It has been quite a winter here in Pennsylvania. I opted to stay close to home again, because of the third covid surge, and concentrated on doing fun stuff in more amazing places near me. First, I visited "new to me" nature preserves in my home county; second, I visited state parks near me, and third, I "revisited" some of my favorite places by painting them while in my own house. On average, I tried to do each of these (visits to local reserves, state parks, and painting) every week this winter. I did some of these things with friends; the rest were solo adventures. Here are a few highlights!

The Lancaster Conservancy is a wonderful organization that acquires tracts of land and commits to protecting them and making them available for the nature loving public. I visited 16 (out of a total of about 50) of their properties, hiking the trails, and learning about their places in the region's ecosystem. You know, the kind of stuff I really like!

Trout Run Nature Preserve; Lancaster Conservancy