I’ll be completely honest with y’all: I found out about the White Cliffs from a TikTok. Say what you want about TikTok, but in my opinion, it’s a great place to learn about otherwise hidden gems. And what’s more-the White Cliffs are a mere hour and a half drive from me! An easy day trip, and that’s exactly what I did. My friend Chelsea and I decided that this would be the perfect break from an otherwise chaotic semester at school. We set a date, got a game plan going, and set out!
Early for me is anything earlier than 8AM, so waking up that morning was a bit of a rough go. I had to be up and at ’em by 7:15 to be ready to leave by 8. Let me tell you though, sometimes those early mornings are the ones most worth it. Chelsea is a blessing and brought me some coffee from Starbucks, an adventuring must-have. Since we were driving through Amish Country, we decided to make a few stops along the way.
At one point in Amish Country, we made a wrong turn and spent a solid 10 minutes fixing that. Something that we quickly learned is that there’s this thing called “Chicken BBQ Saturdays” every Saturday. The mouthwatering scent of BBQ sauce came wafting out of this tiny house, with the sign Dan’s Chicken BBQ out front. We decided that we would stop there on the way back since neither of us were super hungry at that point. That was hands down, our biggest mistake of the entire trip. Eventually, we made it back on the road we were supposed to be on and continued our journey.
The Cutest Amish Furniture Shop
After that, we went to this super cute Amish furniture shop, Peaceful Valley Furniture, and walked around for quite a bit there. They had candles, home decor, jams, and plenty of cute gifts in addition to furniture. I was able to get a few Father’s Day gifts for my dad which I’m super excited to give him. Chelsea got a gift for her boyfriend, and we headed back out to the road.
Driving through Amish Country feels like a step back in time. There are horse-drawn buggies everywhere, farmers out in the field, and not one graphic T-shirt in sight. Or a McDonalds for that matter.
The Hike to get to the White Cliffs
To get to the White Cliffs of Conoy, most people park at Koser Park. From there, walk South along the Lancaster County River Trail for about a mile and a half. What Chelsea and I didn’t realize when is that the walk there is just as fascinating as the cliffs themselves. There is a rich history of the cliffs, and you can follow it along with the signs along the trail. You can also explore some of the areas near the trail. Chelsea and I saw some dope ruins as we walked and stopped by a few of those, taking the time to check those out and imagine what life was like 100 years ago there, as the limestone industry was thriving.
At long last, we reached the White Cliffs. To say it was other-worldly would be an understatement. I honestly felt like we were on an alien planet. Because the cliffs are made of dolomite and limestone deposits, they’re entirely an off-white color. The cliffs themselves are 30 feet high above the Susquehanna River, so you really get a great view from up there. We walked around for a few, climbed down the cliffs to the river, and then back up again.
Maggie
At this point, we came across the most peculiar thing. A man with a large bird on his shoulder. Needless to say, this was about the last thing we were expecting to come across. We said hi and he offered to let us hold his bird, Maggie. She had no problem climbing on our arms and even cuddled up against us for a bit. He had a few party tricks up his sleeve with her, including tossing her up in the air and catching her. Not only did Maggie seem entirely unbothered, but it looked like she really enjoyed it. After chatting for a few, we said thank you and left to take a few pictures of the cliff.
Back in the car, Chelsea and I decided it was time to head back to Dan’s Chicken BBQ. We headed out, figuring our GPS would take us back, past it again, but boy were we wrong. After realizing google maps was taking us a different way, we decided to go off the beaten track and just drive. By this point, most of the places must’ve been closed and we ended up striking out after driving around Amish Country for over an hour. We did, however, come across a really cute Amish pop-up where they were selling eggs, veggies, and sweets. I opted for a banana nut bread and some chocolate oatmeal snack things that slapped.
Defeated by the fact we couldn’t find Dan’s Chicken BBQ but knowing we needed to head back, we got back in the car and headed home. Someday, we will return and find Dan’s Chicken BBQ, but in the meantime, if anyone finds it or knows where it is, please let me know.
Until next time,
-MAC
