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Cruise the Canal
Meander Alongside the Delaware Canal Through the River Towns of Bucks County By Neil Plakcy Camperways - June 2002 |
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Before railroads, canals played an important
role in American commerce and transportation. They provided transportation
connections between the anthracite coal mines and the two largest metropolitan
areas of that time, New York City and Philadelphia. Now, comfortably ensconced in your RV, head north
from Philadelphia and follow the canal's route from Bristol north to Easton.
You'll find yourself unwinding as you meander through the beautiful countryside
of Bucks County. Begin your journey in Bristol at the foot of
Mill Street and pull into Bristol Lions' Park. Sit on a bench at the water's
edge behind the stone riprap, and watch the tugboats, barges and container
ships cruise past, mixing it up with scrappy powerboats and sailboats.
Pop a CD of "The Bristol Stomp" by the Dovells into your Walkman, and
practice your moves. |
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| Pennsbury Manor |
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| From Bristol, follow the navy and orange signs,
the color of Pennsylvania license plates, along Radcliffe Street to Pennsbury
Manor, William Penn's home. You'll know you're getting close when every
other vehicle along the narrow two-lane road is a garbage truck, and the
landfill looms ahead of you. The Manor is open Tuesday through Saturday
from 9 to 5, and from noon to 5 on Sundays. Check their web site, at www.pennsburymanor.org,
for exact schedules of guided tours and special events. My personal favorite
is Sheepshearing Day in May. Stroll through the house and the thirty acres
of landscaped grounds, and travel back in time to the 17th century, when
most commercial traffic in this area was focused on the Delaware. The three-story
brick manor house was rebuilt in 1939 to Penn's specifications, and represents
his lifestyle, which was more elaborate than the traditional unornamented
style of Quakers of his time. |
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| Morrisville and Yardley |
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| When you're ready to face the world again, continue
north, following signs to Route 13, and then Route 1 north. Veer off to
the left to Route 32 north to Morrisville, which was almost the capital
of the United States. You'll finally discover the canal here, behind the
7-11 at the Mill Pond Shopping Center. Park there and walk down the towpath
for a while. Despite the highway nearby, the area is wild and quiet. You'll
see mallards, Canada geese, other small birds, and maybe a rabbit or two.
The towpath is lined with wild apple blossoms in the spring, climbing vines
and yellow daisies and buttercups. |
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| Continue north on Route 32, turning left and following
River Road through Morrisville. Here the canal begins to run alongside the
river, and across the Delaware you can see the gold-domed capitol and the
skyline of Trenton, New Jersey. The land is so low here and the river is
so close you can almost reach out and touch it. Up ahead is Yardley, a small
town of Victorian gingerbread and native brown stone. There is only one
traffic light in town, at the corner of Main and Afton. Stop for a beer
at the Continental Tavern, which has been serving thirsty travelers at this
intersection since 1863. Have the hamburger topped with ham and cheese,
which comes in a plastic basket surrounded by fries. Junk food heaven. Before
you leave, walk across the street to the Hyatt Pharmacy and pick up a bumper
sticker that reads, "I Brake For Ducks in Yardley." The quaint Victorian
library on Lake Afton, a mill pond just behind the pharmacy, was built by
local residents in 1878; now children and adults use its steps to change
into their skates for a quick turn on the ice in the winter, creating a
tableau straight out of Norman Rockwell. |
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| Washington's Crossing |
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| Continue north on Route 32, River Road, which
is overhung with oaks, maples and elms and is lined with purple and white
phlox on long stems and the tiny pansies called Johnny jump-ups. At Washington's
Crossing, George's hazardous trip is reenacted every year on Christmas Day,
in similar flat Durham boats. Before his death a few years ago, Grace Kelly's
brother John used to play George Washington. The park contains a number
of Revolutionary War era buildings, including restored homes, an inn and
blacksmith's shop. There's even a copy of Emanuel Leutze's famous painting
of Washington Crossing the Delaware in the Visitor's Center-the original
is in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. |
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| Bowman's Hill Tower |
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| Bowman's Hill Tower, just inland from the river,
was built of local stone in 1930 and now stands over a nice park with barbecues
and picnic pavilions named for Revolutionary War heroes. The picnic grounds
are green and rolling, and the slope is just right for little kids to roll
down. The tower is open from April to November, and is the centerpiece of
a 100-acre wildflower preserve. Drive up a curving road, or hike the trail
up to the tower through woods that seem untouched since Washington's day.
