Hiking the Pinnacle

Sunday, September 23rd presented itself as a great fall day.  With a 66 degree high temp for the day and slight breeze, our hike to the Pinnacle on the Adirondack Trail in Hamburg was a good choice.  You can park at the Hamburg Reservoir parking lot located on Reservoir Rd. off Old Rt. 22 north of Hamburg.

We  took the white blaze trail to blue leading us to the Pulpit Rock.  If you have never tried this trail you should add this to your list of must dos; you won't be disappointed, as the views are amazing.  Bring binoculars, a walking stick, camera and lunch (don't forget the water).  From the lookout point on the Adirondack trail you can see the layers of quaint farm country dotted with little villages, rolling hills and the Lehigh Valley in the background.  The Turkey Vultures love the updrafts they catch off the mountainside and they spend hours circling so closely that you feel you can reach out and touch them.  Many times you are above them, and it seems strange watching them glide so close from that angle.

The white trail is a very steady incline up to 1200 ft.  A stream will follow you up most of the way up this path and creates a very peaceful sound that lures you to view its interesting movements. You are constantly maneuvering through rocks until you reach the blue trail.

The blue trail is easier to walk and runs on top of the ridge.  It crosses some small pockets of wetlands which seem to be nice little areas for wildlife. 

You know you are close to the lookout when you see the pile of rocks.  We just had to get a self-portrait...

Please give yourself enough time to sit on the rocks and enjoy the view.  Note that there are copper-head snakes in this area.  They are poisonous so take care not to be too curious.  Last year when we did this hike a family was up there with their kids poking sticks into the rock crevices at some copper-head hiding below... don't do that!

 

My hubby taking a nap on the rocks after eating lunch.



This hike was a great one to celebrate the Fall equinox. 

At about 8+ miles round-trip, make sure if you want to spend time relaxing mid-way that you start out earlier enough to beat the sunset.

Happy hiking!



The Reservoir



Ricketts Glen, Worlds End and Tuscarora State Park

Our cottage at Sweet Valley, #4

The second week of September brought wonderful Fall weather with it, and the chance for a last minute camping trip to explore some more state parks.  September has always been a favorite month of mine for hiking, and we have had a very prosperous month so far of trail exploration.  Since we both had several days off, we decided to head a little farther away from home.  We thought we would head towards the Delaware gap area, but our plans led us instead to very pleasant Sweet Valley Cottages, which was conveniently located near Ricketts Glen State Park.  Some things are just meant to be, and this reservation provided us with a relaxing little cottage next to a pond.  Upon arriving at the cottage we were greeted by a pair of swans and two ducks that we later nick-named Fred and Ethel. Fred and Ethel greeted us every night and every morning at our door. They followed us faithfully thinking we would provide them with food.  We were one of only two couples camping that week, so it was extremely quiet outside of the antics of the ducks and swans.  I don't think the male swan liked me very much, and admittedly I was a little afraid of him strutting around me since he was almost as tall as me with his neck stretched out.    



Big Daddy Swan

 

Dave by the pond with Fred and Ethel in the back.





Adams Falls on the Evergreen Trail



We arrived at the cottage around 10 am, and by noon we were out on a trail at Ricketts Glen State Park.  This was actually our second visit.  During the first trip about 10 years ago, we took the Falls Trail, a very challenging hike.  This time we started at the south end of the park and took the Evergreen trail where we saw Adams Falls, this was an easy mile long trail.  





This was a nice trail to start, and it boosted our confidence to continue on to the next.  Traveling up to the visitor center at the north end, we got our sixth stamp in the passport book. We crossed the Lake Jean bridge, also part of the dam; and parked at the Lake Rose parking lot.  We started at the Bear Walk Trail, 1 mile of easy walking; hooking onto a portion of Glen Leigh and then headed towards the Highland Trail. 

The Onondaga Falls is situated on the Glen Leigh, this was the farthest point south that we hiked, from here we turned to the Highland Trail.



Onondaga Falls just before heading onto the Highland Falls





These trails weaved through thick woods and outcrops of boulders.  The midway crevasse was an interesting formation; some of the boulders seemed to be a fragile teetering puzzle waiting for a little movement to shift them into a different formation.





These trails were well worth taking, and gave us a little different view of Ricketts Glen.  We only passed two other couples on the trail- both were walking without water, a big mistake for the many miles of trails located at this park.  We strongly suggest that you carry water and a first-aid kit minimally.  We also use a walking stick, especially if the trails are classified as difficult.  I would also suggest that before staring any trail, you take the time to pick up a trail map.  On this particular hike, the couples we met were without a map and had lost track of where they were on the trail- not a good thing when walking many miles, especially with the daylight getting shorter this time of year and when walking during the week when there are not as many people on the trail.  We always carry a backpack water bladder, mosquito repellent, and a snake bite kit when doing shorter hikes.  We prepare more for days when the hikes are longer or more difficult and hubby also carries our large backpack. 

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Are we Yankees fans??? You bet!

