Let me just start by saying, the Poconos is probably one of, if not my absolute favorite place on Earth. It’s beautiful, it’s quiet, and it’s cool all year round. The beau’s family has a house up here, and I fell in love with it the first time we came up here.
This past trip was my first time visiting the Poconos in the summer, and it was beautiful. Also, cold! Being from New Jersey and knowing the house had no air conditioning, I packed lots of light clothes (shorts, tank tops, summer sweaters) and prepared for sleepless summer nights. Lo and behold, first night up there, I ended up searching for blankets in the middle of the night!
Despite the chilly weather, we still managed to get out and about, and see some new things on our weekend away.
Friday
Friday was mostly nonsense day. We left the house around 11, making a very important stop for Pork Roll, Egg, & Cheese bagel. Unfortunately, the bagel was pretty lacking. In better news, we made great time, almost no traffic on the road! We had a quick stop to pick up some supplies for the house from family, and arrived around 4 PM. We brought everything inside and opened up the windows to get a breeze going, and then did a grocery run for the weekend.
Friday night we planned to do takeout, which was a good choice, especially after a day of driving. We hit up Jubilee, which is the best restaurant in the Poconos, and got some tasty dinner, and then had a nice low key night watching the sunset over the lake.
Saturday
We were up early on Saturday to hike Bushkill Falls. It was a pretty long drive and a little crowded at the entrance. Everyone had masks on, and once we got inside and past the first map, the path was pretty clear. The hike was absolutely beautiful, but it was a bad time for me to learn how terrified I really was of steep, skinny stairs. Once we got through the initial climbs it wasn’t too bad at all, but it was touch and go for a little bit! The plan was to take the longest rail, but after my nerves, we opted for the second longest trail, and walked along the river for a while before heading back in.
Sunday
We had big plans for Sunday, including trail riding, but it ended up being a bit more of a lazy sleep-in Sunday. Plus, it was pretty chilly and I wasn’t too keen on trading out blankets for shorts and sneakers. Early that afternoon we headed out to Jim Thorpe for the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway. The town was a big change from the Pocono Pines area. It was filled with historic buildings, church bells playing, and a historic steam engine. But at the same time had a ton of young families, bike and kayak rentals, and some seriously delicious smelling restaurants. It was surprising to see a buzzing small city, and we definitely didn’t get to spend enough time there.
That being said, I loved the Lehigh Gorge Railway. Fun fact, I love trains. Like, really love trains. And this was a super fun trip. The ride was beautiful, with waterfalls, a bike trail, and the weather was great too. I really enjoyed it, got the chance to watch them reattach the engine, and checked out the small attached museum and tourism center. When life goes back to normal, I would highly recommend checking out the Railway, but not until after COVID-19 is resolved. As fun as the trip was, the lack of masks made the ride a bit uncomfortable. The beau and I had ours on the whole time, but most people took theirs off, and some had no masks at all. We both tested negative once we got home, but I wouldn’t go out there again until cases are even lower.
Monday & Tuesday
While it was a 5-day trip, we spend Monday and Tuesday hanging out in the house and working. The beau and I didn’t take time off for the trip, but relocated our home offices to the Poconos for the weekend. I love what I do, but it was way more fun doing so with a beautiful view and cool weather. I was responsible for breakfasts and lunches, so we kept it pretty simple.
Monday was a workday, I caught up on some web design work, did more writing, and mostly hung around. On Tuesday, while the beau worked I packed our bags, did the laundry, and cleaned out the fridge. There was also a minor plumbing emergency, so I got to play home improvement for a few hours, which I thoroughly enjoyed too.
Throughout the weekend I was also able to sneak in some reading here and there. Mostly still hammering through On The Road by Jack Kerouac. I cannot say enough bad things about this book. 0/10 would not recommend. But the only thing I hate more than this book is not finishing a book, so I have to finish it. At least I was reading in a beautiful setting
Meals
We planned our meals out for this trip, which was a first for us. We usually just wing it, which leads to at least one meal being far too many chicken nuggets for two people. This time, we focused on avoiding multiple grocery trips, saving a bit of money cooking at home, and making sure every meal had a slightly healthy aspect to it. We also wanted easy to cook meals that we could make with as few pots as possible! The best meal of the trip was either the chicken masala or honestly, scrambled eggs. The beau makes the best scrambled eggs of all time! We also committed ourselves to snack less, and swapped out our chips for hummus, carrots, and grapes.
This trip was pretty low key and close to home, but it was a really enjoyable one. For anyone in New Jersey or New York, the Poconos is the perfect place to go for a quiet weekend away. Stay inside, stay safe, and keep your mask on of course, but it’s a beautiful, peaceful place to work away from home!
