This quest began when my wife, Donna, joined me in retirement and we discovered that the Pennsylvania State Park System had a Passport similar to the National Park System Passport. The very day we found this Passport at the shop at Laurel Hill State Park, we were off on our journey through our beautiful and inspiring state parks and state forests. From the smallest to the largest, each was like a gift under our Christmas tree, just waiting to be opened. Some gifts were the overall scenery, some were the views, some were the history, some the wildflowers, some the water features, some the old growth forests that were like cathedrals, some were the perfect campsites for our tent, some were the tranquility that only wilderness isolation brings, some were meeting the friendly and interesting park employees and fellow visitors, and still others were the bike trails and cross-country ski trails. Along with these joys of nature, our road trips to reach the parks and forests enabled us to travel the entire state and see towns and cities we would have never reached in our lifetimes. To say the very least, this quest to reach our goal of exploring all 124 state parks and 20 state forests changed how we interact and think about both our natural environment and our relationship with each other. The joy of it all is a true blessing along with all the laughter along the way that filled our hearts with happiness. A huge thank you to all the people over the years that were and continue to be responsible for these wonderful gifts called our state parks and forests.

RSVP HERE