Meetings
TBD
Please register at www.chescolibraries.org -- Events -- .
Group Walks
Please RSVP to Jeanne by email ( clancygirl1@verizon.net) by Sunday evening for the Tuesday Group Walks and by Thursday evening for the Saturday Group Walks. Include your cell phone number in the email.
2024 Traditional Events
• TBD
Year-Round Events (YRE)
Remember - you can walk any YRE anytime on your own schedule. Just grab a friend, check in at the Start Box, and walk on!
Every club offers a selection of YREs that are listed on the AVA Event website. So, wherever you go, there's a walk waiting for you!
Red Rovers Sponsor Year-Round Events
• Downingtown – Stroll through historic Downingtown to view its many historic homes in architectural styles including Georgian, Federal, bungalow, and conservative Italiante and Queen Anne. Historic sites include the 1899 Friends Meeting House, the 1761 General Washington Inn, the 1791 Log House, and the ruins of Dowlin Forge. Explore some of the many parks and trails of Chester County. Downingtown also offers many restaurants and the Victory Brewing Company.
• Phoenixville – Stroll through historic Phoenixville, former home of Phoenix Steel and Griffin, Smith & Hill, makers of Phoenixville's famous Majolica Pottery. The Colonial Theatre, the centerpiece of Phoenixville's renaissance, was featured in "The Blob" (1958) and commemorates the film every summer during Blob Fest http://thecolonialthreatre.com/ Explore Phoenixville's streets and avenues to view its many historic homes, sites of interest, and parks. Cross several of its many bridges, sample some of its trails, and follow the Schuykill Canal tow path. Phoenixville features a farmers' market, many restaurants, wine bars, brew pubs, and a distillery, as well as numerous events and festivals (including Blob Fest, Phoenixville Food Week, the Dogwood Festival (May), the Phoenixville Blues Festival (September), Food Truck Festival and more).
• Radnor – Ramble around Radnor on suburban Philadelphia's famous Main Line. You will explore lovely residential neighborhoods, as well as the campus of Eastern University, including its 100+-year-old waterwheel. In addition, the walk ends on the Radnor Trail, the rails-to-trails adaptation of a section of the Philadelphia & Western Railway.
• Malvern – Explore historic Malvern -- originally settled by Welsh immigrants on land purchased from William Penn in the 17th Century. Long known as West Chester Intersection, the village was named Malvern in 1873 when the railroad was straightened to stop there - placing it on Philadelphia's famous Main Line. Malvern boasts varied architecture and a vibrant business district with many shops and restaurants. Walkers will also visit the Paoli Battlefield Site and Parade Grounds, where the Paoli Massacre took place on September 20, 1777.
• West Chester – Stroll the streets of beautiful and historic West Chester, Chester County Seat since 1786. The walk will begin at the 1846 Historic Courthouse, built in the Classical Revival style at a cost of $55,346 and designed by Thomas U. Walter, who also designed the dome of the United States Capitol. Along the way you'll see many buildings that have won West Chester's Preservation Award. You'll walk past the last home of artist Horace Pippin, the childhood home of composer Samuel Barber, and the 1881 home of Stephen Paxson Darlington, manufacturer of wheels for the Conestoga Wagons. You'll visit two town parks and West Chester University, the largest of the fourteen colleges in PA State System of Higher Education, including its West Chester State College Quadrangle Historic District.
• Pottstown – Pottstown is located 40 miles northwest of Philadelphia and 20 miles southeast of Reading, on the Schuylkill River. Germans, Swedes and English were among the area's first European settlers. After establishment of the first iron forge in 1714, Pottstown's fortunes became tied to the iron industry. Eventually, blast furnaces for production of iron and later steel opened in the area. Iron and steel production attracted the Potts family, iron masters by trade. They established a forge and built a large home just west of the Manatawny Creek. John Potts founded a town, then named Pottsgrove, in 1761 on part of the 995 acres that he owned. Pottsgrove grew, and in 1815 it was incorporated under the name Pottstown, becoming the second borough in Pennsylvania, after Norristown. Modern-day Pottstown is situated on land originally deeded to William Penn.
• Lititz – This trail takes you on a tour of historic downtown Lititz, past the Moravian Church and the north side of Lititz including a portion of the Warwick-Ephrata Rail Trail. It passes Linden Hall, Sturgis Pretzel factory and Wilbur Chocolate store. You travel through residential communities and Lititz Springs Park on paved paths, and sidewalks. The 15K walk will go past the Lititz Elementary, the cemetery where General Sutter is buried, and the Lititz Library and through a portion of the south side of Lititz.
• Lancaster – Explore Thaddeus Stevens' Lancaster, the Red Rose City, and one of the oldest inland towns in the United States. Lancaster is home to the oldest continuously-operating farmers market in the U.S.
• Mount Joy – Explore the borough of Mount Joy, named after the "Good Ship" Mountjoy. The 10K walk goes through six named city parks in Mount Joy including Rotary Park, Cove Outlook Park, Borough Park, Little Chiques Park, Memorial Park, and Mount Joy Grandview Park. You will also walk down Main Street with its quaint shops, B&Bs, post office, restaurants, and coffee shop. The 10K trail also includes the Mount Joy Cemetery with wonderful views of the sur-rounding countryside. The 5K trail is rated 1A.