by Nancy Bishop

Although no one seems to really know how April Fools’ Day got started, some historians believe it’s been around since the 1500s when France moved New Year’s Day from April 1 to Jan. 1 when the Gregorian calendar was adopted. People who didn’t remember the change and celebrated on April 1 were called April fools and others played tricks on them.

Stuck in my house right now under the stay-at-home order, I’ve been spending way too much time online or watching TV. But the good news is I’ve learned a few interesting things about our area with my extra free time. Check them out below and see how good you are at distinguishing the true odd facts about Columbia and Montour counties from the single false one that’s been mixed in!

The other thing I’ve been doing while at home is eating way too much — apparently as have many other folks. I saw a great post on Facebook that compared the “Freshman 15” (pounds) that college students used to complain about gaining their first year away from home to the “Covid 19 (pounds)”. Helps to keep a sense of humor!

Don’t forget that many area restaurants are staying open for takeout, curbside pickup or home delivery. If you’ve got a favorite or you’d like to try someplace new, now’s the time. Please continue supporting local businesses during this difficult time. If you need some ideas of places that are still serving, you can find them on this Area Business Updates Page.

16 Weird, Wacky & Interesting Facts About Our Area

HINT: In the spirit of April Fool’s Day, one of these is NOT true. If you know which one it is, then you’re not an April Fool!

1. Bloomsburg became Pennsylvania’s first, and only, incorporated town in 1870.

2. The inventor of the typewriter and the QWERTY keyboard was born in Mooresburg in 1819.

3. A Washingtonville resident invented one of the earliest versions of the paper clip as well as the folding cardboard box and the hook and eye.

4. Whistling in the street is against the law in Danville.

5. The bankruptcy of an African ostrich farm in Espy made national news in 1915.

6. Berwick became the number one producer of tanks in the nation during World War II, and also was the largest manufacturer of train and subway cars on the East Coast.

7. Montour County was named for Madame Montour, who was an interpreter at treaty conferences with Native Americans in the 1700s.

8. Danville was named for General Daniel Montgomery, who opened the first store in the community and later served in Congress.

9. In late September 1923, street lights were lit for the first time in Bloomsburg.

10. Centralia, famous for its still-burning underground mine fire, is in Columbia County. Its founder, Alexander Rea, was murdered by the Molly Maguires in 1868.

11. Ludwig Eyer, who founded Bloomsburg in 1802, attended George Washington’s presidential inauguration ceremony 13 years earlier in New York City.

12. Thomas Edison once paid a surprise visit to Danville.

13. Jethro Gibbs on TV’s NCIS show is from Stillwater in Columbia County, one of the twenty smallest towns in the entire state.

14. In the right spot, your car will appear to roll backwards by itself up a hill in Numidia.

15. The Beach Haven area of Berwick had a speedway racetrack in the 1970s.

16. The Susquehanna River is the longest river on the east coast. It is also widely considered to be one of the five oldest rivers in the world.

SPOILER ALERT – Want to learn which “fact” is false? Curious to learn more details about some of the strange but true facts? Here are the details!

Visitor health and safety is a top priority for the Columbia-Montour Visitors Bureau. We are fully committed to putting people and their well-being first. With that in mind, we have made the decision to temporarily close our Welcome Center at 121 Papermill Road in Bloomsburg; effective Tuesday, March 17th. The Welcome Center will remain closed indefinitely due to the statewide closure mandate of non life-sustaining business operations. We encourage our residents, regional visitors, and local businesses to practice the recommended health and wellness advice of the CDC and WHO.

During the time we are closed, you may still reach us at 570-784-8279. We also encourage you to visit our website to keep abreast of our continually-changing community calendar.

by Nancy Bishop

If you’re an outdoor enthusiast, you’ve probably visited Montour Preserve,  one of the jewels of outdoor recreation in the area. But do you remember a time before there was a Montour Preserve?

Back in 1967, when the local electric utility — then called Pennsylvania Power & Light Co. — announced that it would build a coal-fired power plant near Washingtonville in Montour County, the area was mostly farmland with a creek running through it. There was no Lake Chillisquaque and no Montour Preserve.

On June 5, 1967, then-PP&L President Jack Busby told the Rotary Club in nearby Danville that the power company planned to build two generating units on a site in Derry Township. It was the first PP&L power plant not built next to a body of water. Instead, the company piped the main supply of cooling water for the steam electricity generating units through a 12-mile-long pipeline from the Susquehanna River. For a backup cooling source, PP&L bought 2,800 acres adjacent to the plant site and built a dam on Chillisquaque Creek to form the 165-acre Lake Chillisquaque.

Ground was broken for Unit 1 at the power plant in 1968 and it began commercial operation in 1972. That same year, Lake Chillisquaque and its surrounding land opened to the public as Montour Preserve. The Preserve included a boat-launching ramp, two picnic areas and two scenic overlooks. The lake itself was stocked with game fish by the Pennsylvania Fish Commission. Only boats with electric motors were allowed on the lake, which continues today.

Today, the power plant is owned by Talen Energy, which leases the Montour Preserve to the Montour Area Recreation Commission. MARC has operated the Preserve since 2015.

Over the years, more than 10 miles of trails, an Environmental Education Center, pavilions and children’s play areas were added for the public’s enjoyment. During construction of the power plant, fossils dating from the Devonian Period around 395-million years ago were discovered. Today the Preserve’s Fossil Pit offers an opportunity for visitors to hunt for fossils of their own and keep their findings. Or, you can visit the Environmental Education Center to view the fossil displays there.

Generations of area kids will remember school trips to Montour Preserve to dig in the Fossil Pit, attend a nature program at the Environmental Education Center or take part in the annual maple-sugaring.

A Sappy Story

Cold nights and warm days mean the sap is running in the Preserve’s maple trees, and it’s time to head to the Sugar Shack to learn how to make maple syrup.

This year is the 47^th year for the annual maple-sugaring program at the Preserve. The first event for this year, the annual pancake breakfast and maple-sugaring open house, took place on Feb. 29. Don’t worry if you missed it – there’s another opportunity to see the maple-sugaring demonstration on Saturday, March 14 from noon to 4 p.m. Learn more about the upcoming open house right here.

At the event you’ll learn some of the natural and cultural history of sugaring and follow the process from sap to syrup. Programs begin in the Environmental Education Center on the hour (noon, 1, 2 and 3 p.m.) with a speaker and a movie. Then you’ll take a short walk along the Goose Woods trail to the Sugar Shack.

One tip: Be sure to dress for the weather. When I was at the Feb. 29^th event, it was blustery and there were occasional snow squalls. But the program was great. I was particularly interested in learning how to make a wooden “spile,” the tube that is inserted in the tree to collect the sap. Long before today’s metal spiles were invented, Native Americans used hollowed-out Sumac branches to drain sap from the maple trees.

On my way back to the Environmental Education Center, I met up with a local Cub Scout Pack and their leaders on the Goose Woods Trail. The Cubs were excitedly heading to the Sugar Shack. Of course, maybe the draw for the kids was the chance to sample the sugary syrup that was being cooked up in the Sugar Shack!

by Nancy Bishop

Ok, without looking it up on your phone, tablet or laptop:

What is “poise” a measurement of?

What are dots on dominoes tiles called?

What country did Hitler’s nephew William fight for in World War II?

Give up? Well, turns out I only knew the answer to the last one, but my friends who joined me at Trivia Night at Marley’s in Bloomsburg didn’t believe me when I said the U.S., so they wrote down “United Kingdom” for the answer. And they were wrong! William served in the US Navy in WWII.

None of us knew that “poise” is a measurement of viscosity equivalent to a square centimeter per second or that the dots on dominoes tiles are called “pips.”

Marley’s Brewery & Grille in Bloomsburg hosts weekly team trivia every Monday from 8 to 10 p.m. New teams are always welcome and there are new questions each week. It was crowded the night we were there, so give them a call ahead of time if you’re planning to go and let them know how many people will be on your team!

There are prizes awarded for the top teams, but, of course, my team didn’t win a prize, although in the first round of the four that were played, we were among the top scorers. But we didn’t do so well in the subsequent rounds and ended up in the middle of the pack at the end. One of my relatives earned the nickname “Stats” from friends because of his expansive knowledge of odd and little-known facts. My friends probably wish he had been on their trivia team instead of me!

Like Marley’s, most places that offer Trivia Night limit team size to six people and you’re not allowed to bring reference materials or to look up answers on your cellphone, tablet or other electronic device.

However, an event called “Smartphone Trivia” is becoming popular. In Smartphone Trivia, you use an app on your phone to play (eliminating the pen and paper written answers of most bar trivia nights), but you still can’t cheat by looking up answers on the internet. In this area, you can play Smartphone Trivia every Friday from 9 to 11 p.m. at the Iron Fork at Frosty Valley in Danville.

Trivia Tuesday

Can’t make it for Monday or Friday night trivia? Then head to Old Forge Brewing Company in Danville where it’s Trivia Tuesday every week from 7 to 9 PM.

On Tuesday, Feb. 25, Old Forge will be celebrating Mardi Gras with special Cajun-Creole food, Hurricane drink specials for $7 and even Mardi Gras-themed trivia! Wonder if they’ll ask “What is hidden in a King Cake?”

Wednesday Trivia

On the 2^nd Wednesday of the month, head to Rock God Brewing Company in Danville for Jon Mackey’s Quizzo Pub Trivia at 7 PM.

Rock God brews its own hand-crafted beers so plan to enjoy one while you’re playing trivia. And bring your friends — Quizzo is a team trivia game played by teams of up to six players.

Thursday Trivia

Head to the Study Bar in Bloomsburg every Thursday night from 7 to 9 PM to get your trivia fix.

While you’re playing trivia, sample one of their Classic Cocktails for $5. You can choose from a Vodka Collins, Tequila Sunrise, Whiskey Sour or Greyhound or my favorite – a White Russian with vanilla vodka, kahlua and half-and-half.

Also offering a Trivia Night on Thursday, Feb. 27 from 7 to 9 p.m. is the Nickle Plate Bar and Grill at Knoebels Three Ponds Golf Course on Rt. 487 in Elysburg. You’ll have a chance to win prizes and enjoy great drinks and food. Call 570-672-5277 to reserve a table for your team.

(And if you’re wondering what is hidden in a King Cake, it’s a plastic figurine of a baby that symbolizes luck and prosperity for whoever finds it in their slice of cake. Tradition also says whoever gets it has to buy the next cake.)

Montoursville, PA – Motorists in north central Pennsylvania are advised that a wintery mix of sleet and freezing rain is predicted across region beginning Wednesday, February 5 during the evening hours through Thursday morning, February 6. PennDOT is prepared and will be performing winter services throughout the area.

Falling temperatures combined with the wintery mix could result in slippery and dangerous road conditions. Freezing rain could accumulate between a trace to 0.10 inches with as much as 1-inch of sleet in the northern counties. These conditions could result in black ice and downed trees, even on treated roadways.

Motorists are reminded to slow down and drive according to the conditions they encounter when winter storms hit.

Subscribe to PennDOT news in Bradford, Columbia, Lycoming, Montour, Northumberland, Snyder, Sullivan, Tioga and Union counties at www.penndot.gov/District3.

by Nancy Bishop

Yes, that day for celebrating your sweetheart is just around the corner. Better start planning your celebration – and making reservations – now!

Kick the celebration off early by heading to the Cherokee Tap Room in Danville Friday, Feb. 7 to Sunday, Feb. 9 for their Whiskey & Cheese event.  If you like whiskey, you’ll be able to sample four and choose four cheeses to go with them. Scotch, Bourbon, Tennessee Whiskey, Canadian Whiskey and Irish Whiskey are among the choices, along with a variety of cheeses including Cheddar, Goat and Manchego. Reserve your spot on their Facebook page or call 570-284-4495.

Cherokee also will be offering a special menu on Friday, Feb. 14, if you want to celebrate with a romantic dinner.

And if your choice is a dinner date, several other area restaurants are offering special menus in honor of St. Valentine.

At the Iron Fork at Frosty Valley they will be offering their special Valentine’s menu Wednesday, Feb. 12 through Saturday, Feb. 15 after 4 p.m. each day. Their full menu will be available, too. Some of the special offerings that are calling me include the Chicken Mosaic appetizer that has chicken, gruyere and veggies in a phyllo crust and the lobster stuffed with crab meat entree. Or, you can get the Sweetheart Dinner for Two for $50 that features a choice of appetizer to share, a house or caesar salad for each, and a choice of petite filet, chicken with piccata sauce, or salmon, served with grilled shrimp, baked potato and sautéed vegetable medley. You also can choose a dessert to share. And be sure to try the Cranberry Kiss Martini or the Chocolate Covered Cherry Martini! To make a reservation, call 570-275-4003.

You also can extend the fun following your dinner at the Iron Fork by joining Wine & Design for a “Paint Your Partner” class. It will be a Valentine’s Day to remember! Sign up for the painting class for after dinner at Wine & Design.

Over in Berwick, Bandit’s Roadhouse will offer a Dinner for Two for $59.95 that includes one-half pound steamed shrimp, two 4 oz. lobster tails, two 8 oz. NY strips, two baked potatoes and two salads. They’ll also have a special drink – the Love Potion Martini. For reservations, call 570-752-2313.

Also in Berwick, the Forge Pub & Eatery will have special appetizers for Valentine’s Day in addition to their regular menu. For a reservation, call 570-520-4165.

Wine & Donut Trail

But maybe you’d like to do something different with your sweetheart than the usual dinner. Check out the Wine & Donut Trail  from February 7 to 16. Seven area wineries will offer special donut pairings with their wines. You can get tickets stamped or signed at each location for the chance to win prizes.  Free tickets can be picked up at any of the wineries, so simply select your starting point, grab a loved one or group of girlfriends, and get to it! Participating wineries are:

• Cardinal Hollow Winery at Winding Creek Shops – powdered sugar donuts with Sweet Traminette wine
• Colonel Ricketts Hard Cider Winery – old-fashioned donuts, wine TBD
• Freas Farm Winery & Meadery – wine & cream infused donut holes
• Juniata Valley Winery at Nature’s Outdoors – chocolate covered donuts with strawberry and raspberry wine
• Red Shale Ridge Vineyards (Danville) – glazed donuts with Niagara, Fredonia, and strawberry wine
• Shade Mountain Winery & Vineyard (Riverside) – cinnamon donuts with Sparkling Apple and Autumn Harvest Blush
• Three Dogs Vino – donut flavored wine slushie, different flavor each weekend

Spas

Not different enough for you? Then how about a relaxing time with your sweetheart getting a massage or other indulgent spa treatment? At the Art of Floating in downtown Bloomsburg, you’ll be able to experience some of the deepest relaxation possible.  Book a session and you’ll float weightless in a floatation chamber with nothing to disturb or distract you – let your senses take a vacation!

Other Bloomsburg spas are also available to enjoy some quality relaxation and pampering sessions, including Lisa’s Country Cuts & Spa, Relax & Recharge Wellness Center and Wellness at Pine Crest.

Or treat your Valentine at Eden Spa & Salon with the “Chocolate Indulgence” Valentine. It’s their Warm Bach Therapy Treatment that includes chocolate- scented massage cream, hot cocoa scrub, warm towels and paraffin. Who says “chocolates” are just candy!

Cozy Getaways

Top off all that romance by spending the night at one of the area’s many cozy bed and breakfast venues. Here are a few to consider:

Cozy Corner Bed & Breakfast, Elysburg
The Doctor’s Inn Bed & Breakfast, Danville
Fish & Loaves Bed & Breakfast, Catawissa
Inn at Turkey Hill, Bloomsburg
The Old Tioga Inn Bed & Breakfast, Benton
Paper Mill Pines Bed & Breakfast, Shikshinny
Peaceable Kingdom B&B, Catawissa
Pump House Bed & Breakfast, Bloomsburg
White Birch Inn Bed & Breakfast, Berwick

Happy Valentine’s Day!

by Nancy Bishop

Spectacular winter scenery awaits the adventurous who make the trek to visit the frozen waterfalls at Ricketts Glen State Park near Benton. Although the Falls Trail is closed in the winter, properly equipped, experienced ice hikers and climbers are permitted to be on the trail.  However, they are required to sign in and out at the park office. Required equipment includes crampons, an ice axe, and rope for each hiker. To see most of the waterfalls, there’s a 3.2-mile loop that provides views of 21 waterfalls.

Want to go, but don’t want to do it alone or don’t have your own ice-hiking equipment? Then consider joining one of the regular weekend hikes put on by Valley to Summit (VTS) Guided Wilderness Adventures. The trips run every Saturday and Sunday through March 17, weather permitting. VTS offers a full-day hike that takes 6 hours or a half-day hike lasting 3-1/2 hours. Maximum group size is 16 hikers; minimum size is 6 hikers. Private weekday trips also can be arranged with VTS.

On the weekend hikes, you’ll hike along the Falls Trail and visit the Glens Natural Area. You’ll see the waterfalls cascading through rocky cliffs and take in the glistening ice formations. If Ganoga Falls, the tallest waterfall at 94 feet, is frozen, you’ll find yourself surrounded by icicles! On the full-day hike you’ll go 4-1/2 miles and see 17 waterfalls. The half-day hike goes 2.4 miles and visits 4 waterfalls.

