LedgerHelm Distilling pours its own bourbon in Strasburg, plus Stormers tickets for the whole family
The Digest
A Strasburg distillery opens in Spring House's old tavern
Helm Distilling Co. is open at 10 E. Main St. in Strasburg, in the space Tavern by Spring House Brewing Co. left when it closed in September. Cody and Kayla Helm own it with Melissa Lang, and they make their own whiskey, bourbon, rum, vodka, gin and several flavored spirits in a barn behind the taproom. The bar mixes cocktails with those spirits and also pours 12 rotating taps of Pennsylvania beer and hard cider, plus wine. The kitchen serves burgers, cheesesteaks, pulled pork sandwiches, wings, fries and meatballs.
It took a detour to get here. Cody Helm and his uncle, Ken Helm, first tried to open a distillery tasting room in the lower level of a historic bank building in Quarryville, and they pulled the plug after delays getting approvals. Helm Distilling is open 4 to 9 PM Monday and Thursday, 11 AM to 10 PM Friday and Saturday and 11 AM to 9 PM Sunday. Quarryville's loss is Strasburg's bourbon.
Read more at LancasterOnline →
10,000 Readers
To thank you for getting us this close to 10,000, we're giving away Lancaster Stormers tickets for the whole family to a 2027 game at Penn Medicine Park.
To enter, reply to this email and tell us the best Halloween event in Lancaster County or the best neighborhood for trick-or-treating. That reply is your entry.
You can also earn extra entries. Every friend who subscribes using your personal link gets you one more entry, and it gets us to 10,000 a little faster. Here's your link: https://thelancasterledger.beehiiv.com/subscribe?ref=PLACEHOLDER
Entries close Thursday, Oct. 29 at 11:59 PM. We'll draw one winner at random and announce them in next Friday's edition.
No purchase necessary. Open to Lancaster Ledger subscribers 18 and older. One reply entry per person, plus one extra entry for each new subscriber who signs up with your link and confirms their subscription. The prize is tickets to one 2027 Lancaster Stormers regular-season game, redeemed through the Stormers box office or lancasterstormers.com with a $2 fee per ticket, seats based on availability. The winner will be contacted by email.
What's happening
Friday
The Haunting of Pumpkin Junction | A family Halloween mystery that starts on stage and continues aboard the steam train, recommended for ages 8 and up | 6:45 PM pre-show, 7 PM departure, check in by 6 PM | Strasburg Rail Road, 301 Gap Road, Ronks | Adults $47.70 online, $45 cash; kids 2 to 11 $37.10 online, $35 cash
Mount Joy Spooktacular | Main Street closes for downtown trick-or-treating, with local businesses handing out candy and running activities | 5 PM to 8 PM | Main Street, Mount Joy | Free
Columbia's Haunted Lantern Tour | An hour-long walking play through Mount Bethel Cemetery, where costumed actors tell the stories of the people who built Columbia | Tours every half hour, 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM | Mount Bethel Cemetery, 700 Locust Street, Columbia | $25, reservations required at 717-587-5368
Ephrata Shadows: Historic Ghost Walk | A cloaked guide leads a walking tour of downtown Ephrata's legends and the real history behind them, ages 16 and up | 6:30 PM and 8 PM | Historical Society of the Cocalico Valley, 237 W. Main Street, Ephrata | No price listed, tickets sold on Eventbrite
Field of Screams | Four haunted attractions on the Schopf family farm in its 34th season, including a hayride and a 200-year-old barn | Gates 6 PM, ticket booth closes 11:30 PM | Field of Screams, 191 College Avenue, Mountville | Scream Pass for all four attractions $50 online, cash only at the booth
Fire Safety Storytime | Manheim Township Fire & Rescue reads stories, shows off their gear and answers kids' questions | 10:30 AM to 11:15 AM | Manheim Township Public Library, Morgan Center, 595 Granite Run Drive, Lancaster | No admission listed, register each child
Saturday
Halloween Paint Your Partner | A BYOB couples night where you paint your partner's portrait with Halloween stencils that turn them into something eerie | 7 PM to 9:30 PM | Rock Candy, 64 N. Broad St., Lititz | Sold out, tickets were $45
Manheim Township Halloween Carnival | The 10th annual carnival with games, prizes, a costume parade, food trucks and a police Trunk-or-Treat, rain or shine | 1 PM to 4 PM | Overlook Activities Center, 301 Golf Drive, Lancaster | Free
Lititz Departed Spirits Tour | A costumed guide leads you around the Moravian Church grounds, including a Revolutionary War hospital and a 1786 corpse house | Tours every 15 minutes, 5 PM to 8:15 PM | Lititz Moravian Archives, 2 Church Square, Lititz | $14, most tour times sold out
Trick or Treat Downtown Lititz | Downtown shops hand out candy, just follow the balloons outside the storefronts | 11 AM to 3 PM | Participating shops in downtown Lititz | No admission listed