Once you've reached the summit, take the elevator up inside the tower and
climb the last 21 steps, through a narrow, curving passageway more reminiscent
of medieval Europe than depression-era Pennsylvania, to the observation
platform, 110 feet up. |
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| On a clear day, you can see 60 miles in any direction,
and you'll understand why Washington sent his scouts to the top of this
hill to watch for redcoats. The vista is of farms and fields, but increasingly
you'll see renovated half-million-dollar farmhouses and fake-colonial suburbs.
A few miles farther north, the canal passes over Jericho Creek in an aqueduct,
one of nine along the 60 miles of canal. If it's summertime, stop at Thorpe
Farm and buy a pint of strawberries to eat in the car. Thorpe once farmed
over 3,000 acres, but every year suburbia encroaches a little further and
the farm is down to a thousand acres now. |
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| New Hope |
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| The canal is on your right now, and it'll be there
until you get into New Hope, where the only toll station regulated the flow
of anthracite coal from northern mines to southern ports. Check into the
Logan, a colonial inn on Main Street, established in 1727 and one of the
five oldest continuously run inns in the US. Weather permitting, you'll
want to have dinner outside at one of the restaurants with terraces overlooking
the Delaware. After dinner, see a recycled Broadway musical at the Bucks County Playhouse, entering its 61st season in a restored grist mill. Composer Moss Hart was one of a group of investors who renovated the old mill and began putting on shows there, and actors such as Paul Newman, Larry Hagman, Grace Kelly and Walter Matthau have trod its boards. |
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The area around New Hope is honeycombed with country roads and antique shops. Spend a few hours exploring back roads from Lahaska to Lambertville, or just browse through New Hope's peculiar blend of the touristy, the off-beat and the historic. The Now and Then Shop by the bridge still sells tie-dyed t-shirts, psychedelic posters and peace sign buttons. The sign in the record store window next door reads, "It's not final, we still sell vinyl." At Gerenser's Exotic Ice Cream, you can choose from Israel's Milk and Honey, Watermelon Ice, or Indian Loganberry. While you're there, buy a ticket for the Coryell's Ferry Boat ride on the Delaware. Before there were bridges, there were ferries-Yardley's, McConkey's, and Coryell's. Afterwards, walk halfway across the bridge to Lambertville, and stop and look below at the eddies and swirls of the river current, which is fast and deep here. A power boat towing a water skier is sure to pass, leaving a v-shaped wake, while you stand on the wooden walkway and feel the metal bridge reverberate with passing cars and trucks. You can see Bowman's Hill Tower downriver-wave to the people standing on top. Maybe they'll see you and wave back. |
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| Continuing North |
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| Continue north on Route 32, through the towns
of Center Bridge, Lumberville and Point Pleasant. Stop in at Point Pleasant
Canal and Tube, strip down to your bathing suit, and hop into a shuttle
bus for the ride upriver. Settle yourself into an inner tube, and three
hours later you'll float back into the vicinity of your car. Canoeing, rafting
and kayaking are all available on the broad, slow Delaware in this area.
Back on Route 32, head north. At the Van Sant Airport in Erwinna, you can
take a barnstorming flight in an open cockpit biplane, or soar over the
countryside in a sailplane. In Upper Black Eddy. Frank Lewis provides charter
and guide services, showing you the best places to fish for walleye, shad,
bass, and stripers. At Kintnersville Route 32 ends, but you might want to
stop by Pathfinder Adventures for bicycling and hiking tours of the area.
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| Easton |
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| When you are ready to continue north, take route
611 through Durham Furnace, Riegelsville and Raubsville. It's called the
Easton Road here, and that's your final destination. The canal ends at Easton,
at the Hugh Moore Park and Canal Museum. Displays cover the history of canals
in general and the three that meet here-Delaware, Lehigh and Morris. You
can also tour the Crayola factory, see how crayons are made and take home
some samples. This is it. You're not even in Bucks County any more, but
having seen the beginning of the canal you wanted to see its end. Return
south on 611 and follow the signs to I-78 east to New York. The miles of
countryside along the way will help postpone your return to reality. |
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| More writing by Neil Plakcy | |