Latest / WashCo Insider / Chase McClain & Ryanne Dougherty
Transcript
- speaker-1: Hello, and thanks for tuning in this week. Well, it's officially September, and while we're sad to see summer go, fall is one of our favorite times here in Washington County. Between all sorts of fall festivals, fun on the farm, spooky events, places to visit, ways to enjoy the season outdoors, and so much more. We'd be here all day to talk about it. So on this episode, Chase and I are gonna be rapid firing through all sorts of ways to have fun right here in Washington County this fall season. This episode is a little different than most. It's based on a series of blogs that we're publishing on our website. Gowashco dot com. So everything will be linked in the description of this episode if you want to read all the details and get links on everything we're going to cover in this episode. We'll get right into it when we come back. Well Chase, it's been a hot minute since we've been in the studio together. speaker-0: It has been. We've been busy this summer. speaker-1: Have. This is our first episode since our trailer back in what was that May, I think? Okay, well, we've got a lot of ground to cover today. We have been working on fall events, and we've got all quite a lot here today. So we're gonna be breaking these things down into a few categories, right? So we've got outdoors, we've got fall bites and sips, things to do, fall events, and spooky season, your favorite. So if you're ready to get into fall, you want to kick it off with outdoors. speaker-0: Sometime around that. Yeah, let's do it. All right, so ⁓ last month we featured the Montur Trail, and not that the Panhandle Trail is better from a scenic perspective or anything like that, but ⁓ you should definitely check out the Panhandle Trail this fall. Colors are beautiful. It's twenty-nine miles long, about seventeen of that ⁓ goes through northern Washington County. ⁓ for those of you who don't like to get your brand new white shoes dirty, the entire section of the Panhandle Trail within Washington County's borders. Is paved. Really nice. Nice smooth bike ride. and the panhandle trail is actually owned and operated by Washington County. ⁓ it was developed from an abandoned Conrail line, and it goes actually from Collier Township in Allegheny County through Washington County into Colliers, West Virginia. speaker-1: It's a very photogenic spot. I love it out there. Especially what is that? A nineteen thirteen railroad trestle, I think it is. It's like a very scenic spot for a lot of people. speaker-0: Yeah. So if you're looking for a spot to get on, ⁓ I'd recommend just going right into McDonald. And as soon as you get into town, there's the McDonald trail station there. Good place to park. They've actually moved a covered bridge there, so that's a good photo op. ⁓ But just, I don't know, I'm going to make this up maybe a mile west of there. ⁓ you can actually get onto the Montour Trail. And whenever you do, you're just a short bike ride away from ⁓ the viaduct, which is a thousand feet long? Pretty cool. Like a hundred feet high. Yeah, it's beautiful. ⁓ speaker-1: That's pretty. Check it I always love seeing the photos of that on social. But so speaking of outdoors, I want to get into Claysville, which one of our new favorite spots that we are loving to talk about, Tower Hill Trail Center. It's out in Claysville, it's a relatively new addition to Washington County. It just opened in 2023, so a couple years old. It's still developing as you can imagine with trails. It's a gravity trail center. And I know nothing about mountain biking, but I know that if you are looking to get into mountain biking, I know you talked about wanting to get out there sometime. Might want to head there before the snow and ice, even though I think it is open all year round, which is awesome. It offers a shuttle service up and down the mountain. So would really like to get out there sometime. I will probably not get on a bike because that sounds scary, but I will take pictures of you or whoever on a bike. speaker-0: Yeah, and if you you know, you're a mountain biker, this has piqued your interest, also know that Hillman State Park is a great place for mountain biking as well. This is a little bit more conditioned. come, I think you pay a fee and they'll help to shuttle you back to the top. So fun afternoon for you mountain biker. speaker-1: Yeah, really looking forward to seeing what they're doing. Speaking of parks though, we have Cross Creek County Park, one of my favorite spots in the county. Every time I go out to Avella, I always stop there. I just stopped there recently. 