The Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area is a huge expanse of natural beauty just waiting for you to enjoy. Encompassing  40 miles of the Delaware River and its surrounding watershed, as well as 100 miles of hike-able trail including 27 miles of Appalachian Trail, this Pocono treasure is a destination to visit again and again. The Park website is packed with lots of information-I encourage you to check it out and browse around.

I have not been there yet this year, but the recent beautiful weather has me longing to go. I took the photos accompanying this article during a hike last year which we accessed from the New Jersey side at the Kittatinny Point Visitor Center off of I-80.

There are access points for the trails in the Borough of Delaware Water Gap (off of Mountain Road behind the famous jazz club, The Deer Head Inn), and in Dingmans Ferry at the Dingmans Falls Visitor Center. There are also various overlooks and picnicking areas along the river via Route 611, south of DWG, north of Portland.

There are so many things to do at this spot: birding, photography, rock climbing, site seeing, biking, and so much more. Check out the Calendar of Events for programs, lectures and other ways to enhance your appreciation for the natural beauty which is right here in our backyard.

Detailed maps of the various areas of the Park and the River, parking areas, camp sites, historical buildings, boat launch areas, trails, etc., are found here.

There are no entrance fees to get in to the park or trails - imagine that, a FREE attraction in the Poconos! There may be fees for camping and other extras.

...that is if you enjoy TOTAL FRUSTRATION!!  Me, I totally dig that so this game is fun.  Don't let the first couple of levels fool you - it gets hard.  I got to level 7 and stalled a bit.  But as soon as I get a little quiet time, I am soooo beating this thing....

http://www.itsjustabitoffun.com/date/2007/8/7/

If you are not familiar with Facebook, you really should check it out.  It is a social utility, similar to MySpace in that you post information about yourself & your interests, but different because it offers many cool applications and unique customization options.  It is becoming a popular tool for business people to promote themselves in a new way, too.  I think they reached 30 million members this month.

So I joined and I am already liking the way it funnels relevent information to you based on the groups you join and the friends you have, and have already found a few cool links and tools  to use on my real estate websites.  For a more thorough explanation of what it's all about, read this article.

I've not found a whole lot of local stuff on the site yet, aside from groups from the local high schools and ESU, but I am hopeful that this is only because I haven't looked hard enough.  To help get this rolling, I have created two new groups (so far!), Pocono Mountains Business Network and Living in Penn Estates, PA.  I invite any of you readers to sign on and join either of these groups if they are relevant to you.  The Business group is intended to be a networking group for local business people to learn, share and refer business to/with each other.  The Penn Estates group is intended for residents of my community to meet, get to know each other and communicate.  I already have lots of ideas for other groups both business related and personal/family ones.  I imagine using this site for planning group trips and all kinds of things!

Update 4/2/07:  What a huge success the play was!  I attended 3 shows and was teary-eyed every time from the joy of seeing those kids up there.  Kudos to both casts and the Director, Mrs. Summers!  And all of the parent volunteers-it was nice working with you!! I posted 2 pictures of my daughter in her roles in the photo album on the right side of this page-I took many more but cannot post the other children as I don't have permission from the parents.........

3/26/07:  My daughter's Drama Club is putting on productions of Annie this weekend...2 showings of Annie and 1 showing of Andy, an adaptation where all the orphans are boys.  Made up of 5th through 7th graders, this promises to be a charming show, and is being held at the Stroudsburg Junior High School on Chipperfield Drive.  Tickets are $3 at the door.

Showtimes:

Annie Saturday, 3/31/07, at 1pm & Sunday, 4/1/07, at 7pm

Andy Saturday, 3/31/07, at 7pm