Waxing nostalgic

I spent part of the day Saturday in Gratz,PA,Gratz is a small town in northern Dauphin County,it's along rt.25 which runs between exit 112 of I81 and Millersburg in a valley called the Lykens Valley.The first time I ever drove through the valley was in the late 1990s hauling coal out of Hegins.There really isn't much to see in the 30 some mile drive from I81 to Millersburg but that's kind of my point,it's one of the few areas left in PA where you can drive for an hour or more and not see a McDonalds or Walmart,actually other than a few convenience stores,there really aren't any chain stores in the area.Gratz isn't famous for much of anything except their fair and the annual consignment sale that benefits the fire company and the local Amish Parochial schools,the latter is what brought me to Gratz as it has annually for the past 3 years.It's the home to quite a few Amish and the hilly farmland in the narrow valley works quite well with their farming practices.One of these days I'd really like to drive the whole length of the valley and checkout the town of Millersburg which is the site of,I believe,the oldest operating ferry on the Susquehanna which is still the only way to get from one side of the Susquehhanna between Sunbury and Clarks Ferry.If you ever get an urge to go for a nice Sunday drive through an area of PA that hasn't been commercialized this is a really nice ride,just watch out for the horse and buggies.