Marietta Halloween Costume Parade | The 4th annual costume parade for kids of all ages, ending at the Marietta Community House | 4 PM | Starts at the Marietta town square, 1 S. Gay St., Marietta | No admission listed
The Rocky Horror Picture Show | The cult classic on the big screen for Halloween weekend, 21+ | 8 PM, doors 7 PM | Tellus360, 24 E. King St., Lancaster | $25 plus a $1.50 fee
Chicken BBQ, Yard Sale & Book Sale | The Wakefield Lions Club's chicken BBQ, a book sale and an indoor yard sale, all raising money for the library | 10 AM to 3 PM | Quarryville Library, 357 Buck Road, Quarryville | BBQ meal for a donation, most yard sale items pay what you will
Sunday
The Brakeman's Curse | A 1980s murder mystery for 30 guests inside a restored first-class parlor car on the steam train | 3 PM departure | Strasburg Rail Road, 301 Gap Road, Ronks | $87.98 online, $83 cash
Halloween Happenings at the Columbia Market House | Demonstrations, a spooky dungeon tour and a decorated vintage car show outside the market house | 3 PM to 8 PM | Historic Columbia Market House, 15 S. Third St., Columbia | $10, tickets by phone at 223-246-7271
Halloween Scooptacular | Trick-or-treating, a story with Witch Winnie, Halloween ice cream floats and unlimited ice cream samples | 11 AM to 4 PM | Turkey Hill Experience, 301 Linden St., Columbia | $16.75 to $29.75, 15% off online with code VANISH15
Pennsylvania Drum Show | A day of drums, with a student showcase that includes an 82-year-old drummer from New Providence | 1 PM to 7:30 PM, early entry at noon | Mickey's Black Box, 101 Rock Lititz Blvd., Lititz | $20 plus fees, $30 early entry, kids under 10 free
Jason's Woods | Five haunted attractions on one ticket, headlined by a 4D hayride | 7 PM to 9 PM | Jason's Woods, 179 Stehman Road, Lancaster | $30 for three haunts, $40 for all five
Now Playing
Murder at Ackerton Manor | A three-actor Agatha Christie spoof in the Fulton's studio theater, through Nov. 8 | Fri 7:30 PM · Sat 2 PM & 7:30 PM · Sun 2 PM | Fulton Theatre, Tell Studio, 12 N. Prince St., Lancaster | Prices vary, $10 student rush
Spring Awakening | Duncan Sheik's Tony-winning rock musical about growing up, final weekend, recommended for ages 17 and up | Fri 8 PM · Sat 2 PM & 8 PM · Sun 2 PM | Ephrata Performing Arts Center, 320 Cocalico St., Ephrata | $35, $44 or $54 plus a $3 fee, $15 student rush
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical | The Carole King story over lunch or dinner, through Nov. 7 | Fri 7:30 PM · Sat 1 PM & 7:30 PM · Sun 7 PM | Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre, 510 Centerville Road, Lancaster | $55 show only, $78 to $83 with a meal, plus a $3 fee
Live music
Friday
Jeffrey Gaines with Meaghan Farrell | Singer-songwriter who has opened for Tom Petty and Tracy Chapman | 7 PM, doors 6 PM | The Ware Center, 42 N. Prince St., Lancaster | $25
Yacht Lobsters | Yacht rock with a full horn section | 8 PM, doors 7 PM | Mickey's Black Box, 101 Rock Lititz Blvd., Lititz | $37.25 standing, $47.95 reserved, plus fees; $3.50 more day of show
Jac Conner and Monk Mode | WIXQ's Halloween show, indie rock, costumes welcome | 7:30 PM | Zoetropolis Cinema Stillhouse, 112 N. Water St., Lancaster | $15 advance, $20 day of show
Hammer Creek Bluegrass | Bluegrass, one night only | 7 PM | Bird-in-Hand Stage, 2760 Old Philadelphia Pike, Bird-in-Hand | $28 adults, $15 children
Leo DiSanto & Friends | Americana songs and stories, 21+ | 7 PM | Tellus360, 24 E. King St., Lancaster | Free
Apple Jack | Country and classic rock covers on the farm | 6 PM to 9 PM | Cherry Crest Adventure Farm, 150 Cherry Hill Road, Ronks | Included with farm admission, $25.95 online, $32.95 at the gate
Saturday
The Jess Zimmerman Band with Ruthie Collins and Cody Tyler | Country, a Concerts for Cancer benefit | 7 PM, doors 6 PM | Mickey's Black Box, 101 Rock Lititz Blvd., Lititz | From $59.05 reserved
He Is Legend | Southern hard rock and metal, with In Angles, Excide and Gabe Woodrow | 7 PM, doors 6 PM | Phantom Power, 121 W. Frederick St., Millersville | $25 advance, $30 at the door
Stereoma with Babel Map, Horseshoe and Turn Evil | Four Central PA rock bands | 7:30 PM | Zoetropolis Cinema Stillhouse, 112 N. Water St., Lancaster | $15 advance, $20 day of show
Songsmith | Acoustic and folk covers on the farm | 4 PM to 7 PM | Cherry Crest Adventure Farm, 150 Cherry Hill Road, Ronks | Included with farm admission, $33.95 online, $40.95 at the gate
Sunday
Andrew Pauls with Friar Jon | Album release show for "Good Things," folk and Americana with a full band | 7:30 PM, doors 6:30 PM | West Art (City Hall), 816 Buchanan Ave., Lancaster | $15 advance, $20 at the door
The Wild Hymns | Album release show for "Spin The Spell," indie rock and Americana | 4 PM | Zoetropolis Cinema Stillhouse, 112 N. Water St., Lancaster | $20 advance
Irish Session with Paraic Keane | Traditional Irish jam, bring an instrument and sit in, 21+ | 2 PM to 5 PM | Tellus360, 24 E. King St., Lancaster | Free