Welcome to Paradise! Lancaster, PA (Amish Country)

Labor Day Weekend, 2015 (September 5th & 6th)

For our Labor Day weekend, we headed off on a mega-family weekend. My parents own a travel trailer and had booked in at a campground in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. My sister’s family and my family were able to book the two cabins at the campground and we had an extended family vacation for the weekend.

Lancaster County is a unique and interesting place to visit due to the large number of Amish that live here. The Amish practice a form of Christianity that focuses on living a simple life. Another distinctive feature of the Amish is that they speak a form of German known as Pennsylvania German or Pennsylvania Dutch.

It took a while due to the holiday traffic, but we eventually made it to our destination, Roamer’s Retreat. Roamer’s is located in Kinzers, about 20 minutes east of Lancaster city. Our cabin was wonderful. It featured a room of bunk beds for the kids (four total beds) and another bed in the front room. The main room of the cabin has a kitchenette with a full size fridge, microwave, sink and everything you would want to have in a kitchen except a stove. There is a grill in the front of the cabin for cooking. There is table with four chairs and a television in the main room as well. Outside there is a table on the porch, plus a large picnic table in front of the cabin.

Our cabin at Roamer’s Retreat

Our first day was Saturday. After having a great family breakfast (all ten of us) we headed through the back roads to a shop known as 3 Sisters (at the corner of Newport Rd (Route 772) and Usner Rd in Buyerstown). We got some delicious pies, really good bread and some cookies since they would be closed on Sunday and Monday. Then we walked across Newport Road to the farm stand and purchased some amazing corn, apples and other fruits and vegetables.

We dropped off our purchases at the campground and then set off for Katie’s Kitchen (which has good food) to use the great picnic area. After our picnic we headed to our target destination, the Strasburg Railroad. We had intended to ride the train that afternoon, but it took us a while to get assembled so we bought tickets for the next day instead.

Playground next to picnic area at Katie’s Kitchen

One of our other goals for the weekend was to buy some food from Stoltzfus Meats in Intercourse. I bought Lebanon bologna, whoopie pies and some candy (all of it was wonderful). Then it was back to the campground where the kids (3, 4, 6, 6, and 9) enjoyed the playground while supper was prepared. Those supervising the playground also got treated to a live Gospel group. Each evening we were also able to watch the Amish farm next to the campground harvest tobacco and corn.

Sunday, we headed to the railroad after another great breakfast (cooked by my father). The Strasburg Railroad is the longest continually operating stream railroad in the United States. It’s a very enjoyable 45 minute train ride, but you also can be dropped off at a really nice picnic area where you may hop back on any of the trains that pass by once you are ready to return.

Train returns to the Strasburg Railroad

Play train at the Strasburg Railroad

Play area at the Strasburg Railroad

After the train, we headed to the Oregon Dairy in Lititz for a picnic and some ice cream. I don’t know if this is the best ice cream in the area or not, but I do know that it is really good and you get a lot of ice cream for the money. They also have an absolutely amazing playground!

Oregon Dairy playground

Milking the ceramic cow at the Oregon Dairy

After lunch and our ice cream it was on to the Cloister in Ephrata. The Cloister was founded in 1732 as a monastery for an unique religious movement. The community lasted until 1813 when the last of the members died. It is a very intriguing look into the radical sort of religious ideas that were allowed to exist in colonial America. The original buildings are mostly still standing and are unique among American colonial building because they are built using German architectural styles instead of the English style that was typical in the colonies. Everything else aside, it is an extremely peaceful place to spend an afternoon. We stayed until closing time (5 PM) and then returned to Roamers for supper. We watched the farmers harvest their crops as we ate and then enjoyed our last s’mores of the weekend. After the children were in bed, Sarah and I were able to enjoy our porch with coffee and a clear black night that let us examine the constellations on a beautiful night.