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| Scenes like this border many roads in Bucks County. |
It's not named after a famous writer, although Pearl S. Buck did live here, or after the deer you'll see in the protected green spaces lining the road, or even after the bushels of "bucks" it takes to be able to afford a house here. This idyllic spot in Pennsylvania is called Bucks County after William Penn's home county in England--Buckinghamshire.
But a more accurate name for this place might be Eden. Forget Mexican beach hotels or Costa Rican mountain resorts; if you want to get away, a much more accessible Shangri-La can be found right here in the United States.
Although just an hour's or so drive from Philadelphia and New York, it might as well be on another continent--it's that far removed from those bustling cities. Here, nature reigns with Monet-like backdrops of lush greenery with deer loping across the fields, and quaint towns with gingerbread houses hugging the sides of the twisting roads.
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| Even the bridges are so narrow that Tom tucked the side view mirror against the car before we started across. I don't think signs posted a speed limit, but no one was foolish to drive faster than five miles an hour on this bridge crossing the Delaware River. |
It is here, where the Delaware River divides Pennsylvania from New Jersey that you finally understand why New Jersey has the moniker, The Garden State. As difficult as it is to believe gardens exist anywhere in the state when you are on the turnpike approaching Newark, this area adjoining Bucks County makes you a believer in miracles. It is as lush as Newark is industrial.
This two-county area straddling the river (Bucks County in Pennsylvania and Hunterdon County in New Jersey) is ripe with possibilities for exploration--to name only a few, there are the Doylestown
Mercer Museum, a six-story castle housing American artifacts; the eclectic shops and restaurants in the charming little towns of New Hope, PA, and Lambertville, NJ, (Actually, most any town in this area is worthy of your time.); Washington Crossing Historic Park; and tubing trips down the Delaware River.
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| Two Buttons |
For those with a literary bent, the
Pearl S. Buck house is a must-see. And, if you're a fan of Elizabeth Gilbert, author of
The Last American Man and
Eat, Pray, Love, to name only two of her books,
you will want to
visit the store she and her husband opened in Frenchtown, New Jersey.
