Snow-Capped Pennsylvania German Country ...

 “That grand old poem called Winter.”

    ~ Henry David Thoreau

      ~ 1817 ~ 1862

This authentic Pennsylvania German farmhouse, picturesque 19^th century barn and corn crib paint a peaceful, rural winterscape after a fresh February snowfall at the historic 1756 Troxell-Steckel Farm Museum, Egypt, Pennsylvania.

The Coplay Creek runs through this 31 acre property, which was once part of a 400 acre farm. The centerpiece of the property is a stone farmhouse, built in 1756. A spring house, barn and corn crib are also on the property. The farmhouse is an authentic Pennsylvania German farmhouse and offers an example of Lehigh County agricultural history. The Troxell-Steckel house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

It is the region’s only authentically complete Pennsylvania German farmhouse, resembling its medieval ancestors and giving a captivating glimpse of the area’s farm history.

The Pennsylvania German farmhouse was constructed in 1756 by John Peter Troxell, an immigrant from Germany in search of a better life. When the structure was built, twenty years before the Declaration of Independence was signed, this farm sat on the edge of wilderness. George Washington was only 24 years old, and America was ruled by the King of England. At the time, the house was reported to be the largest residence on the Pennsylvania frontier. The fortress-like masonry walls of this structure are more than two feet thick.

In 1768, John Peter Troxell sold this farm to Peter Steckel, another immigrant from Germany. Pennsylvania Germans were one of the largest immigrant groups in Eastern Pennsylvania. Their traditions enriched American culture.

As someone of Irish-German heritage, I love getting a glimpse into Pennsylvania German history in the area.

This historic site is owned and operated by the Lehigh County Historical Society and is open for seasonal tours and events.

The Troxell-Steckel Farm Museum may also be accessed from the Ironton Rail Trail, which loops more than nine miles through Whitehall Township, the Borough of Coplay and North Whitehall Township.

The Ironton Railroad was a shortline railroad in Lehigh County. Originally built in 1861 to haul iron ore and limestone to blast furnaces along the Lehigh River, traffic later shifted to carrying Portland Cement when local iron mining declined in the early 20^th century. Much of the railroad had already been abandoned when it became part of Conrail in 1976, and the last of its trackage was removed in 1984.

 

In 1996, Whitehall Township purchased 9.2 miles of the right-of-way from Conrail, transforming it into the Ironton Rail Trail.

 

The Evergreen In Winter ...

 “No one can look at a pine tree in winter without knowing that spring will come again in due time.”

   ~ Frank Bolles

    ~ American author & naturalist

      ~ 1856 ~ 1894

  ~ The quote serves as a metaphor for hope, resilience, and the inevitability of change, emphasizing that difficult times (winter) are temporary

 A Norway Spruce laced with a light dusting of snow radiates a winter peace after a fresh snowfall under a velvet curtain of gray that creates a canvas of hidden poetry in the sky at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania.

I shot this scene on a late February afternoon in 2026. This Norway Spruce was the subject of the first nature photo I took very early in my photography journey in February 2009 ~ my has it grown!

The Norway Spruce is a rapidly growing, woody, needled evergreen tree in the pine family. It is often used as a Christmas tree, frequently selected as the Rockefeller Christmas tree in New York City.

Sugar-Coated ...

 “While the earth has slumbered, all the air has been alive with feathery flakes descending.”

            ~ Henry David Thoreau

              ~ 1817 ~ 1862

          ~ from “A Winter Walk”

                 ~ published 1843

The Monocacy Creek meanders through Monocacy Park, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, soon after almost a foot of snow blanketed the region, painting the landscape with a sugary white coat on a beautiful late January afternoon.

Snow Moon Brushes The Silvery Creek ...

“By the light of the silvery moon, I want to spoon, to my honey I’ll croon love’s tune …”

         ~ “By the Light of the Silvery Moon”

    ~ popular love song, music by Gus Edwards, lyrics by Edward Madden

       ~ published 1909, one of a series of moon-related Tin Pan Alley songs

      ~ performed in the 1953 film “By the Light of the Silvery Moon” by  Doris Day, Gordon MacRae and others throughout the film

The full Snow Moon melts into a silvery creek in the beautiful surreal in wintertime.

I created this image by blending my shot of the Snow Moon of February 1, 2026 shining over the West End of Allentown, Pennsylvania with “Silvered Shores,” my February 2017 capture of the snow-laden creek at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania as a hint of sunset blushes the creek between its silvered shores after a fresh snowfall.

The Snow Moon is often named for the heavy snowfalls common during this time of year in the Northern Hemisphere. The cold, dense air of February often makes this moon appear brighter and sharper.

I shot this soon after this Snow Moon hit its maximum 100 percent illumination at 5:09 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Flocking To The Snowy Pond...

 “Listen to the silence inside the illusion of the world.”

   ~ Jack Kerouac

    ~ 1922 ~ 1969

 

With a fresh snowfall clinging to the trees, Canadian Geese flock to the pond as sunset looms on a mid-January day at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania, painting a serene showcase of winter’s quiet beauty.

Moonglow Meets The Delaware ...

“It must have been moonglow, way up in the blue,

It must have been moonglow that led me straight to you …”

                        ~  “Moonglow”

            ~ 1933 popular song & jazz standard

           ~ Will Hudson & Irving Mills, composers

               ~ Eddie DeLange, lyricist

   ~ “Moonglow & Theme from Picnic” is a 1956-releaased medley of both “Moonglow” & “Theme from Picnic” (1955) by Morris Stoloff – one of my favorite movies!

Moonglow meets the Delaware River over the historic Free Bridge during a soft purple twilight in autumn in the beautiful surreal.

Reflections from lights on the historic Northampton Street Bridge, commonly called the Free Bridge, trip the light fantastic as they dance in harmony on the Delaware River from my vantage point by the banks of the Delaware in Phillipsburg, New Jersey at dusk in late November.

Programmable LED lights illuminate the iconic bridge which spans the Delaware River to link Phillipsburg with Easton.

The lights were installed as part of a bridge rehabilitation/improvement project that spanned from late 2021 until spring 2023. The bridge is colloquially referred as the “Free Bridge” to distinguish it from the Easton-Phillipsburg Toll Bridge (previously the Bushkill Street Bridge), a short distance upstream.

The bridge that spans the two states was completed in 1896 and survived massive flooding from Hurricane Diane in 1955. It underwent a thorough restoration in 1990 and is one of my very favorite places to photograph.

Historic Phillipsburg was established March 8, 1861 and named for William Phillips, an early settler of the area. The historic town of Easton was founded in 1752 and is located at the confluence of the Delaware River and Lehigh River, known as the Forks-Of-The-Delaware. Both are Delaware River Towns.

The Free Bridge can also be seen from across the Delaware River at Delaware Canal State Park, Easton, near the Forks of the Delaware Trailhead of the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor (D&L Trail).

Running from Wilkes-Barre to Bristol, the D&L Trail passes through the Lehigh and Delaware rivers and their canals in Pennsylvania.

I created this image by blending my November 22, 2025 shot of the bridge with my capture of the Supermoon of December 3, 2017 shining brightly over Cedar Creek Parkway, Allentown, Pennsylvania. 

A Supermoon happens when the full moon coincides with the moon’s closest approach to Earth in its orbit. Supermoons make the moon appear a little brighter and closer than normal.

The term Supermoon has only been used in the past 40 years.