Things to do: March 2009 Archives

All of the third-graders at Norman A. Trimmer Elementary this year had to do two hours of community service, preferably with their families.

Many of the kids in our neighborhood took the fundraising route - making snack mix or brownies and selling them in baggies, door to door. (Which was yummy, and which we decided to partake of several times!)

Sarah, though, wanted to do something a little different. Since we're such big fans of the county's parks, as evidenced by our many summer hikes, we talked to her and came up with the idea of picking up litter in the parks.

You wouldn't believe what we found! Lots of socks. Some condom wrappers - eww! An abandoned fishing tackle box (pictured below) at Pinchot Park in Warrington Township.

Also, enough empty soda bottles and soda bottle lids - and a few full soda and water bottles - to keep the recycling center busy for a while.

The bag below was collected in about 20 minutes at Dunedin Park in West Manchester Township.

On behalf of my daughter, myself, Hubby and all those who use the parks - BE NICE! PICK UP YOUR LITTER (or someone's else's, if you see it.) If my little girl can do it, so can you!

While I was off in early March, I got the great idea to travel York County's historic Norman Wood Bridge, pictured above.

So I bundled Hubby and Girl into the car, and off we set for Lower Chanceford Township. We headed to Wrightsville, then followed the river south along Routes 624 and 425, cutting over to Route 74 in Airville and heading a little further south. The bridge, if you don't know, is along Route 372 (Holtwood Road, on the York County side) and runs just south of the Holtwood Dam.

Now, the funny thing is, I hate crossing bridges. I'm afraid of heights - and this is a particularly high-up bridge, of course! Don't ask me, but I really enjoyed it nevertheless.

We stopped at PPL's Lock 12 Recreation Park - they maintain it because of their connection to the dam - and took some photos, including the ones here.

Our favorite sights were the prominent danger signs - because the water level changes so suddenly because of the dam, they direct people to leave immediately if they hear sirens or see flashing lights. Here's one:

And here's a shot of the dam itself:

We finished our drive by coming north in Lancaster County and home along Route 462 (Market Street), crossing back into the county over the Columbia/Wrightsville bridge.

Overall, a highly recommended, York County-based day trip. Anyone else been down there? I'm hoping to spend a little more time in that area, maybe exploring some of the hiking options, when it gets a little warmer!