Winding Winter Way ...

“The road is life.”

                   ~ Jack Kerouac

                             ~ 1922-1969

                                         ~ “On The Road,”

                                                     ~ 1957

Standing near the Lehigh Valley Zoo at Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania offers a beautiful winter vista overlooking the historic Schlicher Covered Bridge in North Whitehall Township.

Game Preserve Road becomes a winding winter way through the bridge, painting a picturesque rural landscape on a March afternoon.

Schlicher’s is an historic wooden covered bridge. It is a 108-foot-long, Burr Truss bridge that crosses the Jordan Creek and was constructed in 1882. It has vertical plank siding and a gable roof. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, and was closed for a time for needed renovations.

Come October ...

"There is no season when such pleasant
and sunny spots may be lighted on, and produce
so pleasant an effect on the feelings, 
as now in October."
                    ~ Nathaniel Hawthorne
                                      ~ 1804-1864

Shades of a looming October sunset
dance on a picturesque scene at the historic
Hopewell Farm.

The farm is part of Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site in southeastern Berks County near Elverson, Pennsylvania, an example of an American 19th century rural "iron plantaation."
The buildings include a blast furnace, the
ironmaster's house and auxiliary structures
including a blacksmith's shop, a company store
and several worker's houses.

Hopewell Furnace was founded in 1771 by 
ironmaster Mark Bird for whom Birdsboro was named. The site's most prosperious time was 
during the 1820-1840 period with a brief boom in production during the American Civil War.
In the mid-19th century changes in ron making, including a shift from charcoal to anthracite
rendered smaller furnaces like Hopewell obsolete.
The site discontinued operations in 1883. 

Today, Hopewell Furnace consists of 14 restored 
structures in the core historic area, 52 features on
the List of Classified Structures, and a total of 848 mostly wooded areas. Hopewell Furnace National
Historic Site is located in the Hopewell Big Woods and surrounded by French Creek State Park on three sides and the State Game Lands
to the south which preserves the lands the furnace
utilized for its natural resources.   

  
 

Winding Into Red ...

"Nothing behind me,

Everything ahead of me,

As is ever so on the road." 

                              ~ Jack Kerouac

                                                 ~ 1922-1969

                                            ~ "On The Road"

                                                                     ~ 1957 

Though shorn of snow, it's a chilly December day

as the country road winds through the historic Schlicher Covered Bridge,

North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania.

What lies ahead is the beautiful rural landscape at sunset ...

and endless possibilities.

Schlicher's is an historic wooden covered bridge. It is a 108-foot-long, Burr Truss bridge that crosses the Jordan Creek and was constructed in 1882. It has vertical plank siding and a gable roof. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, and was closed for a time for needed renovations.

 

Spring At Geiger's Covered Bridge ...

"On the first warm day in May
I hope you'll come a-callin' ...
We'll climb the hill ...
where all is still ..."
                                    ~ "The First Warm Day In May"
                                                   ~ recorded by Rosemary Clooney
                                                                            ~ 1952

A sun dappled afternoon at Geiger's Covered Bridge is the perfect
place to spend the first warm day in May. This is one of my very favorite
places to be and to photograph. There's a simple beauty and tranquility here 
in the stillness and I love to capture that essence in my photography. 

Geiger's is an historic wooden covered bridge in North Whitehall Township,
Pennsylvania. It is a 112-foot-long Burr Truss bridge, constructed in 1860.
It has vertical plank siding and an entry portal of stepped square planks.
It crosses the Jordan Creek and was listed on the National Register 
of Historic Places in 1980. It can be accessed from The Covered Bridge Trail
of Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania.

The Art Of Nostalgia ...

"We do not remember days, we remember moments."
                                                  ~ Cesare Pavese
                                                                 ~ 1908-1950

Afternoon shadows of the early spring dance
tranquilly in the April sunlight at Schlicher Covered Bridge,
an historic wooden covered bridge in North Whitehall Township,
Pennsylvania. Schlicher's is a 108-foot-long, Burr Truss bridge 
that crosses the Jordan Creek and was constructed in 1882.
It has vertical plank siding and a gable roof. It was placed on the
National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It recently reopened
after needed renovations. 

Bridge Over Frosted Water ...

 

"How many lessons of faith and beauty we should lose,
if there were no winter in our year!"
                                                            ~ Thomas Wentworth Higginson
                                                                                          ~ 1823-1911
                                                                        from "April Days"
                                                                                             ~ 1861

The historic Geiger's Covered Bridge crosses the frosted waters

of the Jordan Creek, painting a scene of quiet beauty 
just before a winter sunset.

Geiger’s Covered Bridge is an historic wooden covered bridge in North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania. It is a 112-foot-long Burr Truss bridge, constructed in 1860. It has vertical plank siding and an entry portal of stepped square planks. It crosses the Jordan Creek and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It can be accessed from The Covered Bridge Trail of the Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania.