Pennsylvania in April (Part 2)

On Wednesday morning, I remembered about the local trout nursery, so I checked online and it seemed like it was still in operation so after we ate breakfast at our hotel, we made the fifteen minute drive over there. Only a few cars were in the parking area and when we looked over the creek, we could see some walkers on another walking path, but no one else was around the trout ponds.
We walked around and enjoyed all the different sizes and colors of fish in the various containment areas. The vending machines took dollar bills, so we bought two bags of fish food and Seth and Laura enjoyed the feeding frenzy that happened where ever they tossed some food. There was a smaller separate pond containing the 'trophy trout' that the signs requested you to not feed, but all the other sizes were open to feeding.
A couple of fishermen were out early trying their lines for trout in the little creek that surrounds the nursery. It was a warm and beautiful morning and since it was only around 8am, we had the place to ourselves the whole time.

We had plans to go to another shopping area, but we were waiting until the store opened, so after feeding the trout, we had more time to go over to another park in the city that is famous for its rose gardens. I knew it was too early in the season for the roses to be blooming, but I figured it would still be a beautiful area to enjoy the early morning while keeping us close to the shopping area we would be headed to next.
This park was much busier with walkers and workmen and we walked along the various paths enjoying the scenery and looking in the ponds for signs of fish. It took a while, but we did find just a couple of fish and a few ducks too. 

After finishing our shopping and having lunch out, we headed up to the town where my parents' live and decided to take a quick detour to see if we could find the elk and bison who free range on the game preserve property just a few miles from my parents' home. It took a few tries to get to the right roads before we started to see enclosures and large, brown, furry animals. I didn't get a good picture of the elk as they were so far away from the road sitting down in the meadow, but we did get some good looks at the bison herds who were sitting under the trees. 

And then finally, needing to stretch our legs again after driving the 'safari' roads, we headed over to the church grove in town so we could enjoy the mass plantings of daffodils that were in peak bloom. This church has a large cemetery behind it and it's where my younger brother is buried. We had already visited his grave on Easter Sunday in the evening as the church bells were pealing and playing hymns so we enjoyed this side of the church property in a different meaningful way. Public places filled with natural beauty, shared joy and peaceful contemplation are very much still needed in our towns and cities and I am thankful for those who champion and see these projects through to completion and maintenance.

By mid-afternoon, we were at my parents' home, doing our laundry and I was prepping for supper while Kate kept my Mom company in the living room.