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| World Famous Horseshoe Curve, PA |
My wife and I (and our Pomeranian Toby) spent a month in a cozy AirBNB rental in Altoona for the month of August. Because we had stayed in Claysburg (about 20 miles south of Altoona) 4 months prior, we felt nostalgic to be returning to central Pennsylvania.
We remembered the beautiful scenery including mountains, valleys, lakes, and incredible roads that dot the landscape! As we were heading to Altoona from our month long stay in Indiana (PA), we were looking forward to seeing and experiencing all of these things again.
There’s something very reassuring about knowing an area. I know where the stores are, where the restaurants are, and where the main roads are. This makes for an easy and comfortable way to travel.
Of course, I personally enjoy exploring NEW places. I love driving on new roads, experiencing new views, and any new stimuli (like a dog?!?). But even for me, I do enjoy the feeling of nostalgia, that feeling of coming back to a familiar place.
After settling in to our Airbnb rental, we set out exploring the area. These three attractions are our recommendations:
- World Famous Horseshoe Curve
The World Famous Horseshoe Curve was built in the early 1850’s to help ease the ascent/descent of trains going over the Allegheny Mountains, which stand over 2,100 feet. When it was created, it was called one of the eight engineering marvels of the world. The curve served as one of the primary east-west arteries of railroad travel in the US.
We had initially stopped by on a Monday morning, but noticed it was closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Our second attempt was successful as we went there on a Wednesday morning.
We took Toby as we noticed the site did allow dogs as long as we didn’t take the furnicular up to the curve. We paid a very reasonable $5 admission fee per person and entered the site. Note: the furnicular was under maintenance when we visited. Expect to climb 194 steps to the top of the curve to view the trains.
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| At the entrance of the site |
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| Toby at the Horseshoe Curve |
Toby was in a good mood that morning as he had no issues climbing the stairs to the top. We were surprised Toby had so much energy and we all made it to the top in no time. Once we arrived, we took a moment to enjoy the nice view from the top.
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| View near the furnicular |
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| View from the top of the curve! |
We already saw several visitors roaming about the horseshoe curve. We stopped over by the information placard to learn a little bit about the curve.
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| Map of surrounding area |
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| Train display |
We asked some visitors whether or not they saw trains by that time of the day, but they had not. They mentioned they will wait it out as long as it took to see some trains rolling by the horseshoe curve.
We didn’t have that kind of patience as there was no shaded areas anywhere at the top of the curve. Content with what we had experienced already, we slowly made our way back down the stairs, to the parking lot.
We were glad to have finally checked out the World Famous Horseshoe Curve!
Fort Roberdeau, also known as the Lead Mine Fort, was built during the American Revolutionary War in 1778, and it was occupied until 1780. It is located in the Tyrone Township outside Altoona, and it is about a 45 minute drive from the city center.
Fort Roberdeau features reconstructed fort and its structures including officer’s quarters, storehouse, barracks, blacksmith shop, lead miner’s cabin, powder magazine, and lead smelter. The site also features a restored barn (serves as a visitor center), a restored farmhouse, hiking trails, log house, and the Mt. Lion Observatory built in 2018.
We left around 9:30 a.m. for Fort Roberdeau. We noticed the roads got really curvy, with many switchbacks, and many curves that had speed limit of 15 mph. Toby hated these curves, but I certainly enjoyed the drive. I just wished I had a sports car on those roads and not a SUV…
It took under an hour to arrive at the fort. We found an empty parking lot, as it looked like we were the first visitors that morning. We found the fort and it’s structures to be bigger than some of the other forts we’ve seen.
We read some information on the history of the fort and took a look around the fort area. Toby was unusually happy that morning and was eager to walk and explore the area.
We saw wide expanse of grassland behind the fort with crisscrossing network of trails. We immediately headed towards the trail that wraps around the outer boundaries of the fort area. We loved the trail cut right into the grass and therefore easier for Toby to walk on.
He really was up for the hike as he kept pulling us. He wanted to run at times, so we let him. Toby can run faster than me, so I did my best to keep up with him!
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| Information on the fort |
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| Toby at the fort, enjoying himself |
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| Entrance to the fort |
We thoroughly enjoyed our walk through the beautiful hiking trails at the fort. We took several trails and loved every one of those trails. They afforded beautiful views of the countryside, with its mountains and plants everywhere.
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| Little history on the fort’s construction |
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| One of many incredible views on the trails |
We ran across so many bird houses. There were so many birds dog fighting with each other, diving down, gliding, turning directions at will, that we thought we were there to bird watch! It was awesome…
After drinking some water (Toby too), we made our way back to the parking lot to make our way back home. It was a trip well worth the hour drive to get there. Drive is a destination on to itself, and so is the fort itself!
- Headache Hill Scenic View
Headache Hill Scenic View is located within Prince Gallitzin State Park in the town of Patton, PA. It is one of the highest points in the park, and the view from the top of the water tower affords a panoramic views of the surrounding areas, including Lake Glendale and the forests of the Allegheny Plateau.
I had found this area thanks to a Google search for a ‘scenic area near me’ while staying in Altoona. I was glad we found this place!
This area is located about 20 miles from Altoona. We left at our usual time of around 9:30 a.m. driving on some of the most beautiful country roads cutting through farmlands, cornfields, and view of animals everywhere, including cows, horses, goats, and sheeps.
We were glad to be outside again to see the wide expansive views for miles out. While driving, I sniffed the air around those country roads and enjoyed the scenery. My favorite summer time treat is corn. I loved watching field after field of corn grown for miles…
We arrived at a hill with a stone entrance. We could see a white colored water tower in the distance which is how we knew we had arrived at the right place.
We parked our car right in front of the water tower and immediately walked up the stairs to get to the top of the tower. What a view!
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| View of the lake |
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View of the forest
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We took several minutes to take in the incredible panoramic views. We felt great to be with nature again, looking at clear blue skies, the verdant forest, and the lake (or any body of water)…
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| Beautiful view of the lake |
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| Nice view! |
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| Toby enjoying the area |
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| Toby at the top of the water tower |
We each took our time enjoying the views as well as the nice breeze at the top of the hill. Toby led us to different trails near the water tower to explore. He was busy sniffing the air and everything on his way to the trail. He was having a good time for sure.
We also marveled at the immense beauty of the park. We tried best we could to etch the scenery deep within our minds so we can go back to the place from time to time (in our minds at least)…
Honorable Mention: There are many roadside farmer’s stands operating in and around Altoona area. We found one particular stand where it was self serve/unmanned! It was on a honor system where you pay what you’re supposed to, into a little box that acted as a cash register (there was a CCTV installed as well as a reminder that shoplifting is a crime). Because it’s unmanned, you must pay in cash (no credit card), by the way.
We bought dozen corn, and some vegetables totaling $10. Corn was absolutely delicious! It was perhaps one of top 3 corn we’ve ever had!
As we were paying for that stuff, we couldn’t believe there was still a honor system at work, in retail, no less. It was such an unique sight for us, growing up in the mean concrete jungles of New York City.
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| Unmanned farmer’s stand! |
In conclusion:
Altoona is a great city to use as a base for all of the attractions nearby. There are tons of lodging, food, entertainment options available right within the city limits.
Outside of the city, many wonderful attractions await! We were impressed by the amount of things we can do within about 50 mile radius of Altoona.
We will always remember central Pennsylvania for its incredible roads, awe-inspiring mountains, verdant valleys, beautiful farmlands, and lakes. We will most definitely be revisiting the area in our future travels!
Thank you all for reading!
Jake
Wandering Money Pig
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