Time for another road trip… we had friends visiting from India and we wanted to do a short trip together nearby. We decided to go to the Poconos Mountains area, specifically to the scenic Jim Thorpe. 

Jim Thorpe is a quaint town in the Poconos Mountains known for its narrow streets, small shops and Victorian buildings. It offers charms of a European city and is home to many adventure sports including mountain biking, white water rafting and hiking. It is also known as “Switzerland of America”.

History Lesson – Mauch Chunk was founded in 1818 Mauch Chunk (Bear Place in Lenape language). It was a coal town.. known for its Anthracite coal. In fact the entire Lehigh Valley area is known the Carbon County. The coal from the area was transported along the Lehigh River by rail and other methods. (Fun fact: the switchback gravity railroad was one of the earliest roller coaster, only it was used here to transport coal). Mauch Chunk was renamed as Jim Thorpe in 1954 after the legendary Olympic athlete ( Fun fact : Jim Thorpe never actually lived in the town. His widow negotiated a deal  to bring his remain to the town and create a memorial named after him). Today, Jim Thorpe is a popular holiday destination, adventure sports and “millionaires row” (now called Broadway)

We arrived in Jim Thorpe after a 2 hour ride from our home in Central Jersey . It was a beautiful sunny, warm spring day and a perfect day to be outdoors. We immediately bought tickets for the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway train ride. This is one of the main attractions in Jim Thorpe, the train ride follows the Lehigh River and the over bridges. The train ride takes you  through the Lehigh State Park and the various trails along the way. The train is powered by a diesel locomotive and has vintage Victorian coaches (they have vista dome, open air and air conditioned coaches). The out & back ride is about 70 min. We got tickets for the 3 pm ride.

After a quick lunch (home made sandwiches) just outside the train station, we had time to explore the area. We walked down to the Lehigh River behind the train station. It was a beautiful sight..the roar of the Lehigh River had calmed down to a calm flow, waves crashing against the gravel, finding its way downstream. The roar of the water gets louder on dam release days. We spent some time taking in the beauty of the scenery and clicked a bunch of pictures. 

We had time to grab some soft serve ice cream before we boarded the train. We were now all set for the scenic train ride. At exactly 3 pm, the whistle blows and train rolls out of the station, past the Victorian mansions along the hillside, into the forested mountains. The train hugs the Lehigh river and trails along the river. We saw whitewater rafters & kayakers in the river and bike riders on the trails alongside. The train passes several old canal locks and small streams / waterfalls along the way. For many us who grew up in India, train rides are very nostalgic reminding us our childhood train journeys in India. There is something unique about train rides… it is in many ways a reflection of life… as Agatha Christie once said “To travel by train is to see nature and human beings, towns and churches and rivers, in fact, to see life”. 

After the amazing train ride, we drove to our Airbnb. We checked into our beautiful Airbnb which was located off Broadway on Race Street. After freshening up and some chai, we went on a walk on Broadway to check out the cafes and stores. We found out that many stores / cafes are closed on Tues/ Wed. We saw some the mansions including the Asa Packer mansion and a couple of other mansions. A few of the locals told us that the town is bustling with activity Fri-Sun during offseason and is very quiet rest of the week. 

After a quiet dinner, we settled down for the night. Our Airbnb was very very good and I would highly recommend this for anyone planning to visit Jim Thorpe. 

Day 2 started with a search for coffee, a cappuccino or latte. Most cafes were closed, but we were able to find decent coffee at the King Coal Cafe near the train station. The cafe is inside a refurished rail car.

We checked out of the Airbnb and started our drive to Saylorsburg/ Stroudsburg area. The plan was to visit a couple of temples there before we headed home. It was a rainy day with temperatures in the 60s. Our first stop was at the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam in the Stroudsburg. The Gurukulam ( school) was established in 1986 to provide an academic like environment for study of Vedanta, Advaita & Sanskrit and practice of Yoga & meditation. The campus is well spread out with lots wooded areas offering a serene and peaceful environment. It has facilities for residential programs and has a large auditorium & cafeteria. 

We arrived at the Gurukulam around 11.30 am. It was still raining. We parked near the auditorium / cafeteria and made our way to the temple / prayer hall. I have fond memories of coming to this Ashram with my parents 5-6 years ago and was reliving of some those moments as we walked in the rain. There was a Vedanta class underway in the prayer hall with about 15-20 students there. We spent a few minutes there taking in spiritual vibes and after a brief prayer we were ready to head out. The folks at the Ashram invited us to join them for lunch (we were secretly planning a visit to the cafeteria anyway). We enjoyed the simple (and delicious) lunch in the cafeteria and made our way back to the car. 

Our next stop was the Blue Ridge Vineyard & Winery… after we purified our souls at the ashram, we were ready for wine tasting.  The Poconos region has a diverse selection of wineries and a few of them offer an expansive, scenic estate experience. The Poconos region offers (I read) offers unique conditions that allow a variety of grapes to flourish – diverse microclimates (due to the elevated and varied terrain), fertile soil and proximity to sources of other fruits that useful in making wines. The Poconos is also a major vacation destination for folks in NY, NYC, Philly metro areas making it attractive for setting up these wineries. Direct to consumes sales is the biggest source of revenue for these smaller wineries

The Blue Ridge Estate is quite expansive and well laid out with lots of outdoor seating overlooking the vineyards. On this rainy day, sitting outdoors was not really an option for us. We sat inside in their large tasting room and ordered their wine samplers. They have a pretty large collection of wines, some made from grapes grown locally and others brought from vineyards around the country. I’m not much of a wine guy (and since I was driving) settled for a lite beer. I tasted a couple of the wines.. with my “newly acquired” wine tasting skills (from the popular show on Apple TV – Drops of God), I tried to identify the other fruits and additives to the wine. I was not too successful, I must admit. Becoming a “wine sommelier” is definitely not a career option for me. They had a few food options on the menu including pizza made onsite. The staff were very friendly and welcoming. 

Now it was time to drive home, it was still raining and the drive home was uneventful and easy. 

Our visit to the Poconos was quite enjoyable, Jim Thorpe was clearly the highlight and the tour of the ashram was very spiritual. Lots of memories made on this short visit to the Mountains. If you have not visited the area, you should definitely add this to your list, especially Jim Thorpe (best season to visit is in the Fall).