250 acres this park has. It's our largest county park in Washington County. And it's a popular spot, you know, big for kayaking, boating, fishing, whatever. photography is also really big out there. And I just learned this. ⁓ Cross Creek, they just redid like thirty acres of the park with ⁓ wildflowers and like native clover and stuff. So photographers and nature lovers should watch out because this is a great spot. ⁓ goldenrod is in season, there's Aster out there. ⁓ so really pretty. It's a great spot. It's one of our favorites in the county. speaker-0: Yeah, great place to fish. And another pro tip, you may have been there even recently and not realized that this was there, but as we were talking about mountain biking and bikes in general, at the top of the hill when you pull into Cross Creek County Park, there's a there's a really, really cool bike park. Yeah, it is it sits up on top of the hill. ⁓ you know, if you have young kids, you're gonna want to be there with them. There's a few little tricks that you may or may not want them to go off of. But you know, I think i the bike park is really conducive for any age, but it's super cool. There's like little ramps and then you drive through these big cones. It's worth checking. speaker-1: That's why this ⁓ podcast is called the Washcoat Insider 'cause that's an insider tip right there. Speaking of insider tips, let's talk about public lands. I know this this is where you really shine. speaker-0: This is my this is my sweet spot. So when I moved to Washington County, I don't know, seventeen years ago, something like that, I grew up hunting, but I didn't know anybody here. So there was no private land that I could hunt. And I learned very, very quickly to appreciate the public lands that we have here in Washington County. And we've got a pile of it. which is down in Claysville, but we also have pieces ⁓ you know, up in Burgutstown and and a number of others. My best recommendation if you're new to hunting in Washington County or you're looking for a place to go ⁓ with public lands, go to our website, gowashco.com. In the search bar at the top right, just type in public lands. I've put together we'll call it maybe one of the more inclusive ⁓ pieces that'll kind of shine a light on all of the different public land access that you can get. ⁓ so you know, I know it's top of my mind, bow season's about to open up. Most of Washington County is in two way, there's a sliver of it that's in two B, kind of east of Route seventy nine. But if you're starting to get deer brain, check out that ⁓ check out that article. speaker-1: public lands are awesome. Are there any secrets about public lands that you're willing to part with on the pod today? speaker-0: No, I think you just have to be open minded. You know, I think you have to be open minded and you gotta put in time, you gotta put put in a lot of effort. Public land is not easy to hunt. You're gonna run into a lot of people at the trailhead and the better your attitude is, the better theirs will be. ⁓ this is all of our land. We all own this land together and so get out there, enjoy it. ⁓ it's really pretty special and unique. I mean, this is an American experience, right? You can go a lot of places around the world and not have access to public land like we have here in the US. ⁓ and so I think we're extremely fortunate to have what we do in Washington County. speaker-1: Absolutely. Okay. Well, we're down to another category. ⁓ I'm so excited about this category. Let's talk about rustic rock maple farm. This is a serious hidden gem, also out in Claysville. ⁓ this is a real working maple farm. speaker-0: Yeah, let's get into some things to do. speaker-1: People don't know that we have that in the county. It's kinda tucked away and but it is open all year round. So if you wanna see some maple tapping, you do have to go in the late winter, but fall is still a great time to go because you know, maple syrups on everybody's mind. It's getting cold. ⁓ so you can tour the farm. There's over three thousand trees that are tapped on this farm. So they have sixty-six thousand feet of tubing connecting all those trees, by the way, which is so cool. You can also take a look around the sugar shack and see how maple syrup and its byproduct maple sugar are made, which is one of my favorites. You might have seen Rustic Rock at a couple of fall festivals or farmers markets, but we highly recommend touring the farm. It looks absolutely awesome. Would love to get out there sometime. speaker-0: Now we've talked about Meadowcroft Rock Shelter and Historic Village a lot. Both love that place. ⁓ I think if you go back to maybe episode four, somewhere around there, Dave Schofield, the executive director of Meadowcroft, was one. ⁓ but for those of you who are not familiar with it, it is such a cool museum, mostly outdoors, so you can get to experience the actual rock shelter itself where there's evidence of human habitation ⁓ dating back nineteen thousand years. Very cool. They've also got a number of interpretive villages and again you're spending most of your time out outside. So if I'm gonna go to a museum in the fall, Meadowcroft's right at the top of my list because it is just beautiful. speaker-1: Absolutely. And it's world famous too. A lot of people don't know that, but I think I've told you my best friend is an archaeologist and she's like, ⁓ we've studied Meadowcroft. Like, I would love to go there. I know a lot of people that would love to come. So it really is a world class attraction. It's part of the Heinz History Center. It is so