Fall is as good as it gets in Pennsylvania

As soaring gas prices have most people reconsidering the economics of long trips this fall, Pennsylvanians naturally are exploring destinations closer to home. With that in mind, the state tourism office wants you to know that "Fall Is Bigger Here."

That's the theme of this season's marketing campaign, which is being rolled out with magazine and radio ads in a variety of Pennsylvania and nearby metropolitan markets. The campaign also introduces a variety of new features to its dedicated Web site (www.fallinpa.com), including foliage reports, events listings, live leaf cams, photo galleries and driving routes. There are suggested routes for day hikes and bird-watching expeditions. Visitors also will be able to access updates via their cell phones, PDAs (personal digital assistants) and Blackberrys.

Of special interest is the new Elk Scenic Drive, a 127-mile route passing 23 points of interest in the Pennsylvania Wilds area of Clinton, Clearfield, Centre and Elk counties. There's also an Elk cam.

Another new public/private partnership has produced a Pennsylvania Wine Trail, actually nine trails. With more than 90 vineyards scattered across the state, Pennsylvania ranks as the nation's fourth-largest grape producer. A free Touring Guide and Directory to the Wineries of Pennsylvania is available from the Pennsylvania Wine Association (1-717-234-1844 or www. pennsylvaniawine.com).

Keystone State agritourism is manifested in other vacation possibilities. At least 54 working farmsteads across the state welcome paying guests. They're profiled and located in a publication produced by the Department of Agriculture and the Pennsylvania Farm Vacation Association (www.pafarmstay.com or 1-888-856-6622).

Pennsylvania Route 6, which runs across the state's northern tier, is another good option for taking in some stupendous fall scenery. As long as you're going that way, you might want to visit the artisans, galleries and shops situated along the Grand Highway of the Republic, which runs for more than 400 miles from New York to Ohio. Thirty of them are profiled in the Route 6 Artisan Trail, a new project that piggybacks on the successful North Branch Art Trail, which is held Columbus Day weekend (www.paroute6.com or 1-877-276-8836).

Another major tourism development in the Pocono area is the October opening of the Great Wolf Lodge, near the intersection of Interstate 80 and Route 611 in Scotrun, almost to the Delaware Water Gap at the state's far eastern end. Privately developed, the huge family-oriented resort features such entertainment amenities as a full service spa and the largest indoor water park in the Northeast (www.greatwolflodge.com or 1-800-768-9653).

Nearer to home is the new Fort Necessity and National Historic Road interpretive and education center, which opens Saturday in Farmington, on the stunning Chestnut Ridge on Route 40. The facility features new interpretive exhibits, along with a film and classroom education programs designed to bring the customs, culture and physical realities of mid-18th-century Pennsylvanians to life (www.nps.gov/fone or 1-724-329-5512).

In a completely different vein, here's news of the Pennsylvania premiere of a revealing museum exhibition. "Body Worlds: The Anatomical Exhibition of Real Human Bodies" will open Friday at the Franklin Institute of Science Museum in Philadelphia. Pastination, a process invented by German Gunther von Hagens in 1977, renders real human cadavers transparent. This exhibition, which features more than 200 individual specimens as well as an IMAX presentation, has already fascinated museumgoers in Chicago and Los Angeles. Its first East Coast presentation will be at the Franklin through April 23 (www.fi.edu or 215-448-1200).

If that doesn't provide enough ideas for a weekend getaway, you can always check out the state's comprehensive Web site, www.visitPa.com. In addition to a wide variety of tour and travel ideas, you can win a free vacation in the Wilds of Pennsylvania or sign up for a free copy of the 2005 PA Vacation Guide.

The Pennsylvania Tourism Office also is offering a number of travel packages donated by local attractions and businesses that are for sale on eBay (www.ebay.com/pagulfaid). All proceeds will go to victims of Hurricane Katrina. In addition to having packages for sale, the tourism office is still accepting new donations packages and will post them as auctions as they come in.