Phil Elmore: Individual Authoring Services

Poconos 2003
A Travelogue

DAY FOUR

On Day Four we enjoyed our luxurious room for as long as possible before checking out and playing a few more games in the Palace's game room. We took a paddleboat out onto Lake Echo, too. I strongly recommend paddleboating as a fun "couples" activity, provided you have access to it. Floating on the lake in that little boat is very soothing, and paddling it is fun. The average paddleboat, however, has a rudder the size of a postage stamp. They don't steer well at all, a problem amplified by the fact that my attractive wife must contend with my largely mammalian bulk tipping the boat disproportionately to one side.

When we left the resort we decided to see the scenic Delaware Water Gap, the area around the Delaware River that separates Pennsylvania from Delaware. We spent quite a bit of time trying to find just the right scenic overlook. One prime location was closed due to construction, while others did not afford good views of the river. We finally ended up traveling all the way to New Jersey.

Who could imagine it would look like this?

At the Tourist Information Center at a rest stop in New Jersey, we were amazed at just how pretty the site was. I was also amazed at the vending machines inside, which served such odd vending machine items as chicken strips and pizza. If you get sick after eating chicken strips from a vending machine, you have no one to blame but yourself.

NJ and You -- and Wal*Mart.

Our first attempts to find a good spot resulted in some neat scenery of whatever one calls a hill this size. Is it a cliff? A mountain? Just a hill? I don't know, but it's pretty.

Is it a mountain? I don't know, but it's in Delaware.

Helpful signs dot the Delaware Water Gap park network.

We finally found a good location from which to view the Delaware Water Gap at a park in Worthington State Forest. There was a boat landing leading directly to the river.

At last! The beauty of the Delaware river.

It was my wife who again spotted wildlife amazingly close. I was laughing at the close proximity of the Snapple machine to the Live bait dispenser...

Hungry? Thirsty? "Not going anywhere for a while?"

...when my wife pointed out the small deer eating a fallen apple near the machines. That deer let me get incredibly close to take its picture. It was joined, after a few minutes, by a larger deer, who could have been its mother.

A small deer eating an apple not four feet from me.

Hold still. Just like that. Work it, work it... Excellent!

The Cuteness of Nature, Times Two.

EVERYTHING YOU COULD WANT IN A VACATION

We were a little sad to leave the Poconos, but elated to have had such a great time. Given the variety of activities in which we engaged, and the wildlife and scenery we saw, you could not ask for a better vacation. If you're looking for a great "couples escape" for you and your significant other, you owe it to yourself to visit the Land of Love at least once.

Day One Day Two Day Three Day Four