2016-05-30

【Aiden in English】

        Ohiopyle State Park is located in Pennsylvania. It sounds weird, doesn’t it? But it should be an interstate park between PA and Ohio since it allows many different kinds of fun to occur. Unfortunately, our time at the park was short, and all we really did was eat lunch. However, the limited schedule did not stop us from viewing its beauty.

        The park visitor center is in a small town with shops and restaurants. Although they are all American styled foods, we dug into piles of fries, cheese, and sandwiches. Obviously not as tasty as Chinese food, but it is a different culture. 

        The Ohiopyle features the best white-water rafting experience in Pennsylvania. With rapids that quickly flow downstream, as well as calm, slow waters, the Youghiogheny River provides a wide variety of fun for families. We, unfortunately, we had neither the time nor the skill to raft down the river. Instead, we walked along the river bank to get better views of the rapids. The two obstacles we encountered were naturistic. The first was the heat. It has been nearly an entire half-year since we have faced any type of UV-ray strong enough to give sunburn. The bright light bounced off of stones and the water, gleaming and lashing, blinding our sight. The next issue was the slippery stones. With water constantly splashing over onto the rocks, the result contained mosses, mud, and smooth areas, each presenting its own challenge. The smooth stones caused many near dips in the river, as well as the mosses, and the mud was quite disgusting. Mom and I walked a good few hundred yards of this terrain, and I really understood its treacherous attributes when my grandma decided to sit back and wait for our return.

        I don’t really think it was worth having to nearly fall in the river to see such a quick view. Our goal was a small building hanging over the river with an indoor viewing balcony. The AC in the place was crazy good, so that made up what it lacked, such as a bathroom. I wasn’t looking, but the urgency was there. The viewing platform descended downwards. This angle caught the Ohiopyle Falls on the Youghiogheny River right in the center, viewing it so the entire width of the river could fit in one picture and still not seem squished. The beauty of the falls was not the height or the amount of water, but the width. With a long body, the water seemed to be rolling over some kind of long, naturistic pipe. Now although the “pipe” had many dents in it, the waterfall/rapid was smoothly falling downwards, not being interrupted. After floating away from the disturbance of the falls, the water seemed to be a lot more still, almost as if resting peacefully after a long day.

       Ohiopyle, in the first few minutes I’ve been there, has set a great first impression. If anyone has a chance to go to Pittsburgh, stop by and try out some fun activities here. In fact, the park is good enough to be the main reason for a trip, so don’t be caught stuck this summer with nowhere to go! By the way, it only takes 10 minutes to arrive at the Fallingwater, the most prominent architects in American modern history.

【紅霞譯文】

        俄亥俄溪州立公園地處賓州境內，聽起來挺奇怪的，對不？但好歹應該算作賓州與俄亥俄州州際公園，因為很多耐玩的娛樂項目不勝枚舉。可惜我們時間倉促，到這裡來純屬為了吃頓午飯填飽肚子，儘管如此， 五月底的俄亥俄溪州立公園“花發顏為醉，風吹面不寒”，我們情不自禁地愛上了它。

        公園遊客中心所在的小鎮店鋪餐館鋪天蓋地，除了炸薯條、奶酪以及三明治清一色美式風味，我們別無選擇。美餐當然沒有中餐可口，但品嘗當地小吃領略背景不同的飲食文化，也是我們出遊中難能可貴的收穫。

        俄亥俄溪州立公園號稱賓州激水漂流最棒的地方，這裡既有猛朝下游奔馳的湍瀑，也有流速舒緩的涓淺，約克加尼河成為家人共享各種水上運動的快樂源泉，遺憾的是，我們一沒工夫二無經驗酷玩一把激水漂流，只能沿着河岸走走瞧瞧，這麼一來有兩個問題自然而然地擺到我們面前：首先是熱浪，時下已近年半，正值形形色色紫外線灼傷皮膚的囂張時期，岩表河面反射出的道道亮光，刺得我們睜不開眼睛；其次是路滑，河水不停地拍擊河岸岩石，結果水邊各處儘是苔蘚爛泥光溜打滑的東西，每邁出一步都要接受挑戰，從鵝卵石上面行走，有幾次我險些掉進河裡，而踩在苔蘚和爛泥上面同樣難於掉以輕心。就這樣我和媽媽堅持走出好幾百碼遠，而外婆招架不住滑不唧溜的考驗，情願坐下來等我們走完接她回去，對之我深有同感。

        為瞄上一眼公園概貌而不惜冒着掉進河裡的危險，我覺得實在不值。我們的目標是前往公園一間小屋，其觀測台向外凸出，恰巧凌駕於河面之上，室內裝有空調，令人感覺涼爽愜意，可以彌補諸如廁所設施不足的缺憾。我因想去方便，顧不上看這看那。觀景台向下延伸，其角度適中，可謂不歪不偏正好欣賞約克加尼河俄亥俄溪瀑布全景，瀑布養眼之處不在於其高度或者流量，而在於它的寬度。河床蜿蜒，河水猶如在天然水管中長征跋涉，現在“水管” 幾處出現溢口，瀑布／湍流就勢落入低谷，泛起層層波瀾，隨後河水趨於平靜，好像在忙碌一整天之後，也到了歇息收工的時刻。

         乍看上去，俄亥俄溪州立公園已給我留下難以忘懷的印象。假如有人要去匹茲堡，不妨考慮到這裡駐足享樂一番。事實上，俄亥俄溪州立公園好到足以值得專訪的地步，一旦今夏你無處可去，何不到此一游？！順便提及一下，從這裡前往美國現代史上最具代表性的建築──落水山莊僅需十分鐘的車程。