Riverside Inn, Cambridge Springs

ALAS: The post below was written in August of 2012.  Now, in May of 2017, I sadly report that the Riverside Inn did indeed burn to the ground early this morning.  Sic Transit Gloria Mundi.

           While I'm not exactly "eating crow," I did happen to spend two nights at a very cool old wooden hotel up in the most northerly reaches of Crawford County, PA.  Of course, it was covered in vinyl siding, but in the Keystone State, it never hurts to drop your standards a notch or two.  I say this as a native son who both loves and hates this place: The lower your expectations, the less disappointed you'll be when things turn out to be way cool and hopelessly backward at the same time.

           The Riverside Inn sits on the banks of French Creek, surrounded by formal gardens in the partly quaint, partly decrepit borough of Cambridge Springs.  (See above observation on the Keystone State.)  Mineral springs used to be the attraction that drew people to this town; now the hotel itself is the attraction.  They're mostly known for their medieval dinner theater, but it's also a popular place to have weddings.  I was there for a wedding myself.

           The hotel is a little faded, but that adds to its mystique.  You've got to love a historic old resort that's a little past its prime.  (The British colonial "Mountain Hotel" in Buea, Cameroon, was one of my favorite places during  the Africa years.  It's closed now, but the last time I stayed there, my wife and I were the only guests, and they had to look for fifteen minutes to find us a room where the bed was made.)  I don't think business is great at the Riverside.  The guestrooms, while furnished with interesting antiques, are cramped and not exactly spotless.  There's no internet.  The only TV is in the main lobby.  But it did make a nice backdrop for a wedding ceremony.  I really loved the deep, wraparound porches.

          While kayaking down French Creek, I came across a local guy who was hanging out with his dog by the water, drinking beer and playing a harmonica.  He told me the hotel is haunted...which someone was bound to do.  Despite a few incidents of hysteria, I'm not a big believer in the paranormal...  He said it's a "rite of passage" when you're a teen in Cambridge Springs to get a summer job at the inn.