Many folks in this area travel west on the historic U.S. Route 30 through Gettysburg to Chambersburg, stop at Caledonia State Park for a picnic or even a weekend outing. Perhaps those who do not like the traffic situation in the Civil War town will even take Pa. Rte. 234 through Ardentsville and the scenic “Narrows” to arrive at the same destination.

If asked what the No. 1 spectator sport in the world is, could you answer the question?

The answer is looking at rocks. Can’t figure it out? Think about the number of people who visit attractions where rocks are seen. Sites including the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, Devil’s Tower, Yosemite National Park and Meteor Crater come to my mind quickly. Millions of people enjoy vacations where rocks are visible and, yes, maybe I am exaggerating a bit, but it is true. On a much smaller scale is the York County Heritage Rail Trail, where more than 300,000 park users enjoy the 22-mile corridor every year. Do people come out to the trail to view the rocks? To be honest, I doubt it, but many users soak in the beauty of the trail which includes the rock outcrops.

Even geologists find time to take a break for a short summer vacation. My wife Lou Ann and I travel to Bristol, Tenn., every August to attend NASCAR’s premiere night event at Bristol Motor Speedway.  What a spectacle — watching stock cars go around a track the size of the one at the York Expo Center, but surrounded by 160,000 seats. NASCAR fan or not, everyone at least should see this facility, with or without race cars.

Compared to spectacular, massive rock exposures in southwestern United States, York County supports only small rock outcrops, unless you are in the area of one of our quarries.  This makes interpreting the geology of the area a bit more complicated.

Located within the rolling hills of southern York County is a 72-acre patch of forest that has seen change over the years. In fact, during the heyday of the property in the 1870s, the trees weren’t even present and the property was open field. Today, located in North Codorus Township, just north of Green Valley Road, is P. Joseph Raab County Park, the home of the former York Iron Company Iron mine.

Have you ever wondered how streets and roads get their names? Some are named for those who are constructing a housing development. Those streets might be named after a loved one. How about those who have names based on a theme — trees, birds, flowers or animals? How about streets that have a geologic implication to their name? Let’s take a look at several of these in York County.

In an earlier post I wrote about the Dillsburg earthquake swarm and the people it affected. Since October 2008, when these tremors began to be noticed, I made a lot of friends who have become “contacts” in the area. Today, I have 48 people on my contact list, who report tremors to me when they happen. Without these kind people and their willingness to let me know what is happening, I would not have a database of reported tremors, now over 1,000 events.