🧺 Stop by farmer’s markets | Outdoorsy Newsletter

Farmer’s markets are calling our attention. They make for the perfect opportunity to get outside and bring something delicious home from farms in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. I’ll show you where to find farmer’s markets in the Philly area.

Jason Nark will also take us to a Schuylkill County nonprofit that helps veterans use nature as therapy. Later on, you’ll meet some adorable goats with a very important job: save the woods by eating invasive grassland.

☀️ Your weekend weather outlook: Feels like summer again. We’re warming up with temps topping off in the 80s. Expect mostly sunny and clear skies, perfect for outdoor adventures.

— Paola Pérez (outdoorsy@inquirer.com)

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Go to a farmer’s market once, and you’ll wonder why you don’t do this more often. Across the Philly region, you’ll find loads of fresh fruits and veggies, farm-picked flowers and baked goods — and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Whether you’re new to the game or already have your favorite tote bag ready to go, consider these spots around and outside of Philly:

🍎 Clark Park Farmers Market in West Philly runs year-round and features farm fresh produce from Hands on the Earth Orchard, artisanal cheese by Valley Milkhouse, and other vendors. Good for family-friendly outings. 🕒 Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

🥬 East Falls Farmers’ Market can be found under the Twin Bridges in Fairmount Park, rain or shine. Grab a starter plant from McCann’s Farm, try Everwild Farm’s rainbow Swiss chard and cherry radishes, and meat and eggs from Brophy’s Spring Hollow Farms. 🕒 Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

🫐 Phoenixville Farmers’ Market along the French Creek Trail offers handpicked berries, eggs, baked breads, produce, meats, and more from a wide selection of farms. 🕒 Saturdays, 9 a.m. to noon

🧀 Conshohocken Farmers Market is open through the beginning of November. Try pão de queijo (a fresh warm cheese bread) from Merenda Box, pick produce from Pieri Farm, and enjoy the live music! 🕒 Saturdays, 9 a.m. to noon

There are plenty more weekday and weekend markets to stop by in the Philly area throughout the year or until the fall. Get the full list of locations and hours here before the season runs out.

🎤 Now we’re passing the microphone to Jason Nark. You’ll always find his work here.

They came to split and stack wood, to weed the garden and wrangle goats, a simple way to give thanks to a couple that gave them hope again.

Todd Gladfelter watched the workers, mostly men who served in the military and suffered afterward, from his wheelchair on a Sunday afternoon in Schuylkill County.

Gladfelter, 63, had slipped off a nearby shed on Black Friday in 2021 and broke three vertebrae in his neck. The fall left him paralyzed on the right side with only partial movement on the left. Gladfelter was a master woodsman, a chainsaw-carving artist more at home under the stars than a roof, and the fall broke his spirit too.

Cindy Ross, his wife and lifelong hiking partner, made him rebuild the broken things he could fix, though.

“She made me work,” Gladfelter, 63, said on this Sunday in April. “She makes me work every day.”

In 2014, Gladfelter and Ross founded River House, a nonprofit that helps take veterans into nature for healing through hiking, biking, kayaking, and camping. Three years ago, Ross authored a book, Walking Toward Peace: Veterans Healing on America’s Trails, that tells the stories of 25 veterans searching for solace in the outdoors. — Jason Nark

Keep reading for more on the organization’s ongoing impact and its efforts to raise money for accessibility in nature.

They were hired from a Chester County farm to do one thing: Eat.

Bruce Weber is the owner of Amazing Grazing LLC, and his goats are always up for a snack. They were tasked with clearing out invasive vines, bushes, shrubs, and trees that have spread through six acres of land in Morton Borough — a more natural solution to their problem.

Watch our video to see how these adorable goats chew away to save the woods in a tiny Delco town.

🎤 Senior newsletter strategist Ashley Hoffman says: Soaking up the last golden drops of this perfect summer out on the east end of Long Island, New York. The swell is perfect for my family’s favorite outdoorsy water activity today: surfing.

Relaxation reached.

📮 Give us a review of your outdoors experience for a chance to be featured in this newsletter by emailing me back.

“August rain: the best of the summer gone, and the new fall not yet born. The odd uneven time.” Sylvia Plath nailed it.

I saw Childish Gambino in concert for his final tour ever. In one of his new songs he asks: “How come every summer / Everyone always says that it’s never gonna end?”

I’m convinced this week’s cooler weather was typical for what some call “False Fall.” If that programming continues, at least we’re past “Hell’s Front Porch” and are due for “Second Summer” up next.

Don’t forget your sunscreen. Happy trails!

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