cool. Fall is the perfect time to go. There's a lot of trees there. And they have a covered bridge there too. Pine bank covered. speaker-0: And don't sleep on that one because their season wraps up November 21st with their fall finale and Taffy Pool. So get out there before the speaker-1: Absolutely. Okay, let's get into crafty alpaca, which is also novella. So we just recently did a podcast episode with Mary Burns. That was I think episode seventeen we just did. And she is just awesome. She is a teacher turned farmer and she has a beautiful little property out in Avella and she has the most fluffy and adorable alpacas. I was out there recently and I had such a good time petting them and feeding them. But everything Mary does is about education. So you'll also go through the education center on your tour and learn about all sorts of alpacas. Jace and I got alpaca wool socks, which I have been using, abusing and loving. ⁓ yeah. And alpaca wool is truly superior. So I was so fortunate to get to talk with Mary and learn all about them. ⁓ speaker-0: A big wool sock guy. speaker-1: Definitely get out there, take the tour and stock up on your alpaca wool goods. She is also appearing, she's also a frequent vendor at some upcoming fall festivals and I think she does a couple of farmers markets. She makes everything in her store and I highly, highly recommend taking the tour. speaker-0: Speaking of farms and markets, ⁓ out by where I live, Bedner's Farm and Greenhouse is a cool place to check out if you like to decorate, you've got a green thumb. It's a great place to pick up your pumpkins, they've got mums, they've got a stacked full schedule of fall events and workshops. It's a good place to check out on a Saturday. speaker-1: Yes, if you are on Instagram, all of the Pittsburgh Foodie Girlies have been here. ⁓ they also have a winery, which do not skip the winery. I think it's called Passiflora and it looks really, really cute. ⁓ their wine garden is still open through October, so definitely get out to Bedners. ⁓ their events are super fun. They have a lot of fall workshops, so highly recommend that spot. What else we got for fall? speaker-0: Here's a good recommendation. So we'll talk about the event in a minute, but for those of you who are looking for a road trip, the Covered Bridges Driving Tour. And Dana will kill me if I get this wrong, but I'm pretty sure we have twenty-three covered bridges in Washington County. And I think that puts us at like I'm gonna get this wrong too, th third in the state for most second in the state for most covered bridges. So ⁓ Dana years ago had put together a covered bridges driving tour. speaker-1: I believe it's second actually. speaker-0: And it's broken into multiple regions. You can find the the map and directions on our website. If you just go to gowashcode.com, scroll down towards the bottom. We always have it out there because this is a fun thing to do, whether it's in the spring, summer, or fall. I'd recommend the fall because it's the most beautiful. ⁓ But if you go on there, you can download a map on each of the different regions. And when you download that map, you can scan a QR code, and that QR code will give you turn-by-turn directions. to each ⁓ covered bridge location, which is trickier than you may think because a covered bridge doesn't have a postal address. So we have confirmed GPS coordinates on each one of these places. These maps will get you where you want to go. speaker-1: Yes, highly recommend tuning in to that episode we did last week with Dana Bucci and Joanne Marshall about cover some of the history of the covered bridges. ⁓ but they're super cool. They're definitely worth seeing. They all might look the same, but they are all unique in their own different ways. should we give the insider tip to print the maps out if you can? Yeah. I know that sounds kind of archaic, but some of the sites are in rural locations and they have kind of spotty cell service. So highly recommend printing those guides out. But pack a lunch. It's a good fall day. Sure. That's like probably one of our top fall things to do for the season. speaker-0: Speaking of top fall things to do, I like to eat and I like a good fall drink. speaker-1: Me too. Well where would we be without talking about pumpkin spice? I know I know you're just a huge pumpkin spice fan. speaker-0: But I can appreciate a pumpkin flavored. speaker-1: ⁓ Chico Bicello. Chico Bicello is a favorite for us. So they have two locations. They are in downtown Kinsburg and downtown Washington. Both cafes are super cozy, super fun. We love visiting, getting some lunch. They have a did you know they have a build-your-own breakfast sandwich option? Sounds good. We do, and we should go. they have locally roasted coffee, which I just found out, and the baked goods are absolutely a highlight every time we get Chico Bicello. speaker-0: No, but no. speaker-1: Pumpkin muffins, cookies, cakes, they're gonna have it all. But you might wanna get there early before all the pumpkin stuff sells out 'cause I will be there buying it all in the morning. speaker-0: All right, so let's