Raystown Lake, PA
Our first substantial hilly drive…Tom is nailing these roads! So impressed - our rig, with the Jeep towing behind it - is a solid 50+ feet of rolling wheel estate. I’m still hesitant to take it on a long drive (because of the turns) but I’ll get there. We’re staying at the Seven Points campground in the Raystown Lake Area (by Hesston, PA) for the next 3 nights. Once again, great campground with spacious campsites and the whole area is beautiful. There are two main draws - Raystown Lake, which is the largest manmade lake in Pennsylvania and the Allegheny mountain bike trails. The lake is gorgeous, nestled in the hills and it also boasts the state’s largest marina. Some of the houseboats here made us want to trade in the RV - wow! The lake itself is 28 miles long and would be a fantastic way to spend a week meandering it. We’re also thankful we landed here when we did as it is hot, hot, hot and so we’ve been treated to some pretty fantastic rainstorms in the afternoon.
Owen has made some fast friends with a bunch of kids here and they play on the playground even as it gets dark. We’ve been really impressed with his willingness to seek out connections so organically. While there were some other attractions in the area (Lincoln Caves/Caverns), this was a good spot to get caught up on some work, school, and some trip planning. We’re now officially booked all the way through the Florida Keys (mid October) so that gives us some stability for the next few months in a way.
Owen’s YouTube video on Raystown Lake and Tom’s Facebook pics
We went down to the beach to do some swimming and realized that a large portion of the swim beach is actually a massive, sloping concrete slab that gradually gets deeper as you enter. While a clean lake, the interesting part is that there’s a natural collection of slippery algae (?) on the concrete so once you start walking in, you have absolutely no traction and you just kind of glide into the water. Getting in is fun, getting out is a true test and nearly impossible. So strange and yet a fun experience and one we won’t forget! The water felt great on such a hot day. They also have a fantastic visitor center, with history and hands-on exhibits related to the area. We were here on a Monday - Thursday, but on the weekends they have all sorts of stuff planned. Sadly, we were going to miss opportunities to help with monarch tagging and releases, yoga at the beach, “chalk the walk” (Sidewalk chalk art), live music, and a good old fashioned revival on Sunday. Supposedly they plan events like this every weekend. Oh well - can’t do everything!
We did try out the Skills area within the park, which provides a test run for the Allegheny mountain bike trails. It was pretty impressive, with some drops and ramps built in. Owen and Tom spent more time on it than I did - I still have my mountain bike from my 20s, so you do the math -it’s a little old and not sure how much I trust it (or myself). There are some great hiking trails in the area as well as walking path that goes around the entire area, made of recycled rubber. This entire area is managed by the Army Corp of Engineers and it is a fantastic place to camp. Five stars!
People met along the way: Owen met a friend (Lane) and they hung out quite a bit. Our campsite neighbors were super friendly, from the area, and gave us lots of great tips for Gettysburg. They also offloaded their extra home-grown garden tomatoes and zucchini - win win!
Hiccups and hangups: There is a funky smell coming from the air conditioner when it turns on (almost a sulfur like smell); we’re hoping it has something to do with where we’re camping and not the unit itself!
Dates of stay: August 9 - 12, 2021
Grateful for: Our awning not getting destroyed during a thunderstorm (when we were in town shopping for groceries), and the sunrise that we saw on our departure day with the fog above the lake