Vacation Day 2: Pennsylvania

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

The second day of vacation was met with cooler (may I dare say colder....I know I know crazy talk, right?) temperatures!  It was so great to wear a jacket and a scarf and to see the leaves changing!  FALL!!!!!!!!  Okay so technically Fall arrives on Friday but I'm pretending it's already here because it's my favorite season and well that's that. This wonderful, cooler, scarf wearing, fall feeling gift from God day started at Laurel Caverns.  Exploring underground, sign me up while I put on my head lamp.  Laurel Caverns is a sandstone cave located close to Farmington, PA.  I took the traditional guided tour that is an hour long and covers the parts of the cave which does not include any climbing.  The tour guide was very informative with information about the cave and answered all of my questions.  While I have explored caves before each cave is different and completely overwhelms me with its natural beauty.  As a side note but a very important note, Laurel Caverns closes every year for bat hibernation.  Many moons ago the bat population in this area was 25,000 but as of this past hibernation there were only 12 bats, yes you read that correctly 12.  A majority of the reason for this decline in the bat population is white nose fungus.  #savethebats

I feel that now is a good time to tell you that this post is a photo overload!  Enjoy!

 The breathtaking view from the entrance to Laurel Caverns.

 There are chandeliers that line the walk down into the cave & yes people get married in caves!
Anyone else see the women's face?  There were some ghost/haunting stories told during this tour and one was about a woman dressed in white that has been seen walking through the caves.




Next stop was to Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater.  However, taking back roads means that there'll be many stops before reaching the actual destination.  Between Laurel Caverns and Fallingwater is Frank Lloyd Wright's Kentuck Knob.  I first fell in love with Frank Lloyd Wright's designs after reading Loving Frank.  Yes, I know that Loving Frank is a historical fiction book but after reading (okay while reading) I did a lot of research and fell head over heels in love with the designs of FLW.  While I didn't have time to stay for the guided house tour of Kentuck Knob, there was a self-guided walking tour that was somewhat of a short hike to the house and I was able to explore the amazing grounds.
 Sculptures seen while on the walk to the house.
 An actual piece of the Berlin Wall

 Frank Lloyd Wright's Kentuck Knob is a Usonian design located on 89 acres.

After leaving Kentuck Knob, I headed to Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater.  Per their website, it was advised to purchase tickets in advance as tours tend to sell out.  My tour was scheduled for 2p.  I took the standard guided house tour (they offer several guided in-depth tours).  The house was built in the 1930s over a water fall (get it, Fallingwater).  FLW sketched the designed for this house in 3 hours!  This house is a dream and was actually a vacation/weekend home for a family who lived in Pittsburgh.  The original budget for the house was $30,000.  However, FLW went over budget so much so that the final cost of the house was $150,000(ish).  The house stayed in the family until the 1960s at which time the house was donated to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.


See, a dream house!

After this amazing tour, I began my short (or so I thought) journey to Johnstown, PA which was to be my final stop for the day.  Again, taking the back roads one never knows.  Between Mill Run, PA and Johnstown, PA, I had amazing views, including my very first covered bridge!

 King's Covered Bridge
 

While driving, I saw a sign for the Flight 93 Memorial.  It seemed to be on the way to Johnstown, PA so I decided to stop by what I thought was going to be a memorial not far from the highway.  After about a 20 mile detour, I arrived at the Flight 93 Memorial.  The memorial isn't a small memorial off the highway, it's a visitor center/museum, walk trails, crash site memorial wall all situation on 2,300 acres.


 Crash Site.



There is a great sense of reverence while walking through the visitor center/museum and the grounds.  The National Park Service has done a great job with the Flight 93 National Memorial.

As you can see Vacation Day 2 was a jam packed day full of sunrise to sunset adventures.  I was exhausted by the time I finally arrived at my hotel in Johnstown but already looking forward to what new adventures awaited me on Vacation Day 3.

Happy Travels,
Amber

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