Discover Happy Valley’s Amish-made, cave-aged artisan cheese at Goot Essa. All of their cheese is made by hand, in small quantities, giving each one their individual attention.

Like most kids who grew up living and breathing skateboarding, Tommy Ries knew about Camp Woodward — the elite skills-building camp for aspiring athletes — he just didn’t know where it was. “I don’t think I’d ever even been in the state of Pennsylvania before I visited,” he recalls. By 2012, he’d made the drive (albeit one that included a speeding ticket right around DuBois on I-80). And as soon as he took the Pleasant Gap exit and headed up over the Centre Hall mountain, he fell in love.

Bear Lodges, three non‑traditional B&Bs located in Pennsylvania Grand Canyon country, offers a unique, remote, peaceful grownup getaway. “Bear Lodges are not just accommodations… they’re the destination,” says owner Jim Meade. “Anniversary couples, rail trail bicyclists, birders, dark skies and other outdoors enthusiasts wanting to access wilderness, enjoy this getaway.”

After Aaron Weyman graduated from Penn State, he worked for the athletic department for a short time and then accepted a job at Tussey Mountain. That was 14 years ago, and the magic still hasn’t worn off. “It's hard to name another big time school that can see ski slopes from their campus,” he says. “Then add in outdoor concerts, events and activities in the warm months, located right at the entrance to a gorgeous state forest like Rothrock... how can you beat that?”

Before moving to Happy Valley in 2019 — and becoming President and CEO of the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau — Fritz Smith served in leadership in tourism with Visit Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau, and the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED). Over the years, his career took his family from New York City to Philadelphia to Baltimore to Washington, D.C. And when he and his wife Leslie decided on a move, he says that they were drawn to Happy Valley as a chance to slow down and enjoy a life that he says was “a bit less hectic, less expensive, less loud and dirty.”

Greg Guise puts a new meaning on the term ‘active retirement.’ After graduating from Penn State and working as a videographer in Detroit and then in Washington, D.C. for 40 years, he’s back in Happy Valley. And when I call him, he’s climbing Rattlesnake Mountain to install communications gear for the amateur radio community. It’s “just a way of giving back,” he says just before he drives out of cell phone range. When he calls back, he tells me just why community is so, so important. Read on.

Local author and historian Rebecca Inlow wants to tell you about Philipsburg, and specifically about its movie palace The Rowland Theatre. A longtime volunteer for the theatre, Inlow has authored the book “The Rowland Story: Beauty from Ashes,” a labor of love that took 3 ½ years to complete (you can buy a copy at the theatre, or at Shindig Alley on the corner of Front and Pine in Philipsburg). She says it was worth it all to discover “little pieces of history that you can find around every corner.”

Duke Gastiger has been part of the Happy Valley food landscape for more than 50 years. His culinary footprint started when a friend asked him,“If you could buy any bar in State College, which one would it be?” “The All-American Rathskeller, of course,” he answered, and when he found out it was for sale, he bought it. In the years after that, he also debuted Spats Café and Speakeasy on College Avenue, then in 2019, he and his wife Monica pioneered a new culinary experience: RE Farm Café.

Celebrate New Year’s Eve the Happy Valley way! First Night State College is back in person for 2021, and it’s better than ever.