{"id":52485,"date":"2016-03-15T11:21:46","date_gmt":"2016-03-15T15:21:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/?p=52485"},"modified":"2019-06-25T12:19:40","modified_gmt":"2019-06-25T16:19:40","slug":"national-park-pennsylvania","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/52485\/national-park-pennsylvania\/","title":{"rendered":"Explore This Under-the-Radar National Park in Pennsylvania"},"content":{"rendered":"

No need to travel far to discover the gems of stewardship and conservation at our National Parks. Several of the over 400 parks and historic sites are practically in our backyard.<\/p>\n

Valley Forge National Historical Park<\/a>\u00a0is located just outside of Philadelphia and is a snap to reach without a car. A trinity of history buffs, bikers and hikers all peacefully co-exist within its expansive boundaries. If you\u2019re a nature lover, the meandering woods, wildlife and rolling river are golden. If you’ve got kids, they’ll be having so much fun they won\u2019t even realize how much history they\u2019re absorbing.<\/p>\n

History<\/b>
\"Valley

In late 1777, the British occupied the patriot capital of Philadelphia. General George Washington decided to fortify and recoup his troops at Valley Forge, just a day\u2019s march from Philly. The troops spent six months encamped at Valley Forge, not fighting the enemy but rather a logistical battle against disease and the elements. Concentrating the soldiers in one vast camp made sense strategically, as they could protect the countryside and better resist a British attack. But the price to pay for consolidating the troops was rampant disease, such as typhoid and influenza, which spread through the camp like wildfire.<\/p>\n

Despite the thousands of lives lost to illness, Washington refined his military strategy at Valley Forge, taking his troops from rebel to mature. But daily life was anything but easy: time spent at Valley Forge gives a deep sense of the perseverance, strength and sacrifice these soldiers made.<\/p>\n

A Snapshot of Daily Life
<\/b>
Valley Forge presents a snapshot of what daily life might have been like for Washington\u2019s troops. The varied exhibits are rich in personal artifacts that illuminate the wartime experience and transport you to Revolutionary times.<\/p>\n

Stroll the rolling pastures and step inside the reconstructed log huts that served as the soldier\u2019s quarters. Walk through the stately stone house where George Washington lived and designed military strategy. The most recognizable symbol is the National Memorial Arch, honoring the soldier\u2019s bravery.<\/p>\n

Weekends bring throngs of re-enactors of all ages accurately dressed just as residents of the military camp would have been.<\/p>\n

\"Valley

Getting Around<\/b><\/p>\n

Take the informative guided trolley tour from April-October ($17.50 for adults, $9 for kids), or pedal or walk the trail on your own. Do-it-yourselfers can get information on the free cell phone tour at the Visitor Center. There are complimentary guided walks and bike tours on select Saturdays.<\/p>\n

Dining
<\/b><\/h2>\n


Snacks are available for purchase at several locations in the park and there are plenty of shady spots to picnic. If you\u2019re ambitious, bike a brisk three miles to\u00a0Black Powder Tavern<\/a>\u00a0in nearby Wayne. The tavern was a covert rendezvous point for George Washington and other leaders of the American Revolution. Today, the historic eatery honors its tradition by serving period dishes such as chicken potpie with a lighter-than-air crust. More modern fare with regional flair, like a juicy burger on a freshly baked pretzel roll, won\u2019t disappoint.<\/p>\n

Getting to Valley Forge<\/b><\/h2>\n


To get to Philly, see our\u00a0Philadelphia Transportation Guide<\/a>. From 30t\u00a0Street Station, catch\u00a0SEPTA\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0bus #125, which stops at the gigantic King of Prussia Mall before continuing on to the park. The ride from Philly takes approximately 75 minutes in light traffic.<\/p>\n

For additional information, go to\u00a0ValleyForge.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Photo credits:\u00a0Garen Meguerian<\/a>,\u00a0Thomas<\/a>, Terrence Faircloth<\/a>, Marc Goebel<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

No need to travel far to discover the gems of stewardship and conservation at our National Parks. Several of the over 400 parks and historic sites are practically in our backyard. Valley Forge National Historical Park\u00a0is located just outside of Philadelphia and is a snap to reach without a car. A trinity of history buffs, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":50,"featured_media":52992,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[315,757,750,817,747,1869,776,791,770,806,790,1267,769,841,781,907,778,797,847,748,751],"tags":[116,177,293,280,145,212,48,110,133,65,204,473],"class_list":{"0":"post-52485","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-day-trips","8":"category-activity-2","9":"category-bike-2","10":"category-biking-adventure-activity-2","11":"category-bus-2","12":"category-editors-picks","13":"category-farms-food-drink","14":"category-fishing-adventure-activity-2","15":"category-food-drink","16":"category-free-themes","17":"category-hiking-adventure-activity-2","18":"category-hiking-getaways","19":"category-historic-sites-culture","20":"category-holidays-culture-2","21":"category-outdoor-dining","22":"category-pennsylvania-2","23":"category-picnic-food-drink","24":"category-snowshoe-adventure-activity-2","25":"category-tours-culture-2","26":"category-train-2","27":"category-walk","28":"tag-amtrak","29":"tag-bike","30":"tag-budget-friendly","31":"tag-cultural-getaway","32":"tag-dining","33":"tag-hiking","34":"tag-historical-site","35":"tag-historical-sites","36":"tag-outdoors","37":"tag-park","38":"tag-train","39":"tag-views"},"acf":[],"mv":{"thumbnail_id":52992,"thumbnail_uri":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/27443391676_9a6bf8cd05_o-e1465136824868-300x169.jpg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/50"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52485"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52485\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}