move from like a morning drink to maybe an evening drink. Liberty Pole Spirit. I guess there's that. Liberty Pole Spirits, if if you've never been there, you need to carve out an evening to go check it out. So Liberty Pole opened in twenty sixteen, little shop in downtown Washington, started out as kind of a passion slash retirement project for Jim Huff that then turned into a blossoming business. They outgrew their small space, built a distillery campus. I mean speaker-1: Could be a morning drink if you want it to be. speaker-0: It's it's incredible. You really have to see it. I'm not just saying that. You really need to see it. It opened in twenty twenty three. They have ⁓ the meeting house, which is ⁓ kind of like a a period building. It's just the atmosphere is incredible. The drinks are fantastic. ⁓ you can take a tour. They've got a thirty six hundred barrel rick house on site that is super cool to see as well. The food's unbelievable. And you know, what's neat about Liberty Pole Spirits is they have really leaned into the history of the Whiskey Rebellion. ⁓ yeah. They're really leading the revival of of bringing Pennsylvania Rye back. speaker-1: Yeah, they've brought it into that kind of forefront. So I love that there's like I I love history. So there's like this history angle to everything they do. It's also worth mentioning that Liberty Pool has the only I think it's the only five story barrel house in the state of Pennsylvania. I think they told us on our last tour. That's very cool. We've taken maybe two or three tours at this point throughout the last couple of years and I enjoyed every second. I've learned something new. Even if you're you don't like whiskey or spirits or anything, they'll have something you like. I heard the food is incredible. I haven't gotten there yet to taste it myself, but it's like tavern style, like it's like period inspired tavern style food, which is so unique. We don't have anything else like that, I don't think, in the region. So Liberty Pool Spirits is anytime we go. speaker-0: Yeah, if you like to support family owned businesses, go support Jim, Ellen, Kevin, and Rob. ⁓ what they have done is nothing short of remarkable. The place is super cool. Yeah. And it's right down by the casino. speaker-1: That's so close. Okay, so we have kind of like a historical thing. Let's get into like a spooky place to get some drinks. I want to talk about Deadhead Winery in Monongahela. This place is so cool because it is in a former funeral home, which I don't know, like lightning crackle I just heard and like a like thunder, all that. Yeah, we can do that. speaker-0: And the sound effect in post. speaker-1: ⁓ perfect for spooky season. This place, they have carefully sourced wines from all over the region, all over the country, some of the best wineries and vineyards from all over. This place is also a hotspot for live music, I just found out. We sent a couple of creators there and they said the live music is awesome. Apparently they have a huge, huge back porch. so you can get a cheese board, you can enjoy, you can chat with friends, and they've got a pretty stacked schedule of live music. But you might want to get there before the end of October just to enjoy that back. Porch. So Deadhead is definitely on my personal bucket list to check out. But let's go back to brews. We've covered spirits, we've covered wine. Let's talk about speaker-0: So a fairly recent addition, I want to say maybe last fall, Harry E. Hopkins Brewery, which I believe is a sister property to the Bar Association, has opened up in Cannonsburg. ⁓ super cool microbrewery, great food, great drinks. I believe they've even introduced a few pumpkin beers for the fall. So I haven't been down there yet. I'm looking forward to it. ⁓ I've seen lots of pictures and videos. Harry E. Hopkins looks like a cool place to check out. speaker-1: I have the pumpkin beer menu 'cause I'm a pumpkin beer fan. I would love to read off what they've got 'cause they sound good. They have a toasted marshmallow IPA, a rum barrel aged pumpkin ale, an Oktoberfest feast beer. I'm hoping I'm pronouncing that right, lager, and what I would get a pumpkin patch ale. So if you have been itching all year for a pumpkin beer, Harry E. Hoskins is your spot. All right, let's get into food. I wanna talk about Shilling Hill Farm, which speaker-0: Interesting. speaker-1: I'm a little kind of ashamed that I just found out about this one, but it does seem to be a closely guarded secret in Washington. It is a cute little farm stand just off of five nineteen, and they are famous. They have s like five hundred rave Google reviews. Like this place is off the charts, apparently. Would love to go. They ⁓ have pepperoni rolls. I know you love a pepperoni roll. They are famous for their stacked sandwiches. Everything is super fresh. And since it's fall. They have rotating pies and we have a picture up of what I believe is their Dutch apple pie. But that is famous. It's mentioned in the review. I read through all the reviews. It's mentioned like over a dozen times. So speaker-0: Be wrong about this, but I