Cheap Trips: Bryn Mawr's Harriton House and More

Looking to save money? Try visiting one of these four locations--all of which you can reach on one tank (or less) of gas!

Harriton House

Address: 500 Harriton Road, Bryn Mawr, Pa.

How Far From Your Patch? About 47 miles (1 hour, 6 minutes) from Hellertown.

Hours: Wednesday through Saturday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for tours. Advanced notice is recommended.

Admission Fee:

• Adults $5
• Students Free

Summary: Harriton House is one of 19 institutions in Bryn Mawr that are more than 100 years old. In 1704, a Welsh Quaker named Rowland Ellis built a house on some of the 700 acres of land he received from William Penn. He called his estate "Bryn Mawr," which means "high hill" in Welsh. The estate's most famous occupant was Charles Thomson, the first and only secretary of the Continental Congress. Harriton House was bought by Lower Merion Township in 1969 and restored to reflect the era when Thomson lived there. It opened to the public in 1975. Today, the historic site offers daily tours and numerous programs throughout the year, including beekeeping, blacksmithing and a plantation fair.

Links:

• Other Patch stories
• Website

Lehigh Valley Zoo

Address: 5150 Game Preserve Road, Schnecksville, Pa.

How Far From Your Patch? About 25 miles (36 minutes) from Hellertown.

Admission Fee:

• Adults (12-64) $9.75
• Seniors (65+) $8.75
• Children (2-11) $7.75

Hours:

• 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, weather permitting until Oct. 31
• 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, weather permitting off season (Nov. 1 -March 31)

Summary: The Lehigh Valley Zoo is located within the scenic 1,100-acre Trexler Nature Preserve in rural Lehigh County. It's home to more than 250 animals, including African Black Footed Penguins, Mexican Gray Wolves, Mongoose Lemurs, Red Kangaroos, Plains Zebras, Laughing Kookaburra and Tammar Wallabies. The zoo recently welcomed two new female bison brought in to help its herd produce offspring.

Links:

• Zoo Website

People’s Light & Theatre Company

Address: 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, Pa.

How Far From Your Patch? About 57 miles (1 hour, 12 minutes) from Hellertown.

Admission: Individual tickets range in price from about $25 to $45. Season tickets and group tickets are available. 

Hours: Vary depending on showtimes

Summary: For fans of the theater, a trip to New York or downtown Philadelphia can be avoided thanks to places like the People’s Light & Theatre Company. Now in its 35th year of operation, the playhouse has put on performances of various genres, including everything from musicals and comedies to dramas and tragedies. Up next at People’s Light & Theatre Company is Don Quixote, which will run from Sept. 21 through Oct. 16.

Links:

• Theater Website

Pennypack Ecological Restoration Trust

Address: 2955 Edgehill Road, Huntingdon Valley, Pa.

How Far From Your Patch? About 40 miles (1 hour, 4 minutes) from Hellertown.

Hours:

• Nature trails are open from 8 a.m. to dusk every day.
• The office is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• The Visitors’ Center is open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., as well as Sunday afternoons.

Admission Fee:

• Use of the trust’s nature trails is free.
• Some nature and educational programs charge a nominal fee for participation.

Summary: The Pennypack Ecological Restoration Trust is an 800-plus-acre preservation for what once was eastern Montgomery County’s prevalent landscape: pristine prairie land. Conservation efforts by the trust's limited staff and hundreds of volunteers have helped protect indigenous fauna and flora from invasive plant species, and especially deer. For this reason, the miles of trails leading from one spectacular meadow to the next have specific recreational purposes. Visitors may stroll or hike trails or ride horses along them. Some trails along the Pennypack Creek are near the stone remnants of Colonial Era paper mills. To further the trust’s mission of conservation, several interactive programs are available to both trust members and the public. Recently, firefly evening walking tours, beekeeping lessons and native plant sales have been held.

Link:

Trust Website