Nestled in a wooded valley, where the Dyberry Creek forks into the Lackawaxen River, rests the Isle of Downtown Honesdale. Wait. There’s no ocean nearby. Who is this guy* and what’s he talking about?

Well, pull out some old maps, hike up to the overlook atop Irving Cliff, and watch as the island legacy emerges through the fog of history. Flowing water still wraps around the commercial hub of H’dale and where the railroad is now, once ran canal water, thus completing the islet geography. If the view is still cloudy, just imagine the trees as ocean, and we’re back to where we started. Welcome to Honesdale.

What can I say? The wind has been cold lately. Islands bring warming connotations, without the human baggage of this reshuffling seasonality we’re experiencing. In the woodland sea of our backyards, you’ll find cultural concentrations of community in our towns and villages. It’s the story of our region. It’s a good story.

In the woodland sea of our backyards, you’ll find cultural concentrations of community in our towns and villages.

Main Street has been bustling. Tales of slowing activity in winter aren’t being told as often. While the foot traffic in and out of Basin & Main has waned, keep your eyes peeled for summer. Samuelle Green, mastermind of the recently-ended Paper Caves installation, is the Honesdale Roots & Rhythm Music and Arts Festival’s artist-in-residence this year. And if you’re feeling sentimental, two framed pieces of the Paper Caves still hang in the neighborhood, a few doors down in Main Street’s 500 block, at Black & Brass Coffee Roasting Company.

There’s plenty going on throughout the local landscape, as is the festival-town way. The Cooperage Project is presenting Shakespeare on Film on February 28 and Marywood University’s Jazz Ambassadors on March 4. There’s also a DIY sausage-making workshop at Here & Now Brewing Company, led by their kitchen captain Benjamin Cooper, on March 5. It’s sure to be one of those enlightening and mouth-watering events that partially challenge this vegetarian columnist’s identity. Plus, Second Saturday Honesdale is approaching. There’s regularly a lot happening those nights and, during the day, the Wayne County Public Library is hosting a Food For Thought seminar series on March 9. These discussions are sponsored by local members of the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture and always offer insight. This first talk will be about cooking, preserving and using locally produced food.

*Derek F. Williams makes maps, movie festivals, and other things under the project umbrella of Canaltown. You can find more H’dale stories on social channels @canaltown552.