VTS notes that their hikes are not ice-climbing trips. You will not climb up vertical ice. You will hike a mostly frozen trail system using crampons, ice axes and other related gear. No prior experience is necessary. VTS provides hikers with crampons, ice axe, harness, helmet, foam insulation pad and rope.

Whether you’re hiking on your own or taking a VTS trip you’ll also need to dress in layers. You should have:

• 2 pairs of non-cotton socks (one pair on your feet and the other in your pack)
• Rain/snow/ski pants and rain/snow/ski jacket, regardless of weather forecast
• Non-cotton shirts (capilene or other similar breathable and wicking fabric is recommended). 1 short-sleeve, 1 mid-weight long sleeve and a long-sleeve fleece or vest or wool sweater
• Light or mid-weight thermal underwear, pants and a thicker base/fleece layer
• Winter hat that fully covers ears
• Personal first aid kit, including medications
• Water bottles

For cost and to register for one of the VTS group hikes, visit Valley to Summit Guided Wilderness Adventures’ ice hiking page. For more information, email info@ValleyToSummit.com or call 215-543-6171. If you’re planning to hike or climb on your own, visit Ricketts Glen State Park online for more information.

Knoebels Amusement Resort announced a new ride today in advance of the 2020 season and also announced the closure of a longstanding ride at the park.

Knoebels is celebrating the new year with a new ride, called “Tornado.” The ride is expected to be ready and in place for riders on opening day – April 25, 2020.

Tornado will be capable of holding 32-passengers. According to Stacy Ososkie, Director of Public Relations for Knoebels, “Eight cars hold four passengers each in individual seats facing the inside of the car. Once the ride reaches speed moving in a circle, it tilts 20 degrees and lifts the cars up to 15 feet from ground level.”

Dick Knoebel, president of the park, said riders will be able to control how much the cars spin.

“Controlling part of a ride provides a really unique and exciting experience,” Knoebel said. “Riders will be able to spin the cars of our new ride themselves, choosing their thrill level.”

Visitors will need to be 38 inches tall to ride Tornado with an adult, and 48 inches to ride alone. It will be located near StratosFEAR drop tower ride and Kreeper’s Pumpkin Patch game.

Ride Removed for 2020

This year will also see the removal of a ride that has been at the park for more than 20 years. 1001 Nacht sent guests soaring high above the park on a magic carpet ride reaching 85 feet.

“The ride is nearing the end of its operational life and ridership isn’t strong, meaning it makes sense for us to remove it to help with future planning for the park,” Ososkie said.

Ososkie said more details on changes and additions will be made available as Knoebels’ 94th season approaches.

By Nancy Bishop

If you would rather fish, kayak or ride your ATV than go skiing and you’re dreaming of Spring while watching the snow pile up outside your window, then the Early Bird Sports Expo should be your destination.

Opening Thursday, Jan. 23, at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds, the 32^nd annual event features more than a hundred vendors and showcases boats, RVs, ATVs, outfitters, hunting and fishing equipment, kayaks, the area’s finest taxidermy work, artists, sportsmen’s groups and archery suppliers. It runs through Sunday, Jan. 26.

One of the returning vendors this year is Pond Craft Boats, which will be showing off their newly designed Custom-Built Pontoon Boat for the 2020 season. Check out the many available options and accessories that will be shown. Picture yourself on one of the area’s many lakes and other waterways in a pontoon boat built to your specifications!

If you build up an appetite while walking through the Fairgrounds buildings dreaming of summertime fun, then check out the food vendors offering everything from pizza, soup and subs to dessert. Steph’s Subs of Bloomsburg will be one of those offering food to tempt you.

And if you’re a patch collector, don’t miss the Expo’s commemorative patch designed by artist Ken Hunter of Muncy, who also will have a booth at the show.

Show hours:

• Thursday, January 23: 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm
• Friday, January 24: 10:00 am to 9:00 pm
• Saturday, January 25: 10:00 am to 8:00 pm
• Sunday, January 26: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm

Admission fees:

• Adults: $6.50 ($6.00 with coupon)
• Senior Day (65+), Friday, 10 am to 3 pm only – $3.00
• Military Personnel – Free with ID
• Kids under 12 – Free
• Free Parking

Don’t miss the Expo!