Milford PA

For our kayaking trip this past weekend, we left from the small town of Milford, PA.  I’ll admit the day we left, it was early, and I was tired so I just sort of chucked Milford up to another Pennsylvania small town.  We did have lunch at a neat place called the Black Bear Cafe, a cool little Mexican place with some Italian style paninis, but in general I was going on little sleep, gearing up for a 34 mile paddle, and just focusing on that.

We set off Thursday afternoon and I didn’t give much more thought to Milford.   Our trip ended Saturday and we had to drive back to Milford to pick up my friend’s car.   We got to Milford and sat for fifteen minutes in a traffic jam.  I couldn’t figure it out.  This town literally seemed like it was in the middle of no where (it’s actually only about 5 minutes off 84) and we sat for fifteen minutes in traffic.  Not only did we sit for an elongated time in traffic, but when I stopped at Turkey Hill to grab some post paddling chocolate milk and some gas, the town was packed.  I was basically falling asleep at this point, hadn’t showered for three days, and was starving, so didn’t explore at all.  I wish I had.

Last night I was doing a little personal research on Milford.  It’s a cool little town.

• Check out Milford’s website.  I was impressed with it.  The town obviously has alot of pride in itself, and while it certainly isn’t the most exciting place, it embraces it’s charms.  There’s plenty of hiking, recreation on the river, and a booming art scene for those of you who are into that (I really try, but almost always don’t “appreciate” art).
• Milford is home to its own music and film festivals.
• Milford regularly makes it onto “Coolest Small Town” lists (in both PA and nationally).
• The main street had a lot of shops, galleries, and restaurants.  The Dimmock Inn looked like a fun place to kick back.  It was right across from the gas station and had a wrap around porch that was pretty crowded.
• Milford’s Town Hall showcases “Lincoln’s Flag,” the flag that was draped over the President’s booth at Ford Theatre the night he was shot, and still has his blood on it.  It’s morbid that I find this fascinating, but I do.

I don’t know that I’d make a trip specifically based around Milford, but it seems worth checking out if you’re in the area.