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Beyond Houses

Where we are

Upper Perkiomen Valley, Pennsylvania

Quiet country an hour out of Philadelphia, with a big yard, a fire pit and twenty miles of rail trail nearby.

When to come

Two stretches stand out up here. October, when the Perkiomen Valley turns and Green Lane Park is the reason half of Philadelphia drives north for the day. Then May, once the trail has dried out and the yard is finally worth the fire pit.

Our houses here

The guide

Everywhere below is somewhere we send guests. Nothing here is sponsored and nothing is filler.

Coffee

Java and Friends on Main Street in East Greenville, five minutes up the road and two doors from the old Grand Theater, so the two make an easy evening together. If you want a proper sit down breakfast instead, the Valley Cafe on Quakertown Avenue does an omelette roughly the size of your forearm.

Dinner

Jamison Publick House, out on Geryville Pike. It's the place people around here name first when you ask, and it holds up to the billing. The seafood is better than a country pub has any business serving.

One thing to do

The Grand Theater on Main Street in East Greenville. A restored old movie house about two miles away that still runs films most nights. It costs almost nothing and it beats another evening of scrolling for something to watch.

Worth your time

  • Green Lane Park

    Five miles. Hiking, fishing, boating and the picnic spots people drive out from Philadelphia for.

  • The Perkiomen Trail

    Twenty miles of flat rail trail. Good on foot, better on a bike.

  • Butter Valley Golf Port

    A golf course in Barto with a grass airstrip beside it. Small planes land between holes. No, really.

  • Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center

    A mile away. Small, specific, and a genuinely good hour on local history.

  • Bear Creek Mountain Resort

    Eighteen miles to Macungie. Skiing and snowboarding in winter, lift served riding in summer.