Today we headed out to Johnstown to revisit the place after over 20 years. It was a beautiful scenic hour drive till we got to the city.
Only about 15 min into the ride we found ourselves driving through a huge apple orchard. We pulled into Sleek Orchards to get some cider and a bag of Snowsweet apples. Both exceptionally delicious !
Sleek’s Orchard
Bedford County, Pennsylvania
Contact: Jackie Sleek
181 Wentz Road, New Paris, PA 15554
Phone: (814) 733-4776
Email: sleeksorchard@hotmail.com
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We came across a funny little village this retired guy built. He said he collected Junk for 40 years and then spent the last 4 years constructing a church, diner, gas station and soon a school house to showcase his collection. He was very kind to give us a tour and explain how he did everything.
And it’s Free! We love free!
Calvary Hollow Rd, Alum Bank, Pennsylvania
The first thing we did when we arrived at Johnstown was to go to the Incline Plane.
The Cambria Iron Company began construction of the inclined railway in 1890, to carry people, horses and wagons to the new hilltop community of Westmont. On June 1, 1891 the Johnstown Inclined Plane began providing convenient transportation up Yoder Hill which had a steep 70.9% grade.
On March 1, 1936 when flood waters again ran through Johnstown, the Inclined Plane proved its worth by carrying almost 4000 residents to safety. In the most recent flood to hit Johnstown on July 20, 1977, the Inclined Plane once again carried people to the safety of higher ground, as well as carrying boats, emergency personnel and equipment down to the valley to aid in rescue operations.
The design is simple: a balanced inclined plane with a double track, each with an eight-foot gauge. The two cars permanently attached to steel cables, counterbalancing each while in operation. As one car rises, the other is lowered. Power is only needed to lift the net weight.
It only cost $4.00 round trip. It was a delightful short trip. The view from the top of the city was breathtaking. You can even take your car up for $6.00! Very cool.
Just the past Visitors Center, sharing the same magnificent view over the city as the observation deck, is Asiago’s Tuscan Italian Restaurant. We decided to get cocktails here and enjoy the view. The hostess seemed to be flustered by us. Maybe the baby strapped in her carrier across Dori’s belly or our ragtag look? They thought of themselves as being rather posh and you know us- more like diamonds in the rough!
But the elderly hostess finally found us a nice spot right at a window- away from the clean group of senior eaters.
We ordered a martini sampler$16 , a glass of pumpKing beer with sugar and cinnamon on the rim and crab dip. The only martini I like was the lemon. I don’t like things sweet, so the cranberry, apple and lavender were too sweet. I drank them anyway. The crab dip was very good with lots of crab and no filler. Yum! We didn’t order any food since we had just had a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich and cider picnic lunch in the parking lot.
I highly recommend riding this technical wonder.
The Traveling Artist 