Whiskey history, covered bridges, and mountain luxury in Bedford, Pa. | Field Trip

In the 1790s, a coterie of Western Pennsylvanians rose up against a federal tax on whiskey. Unlike the Boston Tea Party, these protestors had representation in our young nation, but they still didn’t appreciate the taxation on the valuable product made from their excess grain. President George Washington rode in and staged a 13,000-strong militia outside Bedford — a settlement that had already played a vital role in the French and Indian War and was in its infancy as a tourism destination thanks to its salubrious mineral springs — and squashed what became known at the Whiskey Rebellion.

For such a small town (less than 3,000 residents), Bedford casts an outsized historical shadow in Pennsylvania. Add one of America’s oldest luxury resorts still in operation, robust trout fishing, and pristine wilderness, and you’ve got an ideal spring road trip, about three and a half hours west of Philly.

Start the car.

Bedford is a one-horse town when it comes to hotels, but that’s no diss on Omni Bedford Springs Resort & Spa. A bucolic compound of Greek Revival and Victorian buildings, this National Historic Landmark got its start in the late 1700s, when local doctor John Anderson bought the land and began building accommodations around its mineral-rich springs. (Thomas Jefferson was a fan.) Today, it’s a sprawling resort with more than 200 rooms, a botanical-inspired spa, two pools — the indoor one ranks among the oldest in the country — and grand lawns studded with firepits where families gather with s’mores and mountain pies.

📍 2198 Sweet Root Rd., Bedford, Pa. 15522

Dozens of streams and creeks slice through the woods of Bedford County, making it a hugely popular fly-fishing spot in the spring. Yellow Creek, a trout-stocked limestone tributary of the Raystown Branch of the Juniata River, runs 10 miles through Loysburg and Hopewell, just northeast of Bedford. If you’ve got your own gear, you can fish independently, but for more of a guided experience, book a tour with local outfitter Trout Yeah.

📍Yellow Creek, Bedford County, Pa.

Historic covered bridges crisscross the waterways of Bedford, and you can visit nine of them in the county’s Covered Bridge Driving Tour. Not officially on the tour but near Yellow Creek, the circa-1884 Hall’s Mill Bridge spans the water in a charming white-and-red Burr Truss design looks like it could’ve taken out the Maitlands in Beetlejuice.

📍 196 St. Paul’s Church Rd., Hopewell, Pa. 16650

Hundreds of millions of years ago, an inland sea covered this land. When the water receded, it left behind the Coral Caverns, a subterranean limestone labyrinth under the town of Manns Choice, just west of Bedford. The fossil-rich complex includes a little museum on the site’s history and artifacts uncovered in the cave. Tours are private and available by appointment only.

📞 Call or text 814-977-9570 to book

📍 Coral Caverns Private Driveway, Manns Choice, Pa. 15550

Opened in 1958 and modernized into an impressive institution between 2015 and 2025, the Fort Bedford Museum presents the history of the titular 1758 fortification (a key site in the French and Indian War), but while offering context on the area of Bedford and beyond. A quick walk from the museum takes you to the actual footprints of the original fort, tucked between the historic Anderson House and the river.

📍 110 Fort Bedford Dr., Bedford, Pa. 15522

Before dinner, cosplay a thirsty member of the Whiskey Rebellion at the Whiskey River Pub, a low-slung, family-owned tavern that sits right on the water. Locals and tourists sit on swiveling barstools at the long bar, and a mural of whiskey barrels covers one wall. There’s a pool table, live music, and a deep cocktail menu that includes the Whiskey Rebellion Smash, Smoked Old Fashioned, and Bedford Blackberry Whiskey Sour. For a snack, don’t miss the house-made potato chips covered in blue cheese and balsamic.

📍 537 E. Pitt St., Bedford, Pa. 15522

Horn O Plenty calls itself a “freshtaurant,” which would be incredibly concerning if this old-timey, log-and-stone cabin on the outskirts of downtown was not so dedicated to local sourcing and from-scratch cooking. Many of the menu’s items have a “house” in front of them: house-made sodas (Italian vanilla cream, orange rosemary), house-blended teas, house-fermented kimchi. The beef for the burgers and steaks is pasture-raised. The restaurant uses its own eggs, grows stone fruit, and forages for wild goodies.

📍 220 Wolfsburg Rd, Bedford, PA 15522