think you might be able to pick up your pumpkins there too. I've seen a picture. Research. speaker-1: I don't know. I would love to. We'll research it. We should. We should research it by going there for lunch tomorrow. I think that's speaker-0: All right, moving on. Saprowski Candy Company in Washington. This is a good one. This is the candy apple capital of Washington County. You can get insane caramel chocolate covered apples, ⁓ huge layers and layers and layers of chocolate, but that's not all. They have got everything as it relates to chocolate. speaker-1: This is a It's definitely worth a stop. And the apples are unique, I've heard, because they have like a layer of crispy rice or like puff rice cereal or like rice krispies or something in between the chocolates. So you get that extra crunch. Okay. We covered food. We covered all sorts of fall. We could talk about fall eats all day, honestly. But I want to get into events, shows, and festivals, because I think that's what people get most excited for in the fall. ⁓ let's kick it off with Trax Farms Fall Festival. This is a big one. Trax Farms is awesome. They have all, you know, the classics. They have the hay ride. You can pick your pumpkins. They have pictures with the mounds of pumpkins. I went here as a child for many, many years, still love to go. My favorite thing in the highlight is the apple cider slushie. Tracks Forms Apple Cider is famous and it's really good. It's really good hot. It's really good warm, but the slushie is where it's at. So highly recommend. You could spend all day here and definitely don't skip the farm market. And then they also have an antique store. right above the market. I believe they also have a winery in there. So you could spend all day at Trax Farms. I certainly do. speaker-0: Absolutely. One of my family's favorites since we've been out here is is going to the Springhouse, especially for the Fall Fun on the Farm Festival, which is a tongue twister. It kicks off on September twenty-sixth and runs through October thirty first, I believe, on Saturdays and Sundays. Yes. So much fun, especially if you have little kids. You can see in this picture here they've got this I don't know what you call it. It's this gigantic stack of hay. And these are like the biggest bales I've ever seen in my life. They're like the size of a Volkswagen Beetle. They're gigantic. ⁓ but there's little tunnels that the kids can run through. There's a slide that comes off of it, there's tubes everywhere. ⁓ they've got this really cool area where there's pumpkins that are decorated into different Disney characters and movie characters. ⁓ they do hay rides. I mean, all of the fun fall things are at Spring House. While you're there, get some chocolate milk, get some ice cream, get some of the food. Their food is incredible too. It's they have got this what is it? It's a pot roast. I don't know if they still have it, so I apologize if they don't, but pot roast wrap with garlic aioli, it's just to die for. It's incredible. speaker-1: That would put me to sleep. That sounds so good. I love the springhouse and their food. But there's one more Faw Festival on the farm. There's also Simmons Farm, which is really close to me in McMurray. ⁓ they have tons and tons and tons of stuff to do. Like you actually could spend all day here. They have the big slide, which is famous. They have pumpkin picking, flower picking, ⁓ apple picking. I love to do the apple picking. They've got a really big corn maize, two corn mazes actually. And a whole host of activities. They have a farm market too. And don't sleep on the petting zoo. The petting zoo is really fun. speaker-0: Speaking of petting zoos, if I wanted to hold a baby kangaroo, where would I go? speaker-1: I don't know. You would go to Barnyard Petting Zoo, probably. speaker-0: I think I would. And I think you got to. speaker-1: I did. That was the best day probably of my life. Honestly top ten days of my life. This place is really, really cool. It's out in eighty four and they have all sorts of an they have pretty much every animal you can imagine. So our favorite part besides the kangaroos was remember we did the baby barn where they had what, baby cows, goats, ⁓ chickens, I don't know. They Yes, they had the camel, they have zebras, they have little bee, they have everything. speaker-0: Camel. speaker-1: So they have the baby barn and then they have all sorts of exotic adult animals. This place is really awesome. It is by appointment only, so make sure you call in advance. ⁓ but if you have kids or even if you're an adult like me, go out. It's such a fun day. It's one of my favorite places in the county to visit for sure. speaker-0: All right, so let's say it's a Friday evening. I want to take my wife out to see a show. What do you recommend? Where should we check out? speaker-1: Well, we've got plenty of opportunities here in Washington County this month. Well, Little Lake Theater is having Dracula, a comedy of terrors, which looks really good. first of all, Little Lake is a super unique theater. It's very intimate, it's like a theater in the round