I put camping in quotation marks because lots of people wouldn’t consider staying in a campground to be true camping.
Anyway, that’s what we did for three nights, 20 minutes outside (just south) of Hershey. We returned to Croton late yesterday.
We had an excellent time. The campsite was nice, and here’s our tent, along with two campers:
Of course being at a campsite with a tent is so yesterday. Most people staying there had RV’s. The site also had a pool, as well as a pretty little pond. That’s Tim in mid-air (“No Diving” signs were everywhere!) entering the pool, and a big carp in the foreground in the pond.
The idea for this trip was mine – I got a yen to go re-visit Gettysburg about two weeks ago and quickly put the trip together. Tim made it clear that he didn’t “want to look at statues all day long” so really the four days/three nights was built around going to Hersheypark at least part of every day. We arrived Wedneseday afternoon and did our “preview” visit that night. Then the next day, after going to Gettysburg for about five hours (it’s a one hour trip from the campsite to the Gettysburg National Park) we went back to the amusement park. The next day was a drive through Lancaster county (Amish country), including lunch and then into the park in the mid-afternoon. And Saturday it was the park from one o’clock to six and then the drive back to Croton.
Here are three pix from Gettysburg. A Confederate-eye view of Little Round Top, which late on the second day of the three day battle the Rebels tried to take going directly up the hill. And at that time there were no trees on the slope. And in the face of withering Union fire. Yikes! And then Brigid at the copse of trees on Cemetery Ridge, the so-called “high water mark” of the Confederacy, where parts of Picket’s Charge reached, before being overwhelmed by Union toops. Lastly, a picture of a picture – the man in the circle is believed by historians to be Abraham Lincoln, at Gettysburg, just before delivering the “Gettysburg Address.”
Lancaster county is beautiful.
The city of Hershey is a unique place. Seemingly everything revolves around the Hershey Chocolate Empire, with the town founded as a company town. Milton Hershey was a Mennonite from Lancaster county, and also a philanthropist. Here’s his story – Milton S. Hershey History
In the park, besides the wooden roller coasters – there are three of them, one being a double roller coaster – we did all the whacky, nutso, upside down, corkscrew rides. Rides like Stormrider, Sidewinder, the Great Bear, and the Superdooperlooper. We also did most of the water rides. However no pictures from in the park, since Dad stupidly left the camera in the car on the last day. This after we craftily plotted out how we could bring in the camera, but avoid getting it wet on the water rides!
So here’s a picture from outside the park, of the Thunder and Lightning wooden roller coaster – the dual coaster.
And a last picture, taken by Brigid while lying on her cot in the tent, through the tent window. I think we’re likely to try and get back to Hershey next summer. There is plenty to do and it’s a beautiful area.
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