11 Reasons We Are Ridiculously Excited for Fall in Philly

Hiking through crunching leaves in the Wissahickon! Picking ALL the apples! Biking with a breeze!

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The Wissahickon in Fall | Photo by Flickr user Louis Dallara

Summer is a good time. It’s a time when beer gardens rule, Fridays at the office are cut short and you can actually get a seat on the subway at 8 a.m. on a weekday (for once!) because everyone is down the Shore. We’re sad to say goodbye. But not TOO sad. After all, fall is a pretty sweat season, too. And if you need proof, we’ve listed all the reasons why: 10 reasons we are so, so, SO excited for fall in Philly below.

1. Biking without sweating buckets
When at the gym or a hot yoga class, buckets of sweat are welcome. When trying to get from point A to point B without looking like Sideshow Bob by the time you arrive, not so much. Fall biking breezes, oh, how we’re looking forward to you.

2. Hiking through crunching leaves
Nothing beats staring at (and, of course, Snapchatting) the red, yellow and orange leaves of fall. Well, aside from hiking through the falling leaves, that is. And lucky for you, we’ve put together a handy list of the best fall hikes around Philly for you to pick from, each one complete with all kinds of breathtaking fall foliage.

3. Picking ALL the apples
And eating all the apple cider donuts and homemade apple pie. Because apple picking totally burns enough calories to justify seconds and thirds, right? Don’t answer that question. For all your apple-picking needs, we’ve got our handy guide to pick-your-own apple farms here.

4. Breezy picnics
I can’t count the times I have dragged my reluctant boyfriend to Penn Treaty Park to picnic in the midsummer heat, promising him a riverside breeze. Spoiler: A breeze does not a 95-degree day remedy. Here’s to fall, when picnicking becomes a truly pleasant pastime again. Pssst: If you’re looking for fall picnic spots to frequent, we’ve got you covered.

5. Layering up
Puffy-coat season we could do without, but there’s just something about light fall layering — Cozy sweater! Vests! Jackets! — that feels so good. And so pumpkin brew-friendly.

6. Pumpkin EVERYTHING
And speaking of pumpkin brews, we can’t wait to stuff our faces with all the pumpkin-filled creations fall has to offer (made with pumpkins we handpicked ourselves, of course.) Pumpkin bread. Pumpkin pie. Pumpkin smoothies. Pumpkin-spice granola. Pumpkin margaritas (for real). Pumpkin mac and cheese. Pumpkin everything, people.

7. Gorgeous fall foliage on trails runs
Scenery can make or break a run, and the changing leaves during fall totally make it. Just ask Instagram.

8. Cooler camping conditions
Of course summer is when we all have summer Fridays and the free time to camp, but fall is when the real camping beauty happens. First off, there’s the aforementioned leaves. Then, there’s the fact that all the summertime campers have cleared out (hellooo, space to spread out!). Plus, it’s cool enough to sleep in a tent without fear that you’ll drown in your own sweat. And there’s nothing like gathering around a campfire on a chilly fall night. Ready to pack your bags?  We’ve got a few ideas for where you should head to here.

9. Saying goodbye to sweaty subway rides
On those days when everyone isn’t down the Shore, a rush hour subway commute can get a little close for comfort. And when you add 95-degree temperatures to the mix, you’re bound to get the sweat of a few strangers on your body. So yeah, we’re pretty pumped about not having to worry about that for a bit.

10. Taking over the streets
The first weekend of fall will be welcomed with Philly’s very first open streets event, which will shut down 10 miles of Philly streets to cars. Can we get a “WOOHOO!”? And you better believe we plan on frolicking across those car-free streets from the start to the finish of the five-hour event. Who’s with us? You can find a super-useful map, complete with all the event’s programming for the day, here.

11. Expanding our health-obsessed horizons
Lucky for us, over the fall, Philly is slated to get an influx of new studios and healthy-eating spots. And then there are the newly opened spots on all of our to-do lists: The abs-burning Solidcore! CycleBar! Wake Up Yoga Rittenhouse! Yup, fall is going to be a season of firsts.

Now, your turn: What are you looking forward to this season? Shout it out in the comments!

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