style. ⁓ they have limited amount of seats, so if you want tickets to this show, make sure you get them early. ⁓ but super cool theater and this looks like a super cool show. It's kind of a different take on Dracula from what I understand. It's campy, it's fun, it's fast paced. all the characters are kind of swapping. ⁓ like the actors represent two characters. So it looks like a really fun show. ⁓ that they are having that throughout the month of October. But I think s this one's Halloween and the next one you're talking about is more kind of I don't know. speaker-0: It is before we move into that one, and we have talked about this in the podcast, but just a little preview for Little Lake Theater this Christmas. So we've talked about the the grand opening of the Canon Theater at the old Canonsburg Middle School opening up here soon. Little Lake Theater is inked to do all of their Christmas shows at the brand new Canon Theater. It's going be awesome ⁓ throughout the month of December, so make sure you check that out. Staying on the theme of local theater, old schoolhouse player. ⁓ Old Schoolhouse Players, which is in Hickory. I've been there. Great shows. Cool atmosphere. in October, the ninth through the eleventh and the sixteenth through the eighteenth, they have the Mousetrap, which is an Agatha Christie, kind of a classic Who Dunit mystery. and you know, it's one of those deals that's just full of twists and turns throughout. It's I think it's the longest running play, I don't know, in the history of the world, something like that. But yeah, it's gonna be a good show. And again It's an hickory, easy to get in, get out, great show. speaker-1: I love that. I love shows like that. I love theater and I love shows that have like a little bit of audience involvement. So like you're watching the characters try to figure it out and then you're also like trying to figure it out in the back of your head. So that one looks really exciting. ⁓ before we move on, I also want to make sure we talk about the September schedule for this month here in Washington County. You wanna get into what we speaker-0: ⁓ We've got some pretty big events coming up here in September, beginning with the Covered Bridge Festival and the Pennsylvania Bavarian Oktoberfest in Cannonsburg, both happen on the same weekend. ⁓ But it's ⁓ what is it, 19th through the 20th for the Covered Bridge Festival, and that happens at nine different scenic covered bridge locations throughout both Washington and Green Counties. I was gonna say arguably One of the most popular events in Washington County. I don't even know if it's arguable whenever you look at our website analytics. I mean so many hits just for the Covered Bridge Festival. It's such a wonderful fall event. ⁓ and again with Oktoberfest, you wanna come out and hear some bands, they take over that that full block there in Cannonsburg. Super fun event. Wear your later hosing. It's gonna be a good time. ⁓ we also have Cecil Fall Festival at Cecil Park, September twenty-sixth through the twenty-seventh. and the Italian festival down in Washington on September twenty sixth. speaker-1: I bet that is so good. I'm really craving a meatball now. speaker-0: Lots of fun things and meatballs coming up in September. speaker-1: ⁓ yeah, we have tons of fun. So moving into the rest of October, we have the Hickory Apple Festival kicking things off. That is October third and fourth. And if you're craving something apple for fall, they have it all. You're gonna find everything. So they have apple butter, apple bread, pies, ⁓ basically any sort of apple. speaker-0: Yeah, you're talking to like the second place pie eating champion from two years. So yeah. ⁓ serious about some apple. speaker-1: Really? ⁓ okay. So you're gonna be down there, you're gonna be the first in line for the Apple Pack. Absolutely. So that is free to attend. It benefits the Mount Pleasant Fire Department. And they also have some demonstrations throughout the time. So it's just a fun fall festival. They've got chainsaw carving, blacksmith demonstrations, I think. So it's just a super fun community festival. Great way to kick off October. You wanna talk about the next week? speaker-0: I'm gonna have to. I gotta defend the title. Yeah, so if you miss the Apple Festival, come back the following weekend, October ninth through the eleventh for the Houston Pumpkin Festival. They've got a parade, Scarecrow contest. They usually have a pumpkin that's like the size of my house. ⁓ tons of vendors. I love it. It's a great ⁓ great little fall festival. speaker-1: It's so cute. And then into the following weekend, we have this is a really good one. We have the PA Arts and Crafts Christmas Festival. That's at the Washington County Fairgrounds. It's two weekends, so it's the 16th and 17th and the 24th and 26th. And if you're looking to get a jump on your Christmas shopping, like I always am, this one is so fun. They have all sorts of arts and crafts vendors, ⁓ you know, soap and handbags and jewelry and Everything, signs, home decor, anything you can think of. They have six heated buildings I believe. This