stroll through the campus, stop in a college bar, walk around the tailgating areas, see the stand up Joes, etc., etc.

And then there’s World’s End State Park, Rickett’s Glen State Park, and Cherry Springs State Park. All three worth a visit for different reasons (Cherry Springs at night, look up Dark Sky and Night Sky viewing, the two others for traditional hiking, sightseeing, picnic-ing, etc.).

[Krisps]

Check the PA Wilds website.

[SorryIMovedBack]

The economic apocalypse is going to be very disruptive

The economic apocalypse started back in the '70s if not before then for most of rural PA, so I'd not count on those areas continuing to thrive. If they are fortunate, they still have a few small manufacturing plants, like maybe one per town and it's threatened. Schools and hospitals are typically the largest and best-paying employers. Surrounding Lewisburg, it's mostly farms. Lewisburg might still have Standard Steel working, but they were threatened by imports 15 years ago. Standard Steel Home Guys that I knew from the Lewistown area mostly had travel jobs, like laid cable for AT&T or were truck drivers or something. They worked out of town all week and maybe came home on weekends. Standard Steel is probably the largest non-school, non-medical employer of the Lewistown area.

Local Economy -- Top Employers in the Region || Bucknell University lists some employers.

[rsrobbins]

Originally Posted by SorryIMovedBack

Schools and hospitals are typically the largest and best-paying employers.

Yes, I've noticed this. In Williamsport; Lycoming College, Penn College, and Susquehanna Health Systems are expanding their empires. They buy up entire blocks to build parking lots and new buildings. It is the only economic development that occurs.

[Gerania]

It's often quite difficult to gather information about small cities and towns, but if you're persistent, you can usually (not always) find something on the internet.

Change search criteria: shops in Lewisburg, shopping in Lewisburg, stores in Lewisburg, day trip to Lewisburg...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_vehnqT2gs

Don't neglect photos, or the dreaded Facebook.