the wandering chick
...In search of barns and bridges
a country drive from Vermont to Kentucky
If you don't find America's farmland particularly interesting, you may want to move on to another page. This one is devoted to the barns and covered bridges along several back roads in the states of Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Kentucky.
I had a few days after leaving a reunion in Maine and had to be back in Texas on a certain date. I drove as many of the backroads as time allowed and enjoyed it immensely, taking in the green rolling hills of summer dotted with dairy farms and hidden covered bridges.
In Ohio, I came across Amish country in the area of Berlin and Walnut Creek. Without being a rude and thoughless tourist, I captured a few shots of the Amish way of life, remaining mindful and respectful of their requests for privacy.
Some may say, "If you've seen one barn, you've seen them all," but I find just the opposite to be true. So, here we go. Enjoy!
This is the Harpersfield Bridge in Ohio's Ashtabula County. Built in 1868, it's one of Ohio's longest covered bridges and spans the Grand River. In 1913, a major spring flood washed away a portion of the bridge and was replaced with the steel truss that can be seen at its northern end.
Young girls carefully make their way across the Grand River near the Harpersfield Bridge.
I don't know where this private road went, but I sure wanted to find out.
The Creamery Bridge, built in 1878, is in Brattleboro, Vermont and along the Molly Stark Scenic Byway.
The Whetstone Brook was raging on this particular rainy day.
The Chesterfield Arch Bridge and the Seabees Bridge span the Connecticut River on Highway 9 between Chesterfield, NH and Brattleboro, VT. A group of concerned citizens works to preserve the Chesterfield Arch Bridge which is the only means for crossing the river for pedestrians and bikers.
Once part of a popular ski mountain, Hogback Mountain Gift Shop and Scenic Overlook lies on Highway 9 known at Vermont's Molly Stark Trail. Highway 9 meanders east-west in the most southern part of the state.
Overlooking what could possibly have been an establishment of the Hogback Mtn Ski Resort which closed in 1986.
This shot and the next three were taken along New York's Highway 7 between Albany and Binghamton. Such serene beauty as this was my sole purpose for hitting the back roads.
A river boat sits on the Mohawk River at Herkimer, New York
The buildings of downtown Syracuse taken from the St. Joseph's Hospital parking garage
Potato Creek in Smethport, Pennsylvania, Highway 6
Above and Below: Dairy farms on Pennsylvania's Highway 6 just west of Coudersport
After crossing into Pennsylvania, I followed the state highway 706 through Susquehanna County and then westward along Highway 6 as far as the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon. The next several shots were taken along that route.
I wasn't long in Pennsylvania's Susquehanna County when I found this old abandoned covered bridge alongside Highway 706.
Near Camptown, PA
The Susquehanna River meanders through farmland off Pennsylvania's Highway 6 as seen here from the Marie Antoinette Overlook outside Wyalusing.
In the small town of Towanda, Pennsyvlania, Bradford County
It's a challenge sometimes trying to find the covered bridges. This one is in Bradford County, off north central PA's Highway 6.
A little further west on PA's Highway 6
Few may know that Pennsylvania has its own Grand Canyon. It runs for 47 miles north and south between Ansonia at the north end and Waterville near the south end. A gorge carved by Pine Creek, its deepest point is more than 1400 feet, near the southern end. Views can be seen all along the route. These were taken at the Leonard Harrison State Park outside Ansonia.
This church sits on the outskirts of the PA Grand Canyon. I failed to get its name.
St. Joseph Church in Lucinda has been standing on these grounds since 1895. Three churches of the same name and location stood before it, two of which were destroyed by fire. The small town of Lucinda is on Pennsylvania Highway 660.
Lucinda's General Store faces the highway just a couple blocks away from the church and cemetery.
A pretty elaborate working farm sits off the Ohio Highway 44 between Youngstown and Akron.
Taken on Ohio's Highway 44 east of Akron.
The next several shots were taken in Ohio's Amish country in the areas of Berlin and Walnut Creek.
A local animal farm and petting zoo was available for tourists with kids.
This covered bridge, called the Bridge of Dreams, is part of Ohio's Mohican Valley Trail near Brinkhaven, Highway 62. It was constructed in the 1990s so that the Mohican Valley Trail could continue its course over the Mohican River. The bridge is also opened to equestians and horse-drawn buggies.
An Amish buggy approaches the Bridge of Dreams
LaRue County, Kentucky is the county Abraham Lincoln grew up in. When I saw the sign to his birthplace, I detoured off the highway to check it out. On the way, I did a bit of back roads and took this and the remaining pictures.
Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park is in Hodgenville, Kentucky. The actual cabin in which he was born is encased in this marble monument.
The Nancy Lincoln Inn, privately owned, is on the grounds of the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park in Hodgenville.
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