The Annual Horse Progress Days tour is scheduled to take place on
Thursday July 4, 2024. Tour busses will be boarded at the host farm
Levi Fisher Farm
409 South Groffdale Road
Gordonville, PA.
Please arrive by 7:30 am. The bus will leave promptly at 7:45 am and return at approximately 4:00 pm.
The cost of the tour will be $129 per person, paid in advance.
The cost includes a one-day free pass to the event and the noon meal on the day of the tour.
The cost includes a one-day free pass to the event and the noon meal on the day of the tour.
To make a reservation call Paul Esch at Esch Manufacturing 717-397-1051.
If you have specific questions about the tour call
Durwin Parks 717-715-4981
Leaving the Levi Fisher farm, traveling into southern Lancaster County, you will enjoy the sights of beautiful hills and valleys. You will see well-kept dairy farms with fields of corn and hay that seem to wrap around the hills. We will eventually come to the roads we locals call “the river hills,” which make up the topography of the lands bordering the lovely Susquehanna River. If you are paying attention, you will catch glimpses of the river. Our tour guides will provide you with many interesting historical facts about the area and, hopefully, be able to answer any questions you might have.
There are ten stops planned for the day: a produce packing house, a produce growing farm, a harness shop, an ice cream creamery, a vegetable cannery, a greenhouse and a Percheron horse farm. Our noon meal will be served by our Amish hosts in an 1825 restored grain mill.
(Click each location name to read more)
Stop 1 • Sunny Acres Produce, Ronks, PA
Here is a centrally located, produce gathering facility that coordinates the purchase and distribution of produce from 19 different farms. 35-40 different crops are gathered in from Mid-May to the end of the year. The manager is Ben Allgyer and he will say a few words to you, his guests, if time permits.
Stop 2 • The Sylvan Fisher Farm Ronks, PA
Growing produce requires diligent attention to details like planting, picking and packing, all at the proper time. Sylvan and his wife Fannie and their children are among the best. This farm specializes in sweet corn, tomatoes and pumpkins. Here you will enjoy seeing straight rows of sweet corn surrounding the barns as well as high tunnels full of beautiful tomatoes.
Stop 3 • Peach Lane Harness, Paradise, PA
It is likely that as you enter the new facility of Peach Lane Harness, you will be greeted by owner Abner Esh, his wife Mary, or another member of their family. This shop’s experience in working with nylon and BioThane harness results in quality products that keep their customers coming back. In this well-lit and well-stocked store, you will find all kinds of harnesses, harness parts, halters, collars, pads and horse care products, as well as riding tack and saddles.
Stop 4 • Down on the Farm Creamery, Strasburg, PA
Driving back the long lane, flanked by fields of corn, to the beautiful farm house, barn, and the quaint creamery building you will find here, you will be impressed with the orderly nature of this establishment. Your destination is the building with the sign that reads “Down on the Farm Creamery.” This operation is owned and managed by the Daniel Lapp family. Daniel says “stop by for delicious, hand-dipped ice cream, and choose from the 20 flavors made right here on the farm.” Durwin says that the cheese and yogurt is pretty good too!
Stop 5 • Oak View Cannery, Quarryville, PA
You might become a bit nostalgic for the fun of sled-riding in the wintertime as you ascend the steep hill that leads to our next stop. Then, driving down the long lane at the top of the hill will take you to the cannery where you will see jars filled with things like fruit jams, peppers, and other vegetables. From the parking lot of the cannery, you will have a beautiful view of distant hills, and down below is the road you just came from called Beaver Valley Pike. At this facility, owned by Stephen and Anna Stoltzfus, you can look forward to receiving a small sample from the folks at Horse Progress Days to thank you for being part of the tour today.
Stop 6 • Hilltop Greenhouse, Quarryville, PA
Stopping here is an experience unto itself. It’s possible that Levi and/or Mary Stoltzfus, the busy owners, or one of their dedicated family members, will pause long enough to say hi, but it probably won’t be much more than that since they will be busy keeping their 40,000 plus plants looking good and healthy. This way folks like you can buy quality from them, as a remembrance of your tour.
Stop 7 • The Old Mill at Camargo
The noon meal in the small hamlet of Camargo. If you appreciate history and old, well restored masonry buildings, this will be a highlight for you. The mill, established in 1825, played host to many, many farmers for many, many years who brought their grain here to be milled into human and animal feeds. If all goes as planned, there will be someone here to speak to you about the history of the mill and village while you enjoy a traditional Amish meal. Owners Mervin and Verna Esh have also planted some beautiful flowers on the well-kept grounds that you can enjoy as you look for additional artifacts in various locations.
Stop 8 • Lancaster Spreader Kirkwood, PA
If you have animals on your farm, you will need a good manure spreader. You can find one here. Father Ben Beiler or one of his sons, Jacob, Alvin, or Ephraim, will be happy to answer your questions. They may give you a nice brochure of the various makes and models of manure spreaders that they have become well-known and respected for building. With their 30,000 square feet of space and 17 employees, these guys can make parts, weld them together, and paint the end result for a quality spreader, just for you.
Stop 9 • White Horse Machine, Gap, PA
If you remember the smell of fresh dirt turned over just right in the spring, and if you wonder where you or your neighbors can find such a tool, you will find it in the several different plow models here. Melvin King and his crew will be happy to show them to you. They have put many hours of planning into their most recent plow models, including their own design and manufacture of White Horse plow bottoms. This is the premier company for building horse drawn plows in the 21st century. Oh, take a look at their brand-new building. In one end of it there is a well-stocked hardware store with lots of tools and accessories for a busy farm.
Stop 10 • The Abner and Jacob Reihl Horse Farm
Our last stop of the day will take us down another long tree and fence lined driveway to the well-kept Percheron horse farm called RRA Acres. This farm has concentrated for the past number of years in breeding top quality horses from ponies to carriage horses to Draft horses. Here you can also find some good horse health products.