Lancaster City, the geographic and population center of Lancaster County, is right in the middle of the covered bridges. This tour takes a circle around Lancaster City and might be started and ended at any point of the circle. We arbitrarily begin at Route 30, Lincoln Highway, east of Lancaster City.
Just east of Rt. 896, stop off at Willow Hill Bridge. Having been moved to a site just off the highway, this is probably the most tourusticated of all Pennsylvania covered bridges. Continue east on Rt. 30 but turn right very quickly on Witmer Road to a right on Rt. 340 to a left on Mount Sidney Road. Take a right on Creek Hill Road to a quick left on Hartman Station Road. Cross Rt. 23 and turn left on Hunsecker Road to Hunsecker's Mill Bridge.
Continue through the bridge to a right on Butter Road to a right on Bridge road to Pinetown Bridge. Return from the bridge and continue straight on Creek Road to a right on Oregon Pike, Route 272. Turn left on Rose Hill Road to left on Log Cabin Road to Zook's Mill Bridge.
Return on Rt. 272 to Rt. on Rt. 722. It can be a little confusing that all the major roads in this area have numbers that are permutations of 7 and 2 -- thanks again, PennDOT! Continue east on Rt. 722 through East Petersburg to a left on Lemon St, Rt. 741, one block past Main St. Go south on Rt. 741 making a hard right with the highway, at the Rt. 283 intersection, to a left at Swarr Run Road, through the apartments to a right on Shreiner Station Road to Landis Mill Bridge. Continue through the bridge to a right on Plaza Boulevard, just before entering the shopping center to a left on Old Harrisburg Pike to a right on Prince Street. Through downtown Lancaster, turn left on Chestnut St. and right on Duke St. Take the diagonal left with Duke St. and turn right on Eshelman Mill Rd, over the bridge and past the park. Turn right on Golf Road to the first left to Kurtz's Mill Bridge.
To complete the circle, return to a left on Eshelman's Mill Rd. to a right on Millport Rd. to a left on Strasburg Road to a right on Rt. 30 back to Willow Hill Bridge.
SERVICES Restaurants and other service establishments are plentiful on Rt. 30 and in Lancaster City, and if you are feeling peckish when you are at Landis Mill Bridge, you could look for something in the shopping center, we suppose. We took a side trip to Ephrata -- but in the off season, a lot was closed. Going north beyond Rose Hill road on Rt. 272 to a left on Rothville Road, we found a satisfactory family restaurant on the immediate right. Later, just after turning right on Rt. 722, we passed by Reflections, on the right, without trying the place. Maybe we should have tried it. If you try it, let us know.