When it comes to winter, I believe there are two ways to cope: either embrace it or avoid it. A day-trip can help in either case. This month, while winter is still new and snow is scarce, we’ll go somewhere to enjoy it. Next month we’ll find a warm spot to hide from the cold and ice.
I first heard of Eagles Mere years ago when a friend described a toboggan ride she had taken. I couldn’t quite picture it from her description, but I remember it was a special event and she loved it. So when I was looking for a winter day-trip, I thought of that toboggan ride and decided to make the drive north.
North it is. Eagles Mere is northeast of Williamsport, in the Endless Mountains, which means driving up one side of the Susquehanna or the other to Route 220 North. By the time I hit the two-lane road, the ground was snow-covered and little shops and restaurants dotted the landscape. I couldn’t resist stopping at a little place selling stained-glass windows and gifts before driving on.
When I arrived in Eagles Mere, I drove through just to see how big it was. First impression: What a pretty little place! Victorian homes blanketed in snow, a lake, an old resort hotel—they bill themselves as “the town that time forgot,” but I thought “Cape May on a mountain.”
“Downtown” Eagles Mere is essentially an intersection with shops on each corner. I parked the car and took a stroll, admiring the houses as I walked. Even though the snow was fresh, the roads were completely cleared, making it easy both to park and get around. From my drive, I knew the lake was down the hill, but I still didn’t understand that toboggan thing.
But then I came to the historical marker for the Eagles Mere Toboggan Slide and I began to understand why my friend had been so excited about her ride. She wasn’t talking about renting a toboggan and riding down any old hill. Local resident Captain E. S. “Cap” Chase started the Toboggan Slide in 1903 when he designed a track—sort of a chute—for a three-runner toboggan, made from ice cut out of the lake. Every winter since, as long as the ice on the lake is 12 inches thick, residents build the Toboggan Slide. Over the years thousands of people have come to Eagles Mere just to ride the Slide from Route 42 out onto the lake.
And didn’t that make me want to try it. When would they do it? I could see the lake was not yet frozen over, so I knew I would have to ask someone about it.
The walk in that clear mountain air made me hungry, so it was time for lunch. No problem making a decision because the only lunch place was Ye Sweet Shop, “an Eagles Mere tradition” according to its sign. Sandwiches, of course, but what I really wanted was a warm drink. My server brought me what is probably the best hot chocolate I’ve ever had--both hot and chocolatey without being too sweet. I warmed my hands on the mug while reading local brochures. It made me want that toboggan ride even more.
When I paid my bill, I asked my server about the Slide. She shrugged and said, “Oh, it hasn’t run the past few years. Too warm.” I was discouraged. Did she mean they wouldn’t be doing it this year, too? I knew I had to find someone who would be able to give me the details.
After lunch I wandered through the gift shops for a little while, looking at scarves and specialty teas and jewelry. I could have gotten lost in the Eagles Mere Bookstore and never been seen again--so many old books! Still thinking architecture from my morning walk, I picked up a Frank Lloyd Wright book for my husband.
I saved the best stop for last. The new Eagles Mere Museum opened last summer to much fanfare. I figured they’d have a more detailed history of the Toboggan Slide but I had no idea what else a town this small could put in a museum.
As a small museum advocate I should know better. Eagles Mere has a rich history dating back to George Lewis’s glass factory in the very early 1800s, through the mountain-resort era into the 1950s, to its natural areas and historic architecture today. And the museum does it all justice. The Eagles Mere Museum and Historical Commission knew what they were doing when they hired Joe Nicholson of UJMN (the same firm that designed the National Civil War Museum here in Harrisburg). This is one of the best small museums I’ve ever seen. In materials and presentation, in choice of artifacts and interactive displays, the entire museum experience is outstanding.
But I still needed someone to answer my question: Would they have the Toboggan Slide this winter? Would I at some point be able to come back to Eagles Mere and climb into that wooden toboggan, feeling that cold rush of air on my face as I ride down the avenue out onto the lake? Museum board member Charlie Gardner was only too happy to answer my question. “Maybe,” he said.
Maybe. He explained that it was out of anyone’s control. The winter needs to be cold enough to make 12 inches of ice on the lake. Okay, I can live with that. I’m not one normally to hope for very cold weather, but this year I’ll make an exception. The town website (www.eaglesmere.org) lists a phone number (570-525-3244) for Slide reports. They should know definitively by mid-January.
Slide or not, what other entertainment possibilities are in and around Eagles Mere? Nature programs from the Eagles Mere Conservancy and Ricketts Glen and World’s End state parks nearby. Summer brings a water carnival (2007 was its centennial!), antique market, and arts and crafts festival.
Eagles Mere does not have bumper-to-bumper traffic, plenty of places to eat, and all sorts of stuff to do. But that’s a good thing. It’s a place to relax, breathe some mountain air, slow down and look at the sights--and maybe zoom down a hill on a toboggan like they did 100 years ago!
Where to Stay
Eagles Mere Inn
1 Mary Avenue
Eagles Mere, PA 17731-0356
800-426-3273
www.eaglesmereinn.com
The Crestmont Inn
P.O. Box 231
Eagles Mere, PA 17731
800-522-8767
www.crestmont-inn.com
Flora Villa Inn Bed & Breakfast
P.O. Box 246
Eagles Mere, PA 17731
570-525-3245
Where to Eat
Breakfast, lunch, and ice cream
Ye Sweet Shop
on Route 42
Eagles Mere, PA 17731
Call ahead
Eagles Mere Inn
1 Mary Avenue
Eagles Mere, PA 17731
800-426-3273
www.eaglesmereinn.com
Call ahead
The Crestmont Inn
P.O. Box 231
Eagles Mere, PA 17731
800-522-8767
www.crestmont-inn.com
What to Do
Open weekends
Eagles Mere Museum
on Route 42
Eagles Mere, PA 17731
570-525-3155
www.eaglesmere.org
Gift shops and . . .
Eagles Mere Book Store
Route 42, General Store Building
P.O. Box 394
Eagles Mere, Pennsylvania
570-525-3792
For local nature programs
The Eagles Mere Conservancy, Inc.
A Nature Conservancy
Eagles Mere, PA 17731-0064
570-525-3385
First published in Mode, January 2008.
The Slide is open this year! You tube has some great videos of folks taking the ride. :)
Posted by: TBTAM | February 06, 2009 at 05:02 PM
Thank you for reminding us of what remains great about Eagles Mere
Posted by: Ang | August 01, 2008 at 10:31 PM