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Welcome to the Indiana County Tourist Bureau Blog!

Indiana County, Pennsylvania is located in the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains -just one hour east of Pittsburgh and has several unique attractions and entities that make it a very desirable travel destination.

Indiana County is home to: 64 miles of Rails to Trails and more than 15 miles of single track mountain biking, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, a robust Agritourism industry, old order Amish families, and a wealth of history ranging from the French and Indian War to our own hometown hero, Jimmy Stewart.


Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Pick-A-Dilly Herb Faire 2012

The 14th Annual Pick-A-Dilly Herb Faire was held Saturday, June 9th, at Dillweed Bed & Breakfast in Dilltown, PA.  This charming B & B is conveniently located minutes off of Route 22 at: 7453 Route 403 Hwy S., Dilltown, PA 15929.  Additionally, this B & B is adjacent to the Dilltown Access of the Ghost Town Trail.  
The Herb Faire features a wide variety of plants, herbs, crafts and more!  Admission and parking are free!  This Faire is a great place to stop by and enjoy the day while also shopping for items for yourself or gifts for others as well as grabbing a bite to eat!
Here is the view of the B & B from the parking area located across the street.  As you can see, they had staff on hand to help pedestrians safely cross the road.










The Faire is held on the grounds surrounding Dillweed Bed & Breakfast.



There were a large variety of flowering plants, herbs and perennials available for purchase, as well as vendors and artisans selling original items such as artwork, jewelry, hand-poured soap products, copper items and other garden inspired products.  








Master gardeners were on site to answer questions concerning various gardening topics.  This year, the featured herb was a rose.  Visitors gained valuable gardening information, growing tips and learned information on how to care for and cultivate their own herbal gardens. 













Scheduled events occurring throughout the day included:  

"The Herb Lady Says...." by Georgette Syster.  During this time, attendees discovered new tips on harvesting and the various uses of herbs in their homes.

"Herb of the Year - Rose" by Cindi Rogers.  Attendees took an exploratory journey into the history and many uses of the herb of the year - the Rose!

"Learn the process of propagating plants" by Pepita Jacobs.  Valuable and interesting information was shared with those interested in the process!













 Food and beverage vendors were also available - including a tent selling their delicious and famous "Pesto Pizza"!



Dillweed Bed and Breakfast has four comfortable, air-conditioned guest rooms (the Parsley Room, the Sage Room, the Rosemary Room and the Thyme Room) with two shared baths.  Also available is a completely private Garden Suite.  Features of the facility include a central sitting parlor with cable television, dining area, large covered porch and private fenced herb garden.  

Below is a glimpse into two of the guest rooms!




Here is a shot of the Trail Side Gift Shop located in a portion of the 1st floor of the B & B that was taken on the stairway leading to the Garden Suite.



Here are photos taken from the the Garden Suite.  To the right is a quaint kitchenette area and to the left is a dining area.




TV viewing area/living space in the Garden Suite.




Sleeping area in the Garden Suite.




Below of photos of the Pick-A-Dilly Herb Faire 2012 taken from the second floor of the B & B.









What a great way to spend the day!  Mark your calendars for next June!  Hope to see you there!



Friday, June 8, 2012

Trail Tales Tour

An in-county tour entitled "Trail Tales" was hosted by our office in conjunction with the Indiana County Parks & Trails on May 31st. 

This tour provided a great opportunity for area residents to get out and explore what is in their backyard!
 
The first stop was at the Waterworks Conservation Area.  While there, attendees enjoyed an interpretive walk around the historic and natural features of this site (see photos below of the Waterworks Conservation Area)

 










 
Next up was a stop in Homer City at the Homer-Center Historical Society caboose.  Everyone got to enjoy a tour of their varied collection.







Adjacent to the caboose is the Hoodlebug Trail.  Those interested in spending more time in the great outdoors had the opportunity to go for a stroll along the trail from the caboose to a neighboring street where the bus picked them up.



 




 
The journey continued down Route 119, stopping for a moment to see interesting places in Coral, Josephine and Black Lick before heading to Pine Ridge Lodge for lunch.
 
This beautiful lodge played host to our delicious lunch (prepared by the catering department at St. Andrew's Village).  While enjoying the meal, Ed Patterson - Director of Indiana County Parks & Trails, delivered an informative and interesting presentation about the area and also showed a video featuring Fred Rogers.  The video highlighted Rogers connection to the Buttermilk Falls area.



 
At the conclusion of lunch, the group traveled to the additional areas of Pine Ridge Park before heading off to Buttermilk Falls in Clyde, PA.







 Next, it was time to venture to Dilltown, PA.  The group made a stop at Dillweed Bed & Breakfast and Trail Side Gift Shop for some shopping and an opportunity to check out the neighboring Ghost Town Trail.




 
After boarding the bus and continuing to another area of the Ghost Town Trail, the group saw the historic Eliza Furnace, walked along the trail and saw the "Great Map" which uses colorful tiles to compare the present landscape with earlier mining times.

 
 

Below  is a "Mine Worker's Memorial" where you can see a black granite wall which has life-sized etchings of actual coal miners entering and exiting the mine on a shift change.






 
Those that went on this bus adventure had a delightful time learning about area places and historic sites.  Interested in going on an in-county tour with us?  Give us a call at: 724-463-7505 so we can notify you of when we have another day-trip planned!