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Ah, the Wissahickon, emerald of Philadelphia, fresh air, roaring waters, three-eyed fish. Ok, so I’ve never personally seen any deranged aquatic life, but if you accompany Sidney Goldstein on one of his weekly hikes or monthly work parties, you just might get your chance. The hikes take place on the weekends and explore different areas of the park each time. That’s a thrill for me, since I always revert to parking at Rittenhouse Town if I head up Lincoln Drive on my own. Plus, there are so many weird things to see in the park (uh, has anyone ever run into the weird cave of the people who were waiting for doomsday? Freaky, no?) and Sidney’s an expert on its nature and culture.

The work parties are not for the lazy, and usually involve rehabbing a small area of the park. The Saturday I showed up with my husband and 10-year-old stepson we chopped down invasive plants that had allowed flooding to strip the soil in hopes of making way for native vegetation to take over. This involved handsaws, chainsaws (no, we didn’t let the 10-year-old near the deadly power tools), work gloves and loads of sweat. But it was fun and satisfying to know I was helping keep three-eyed fish at bay.

Wissahickon Hiking
201 West Evergreen Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19118
Info & sign up: mrbasketball.net/hike/hike.html