Yesterday, GrampaMike, myself and my buddy Ron, also a GBO member, met for a day of scouting gun shops in the Lancaster/Lebanon Co. area's of Pennsylvania. Another GBO member, Foggy, planned to join us but a last minute change of plans forced him to stay behind. Lookin' forward to having you join us next time, Foggy.
We wish to thanks those who offered suggestions of local shops to visit on Mikes previous thread "Pa Members". We were able to visit most of those shops in addition to a couple others.
Ron and I were met by Mike a little past 7am at a pre-determine location in central Maryland. From there our adventure began by heading north to our first shop located in Gettysburg.
From Gettysburg we traveled along US Rt 30, The Lincoln Highway, to Wrightsville, Pa., passing by the massive Harley-Davidson assembly plant in York along the way. Wrightsville is historic looking town split by Pa. Rt. 462, which parallels US Rt 30 from York. The town is situated atop a hill over looking the Susquehanna River. From Wrightsville, we crossed the Susquehanna River via Rt 462 to the town of Columbia, which on the opposite side of the river.
At Columbia we turned north and eventually found ourselves near the town of Elizabethtown (E-town to the locals). We visited a couple local shops before stopping for lunch at a local Steak and Seafood house in E-town. Ron an I had the Bison Burger, while Mike tried the Whitefish. Soup, salad and desert bar included. Tasty, very taste indeed.
After lunch we head east along Rt 241 to the area of Lebanon where we visited a couple shops before moving further east to Schaefferstown and another shop. From there north to the town of Richland and a another shop.
By this time we were deep into the Amish country, evidenced by the tracks on the road from the Amish buggy's and the deposits left by the horses that pull them. This region offers some of the most picturesque lanscapes to be seen. Many farms, each meticulously manicured and well kept. Rolling hills of farmland with small towns scattered about. Spectacular!
At this point we were closer to Cabela's that home, so given that Mike had never been there, we decided a visit was the right thing to do. So, onward to Hamburg via I-78. If you've never been to a Cabela's, it is an experience and spectacle. The Hamburg location may have near 300-400 used firearms on several racks made available to the shopper to fondle. Row's of reloading supplies and ammo and a new gun inventory that may be the largest in the region. However, be forewarned, Saturday evening at Cabela's is like Wal mart in the heart of the Christmas shopping season. The crowd was enormous. Mike wanted to purchase a Bushnell Red Dot, but had to take a ticket to be served. There were 11 folks ahead of him. After waiting a while and not getting any closer, he decided to order on-line. At the front of the store, there were, maybe, 12-14 checkout registers. Each was being operated and the lines for each extended well into the store.
We spent an hour or so checking the store out before leaving and heading back home via I-78 to Harrisburg then US Rt 15 south to Maryland back to our rendezvous point.
We had a excellent time. Enjoyed great conversation and good company. Ate good food. Visited 8 gun shops, including Cabela's. Saw hundreds of guns.
Mike picked up a new Puma lever action in .45 Colt. Ron bought some ammo and I was able to stock up on some reloading supplies.
Mike determined that the round trip totaled 384 miles from the meeting location. However, by the time Mike made it back to his home, he would have driven over 500 miles.
We intended to take pictures of each location we visited. However, we were having such a good time and engaged in great conversation that, we often forgot to do so.
Below are the only three photo's we took.
A special thank you to GrampaMike for offering to drive and to both Mike and Ron for an excellent day. Both of you are truly good people!
Hakes Sporting Goods, Wrightsville
Daryl's Gun Shop, Schaefferstown
Richland Sporting Goods, Richland
Thanks to all for looking.