festival's really big. ⁓ so definitely get down there and get shopping. Bring your cash. speaker-0: Yeah. We also have the Scenery Hill Fall Festival. Do you happen to know the dates off hand? speaker-1: I do not. I believe it's one day. speaker-0: All right, we'll put it in the sh in the show notes. But free to attend, ⁓ kids activities, food, craft vendors, ⁓ and I believe they're gonna show hocus pocus. That's Stick around, bring a blanket, yeah, it'll be a lot of fun. Yeah. ⁓ picturesque fall town on the old historic national road. speaker-1: Definitely a photo worthy spot if you're looking for a place to take fall photos as well. So Scenery Hill is beautiful in the fall. And speaking of Hocus Pocus, I want to get into spooky season too. Let's talk about it. Okay, Demon House. This is a cool place. If you love haunted houses, I am not a haunted house girl. I am scared. I will be wearing the light up collar that says I'm scared. ⁓ But Demon House is awesome. It's the home for evil, I believe they call. So if you love haunted houses, this is definitely worth a visit. They are open on select days September through November. So make sure you check their schedule online if you're looking to go. And we have another kind of spooky haunted house one. speaker-0: Yeah, I mean if if Demon House hasn't scared your pants off yet, check out West Alexander Scare Fair. It's at the West Alexander Fairgrounds every Friday and Saturday in October, beginning October ninth. Yes. So another one of those things I'm probably gonna sit out 'cause I'm kind of a weenie too when it comes to that. But West Alexander Scare Fair, ⁓ extremely popular for that kind of Halloweeny spooky season kind of thing. You wanna get a good scare. You can even ⁓ I think you can even reserve like a fire pit for your group and all kinds of speaker-1: Yes. ⁓ I would be at the fire pit 'cause I'm too scared for that. But if you're looking for some real scares, the Monongahela Candlelit Ghost Walk is happening October 9th through the 10th and then 23rd and 24th. It benefits the Monongahela Area Library and you will kinda navigate through the darkened streets of Monongahala with just candlelight. They'll be telling you some real ghost stories of people things people have seen in the town, ⁓ haunted buildings. thing, spooky things that have happened, so it looks like a lot of fun if you're looking for some pretty ghostly scares. ⁓ but speaking of real haunted things, I want to talk about the Shades of Death Ten Miler. So this is a run. This isn't a the only thing you'll be running from is the Haunted Spirits on Shades of Death Road. And that's a road in Vella and yes, that is the real name of the road. So it's rumored to be highly haunted There have been all sorts of rumors over the years of car crashes, a minor riot, I believe, and reports of ghosts. There's a cemetery on the road, so extra spooky. ⁓ but it's a really cool ten mile it's actually super challenging as well. There is over t twelve hundred feet of elevation up and down. So it's kinda hard. ⁓ it also passes by Meadowcraft. So in addition to being scary, the road is also super scenic. So it looks like a really fun run. I am also not a runner, ⁓ but This one looks like a lot of fun. So move us into the last one. speaker-0: Yeah, so you know, I think the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum has always done such a great job of creating interesting and fun seasonal events. ⁓ this year from October sixteenth and seventeenth, they've got the trolley tales of terror. So if you want to take a spooky trolley ride, ⁓ hear some ghost tales, get some good food and drinks, they've got local vendors coming out there. Trolley Museum is the spot to go. It's down in Washington. speaker-1: That one is super popular. And then also popular, this one's kinda little more niche, but we have Witch Fest happening at the Monongahela Aqu sorry, Aquatorium. Gotta make sure I get that right. It is a kind of witch, I don't know, bonanza of all things. You can shop spooky goods. They have you know, witchy live music and all the witches get together and there are a couple competitions. I believe two of them are for best cackle and best hat. And I know you'll be there for best cackle, so That's a good one. That is on October seventeenth at the Monongahela Aquatorium. Okay. That was a lot of stuff. speaker-0: That's a lot to digest ⁓ in the next two months, but ⁓ we will do our best to put these in the show notes. ⁓ you know, again, gowashco dot com, probably the best resource out there for all things happening in Washington County. Not probably it is. speaker-1: It out. It sure is. If you can believe it, that is not all there is to do during the fall season. That was a lot, but again, we have more on our website. Be sure to visit and read the blogs that everything will be linked in the show notes and description. Otherwise, that's all for this episode of The Washcoat Insider. Thanks for watching and listening, and be sure to check out our website for those additional details, dates, links, and written content. Thanks again, and we'll see you next time.