 September 13th was spend exploring the beautiful Endless Mountains in Sullivan County's World's End State Park.  Here is some trivia about this park name. Early in its history it was known by some as Whirl's End because of the whirl pool that used to exist in the Loyalsock Creek.  Some referred to it as Whirl's Glen, but today it is know as World's End.  Amazing views of the convergence of these 5 mountains really does make you feel like you are at the end of the world.  There were so many trails to decide on.  After checking in at the visitors center for a map and stamp #7 we decided on starting at the World's End Trail.  The visitors center is really nice; the ranger said the building was 10 years old, but it looks brand new and has some really interesting information about the wild life.  Its the first time I've seen a cinammon colored Black Bear, which I didn't know existed, but apparently 2% of Black Bears have the cinammon shade.

The World's End trail was very challenging and we really needed our walking stick to help us manage the steep inclines.  I have to tell you I have a "High Anxiety" and it took a lot for me to treck on the edge of these straight up trails that didn't give any protection from the feeling that you were going to drop off the edge into the thick timbers below; but I still loved the challenge and really felt like I accomplished something when we finally reached the the cross roads at 1600 ft where we turned onto the Loyalsock Trail aka Pioneer Road.  Loyalsock is the longest of the World's End trails, running 59.21 miles, but we were on this trail for less than 3 miles when we connected to the Double Run Nature Trail.  The point before we got on Double Run  led us to the cool valley of the west bank of the Double Run creek.   We actually had a pair of rugged stairways to help us traverse the steep slope at the start of Double Run. We were on Double Run for a while, descending finally to foot bridges that took us closer to the Loyalsock Creek.

This was a very relaxing part of the hike and allowed us to catch our breath



The last leg of the trail was longer than we expected and we found ourselves weaving in and out of huge piles of debris which we found out was created by the tropical storm that blew through the area in Sept. of 2011 when the area flooded causing roads to collapse and the creek trail path to be diverted.

The warm sun was soothing, and the edge of the creek beckoned us to spend some time on the rocks.. I even soaked my feet in the cool water. 

Mid-week off-season is a great time to hike, but some of the drawbacks are the typical summer businesses (like ice cream shops, etc.) are closed.  No matter- we treated ourselves to an awesome pizza dinner at a local joint on the intersection of Rts 118 and Sweet Valley- yum, just what the doc ordered to energize us and get us ready to start a camp fire and toast marshmellows.  You are never too old for the traditions, and we enjoyed the cool night air as we rested by the fire.  We felt pretty good about ourselves for the amont of hiking we accomplished today- we hope you have a chance to visit this park and take in some of the vistas. 

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Tuscarora State Park

 We packed up on Friday morning from our cottage  and headed to our final state park of the week at Tuscarora State Park in Schuylkill County.  Deciduous forest and meadows by Locust Mountain provided a very relaxing environment.  Our hike took in a 1.2 mile on the Laurel, Edge and Log trails ( easy), 4.5 miles on the more difficult Spirit Trail.  Spirit Trail was not near as difficult as our the World's End Trail.

After Thursday's more strenuous trails, this park felt a little simpler which I appreciated.  The park is said to be popular for fishing, and there were a couple people fishing on this day.

We saw lots of tiny little toads, but thankfully no snakes.

Locust Creek was a very pleasant babbling brook

The Locust Creek meanders along a portion of this trail and offers a freshing coolness to the hike


We saw some interesting fungus and lichen.  Hope you are enjoying the pics...

 Beautiful meadows full of wild flowers and butterflies filled our view from easy walking mowed paths that came at the end of our walk.  The day was very sunny and the high 70s temp made for a perfect ending to our hikes this week.  Each of the state parks has its own personality.  Tuscarora is laid back and easy feeling, so if that is what you are looking for you should try this park.  It became our 8th park to check-off in our passport book. 

To finish up this blog, I have to admit that we got Locust Lake State Park stamped in our book, but missed finding the park (signage didn't seem to be to good, and the roads were very windy making it difficult to pay attention to signs).  Too tired to back-track and search again we headed home. It is fairly close by, so we will pick it up later when when we only have a few hours to kill for traveling/hiking. The Tuscarora office just got their stamps in, so we were the first to get 'stamped'.  Note that Tuscarora and Locust are in fairly close proximity and I think coordinate with one another; Locust Lake has only a small satelite office.   So we headed back to Rts. 54 and 61 taking us into Frackville and back into our neck-of-the-woods. 

French Creek/Marsh Creek State Parks 9/9/12



Heron waiting patiently for a fish to snack on at Hopewell Lake at French Creek State Park



Sunday, Sept. 9, 2012 Me and Dave headed out to French Creek State Park.   It was a perfect Fall day, and who knows how many days we will have like this to take in our great state parks. 

This drive was much shorter than last weekend's trip; a 120 mile round trip for us on this sunny day.  French Creek is part of the Hopewell Furnace National Historical Site, an Iron works village established in the 18th century.  As luck would have it, we missed the turn off for French Creek and went to Hopewell Furnace first; which provided us with the opportunity to pick apples right on-site next to the main office.  I should say I picked apples, cause Dave got perturbed with me when I got picky about which apples to pick- I am a very picky person, but I figure since we get to choose which apples we want from the tree we should be picky.  So we went home with 11 pounds of Romes, Red Delicious and Jonathan apples.

With that behind us, we headed off to French Creek only 5 minutes down the road. 

Dam at Hopewell Lake- Dave on upper right side of picture

The office at French Creek was closed, but we found a ranger at the parking lot and he signed our PA passport for both French Creek and Marsh Creek State Parks, numbers 4th and 5th respectively in our passport (only 115 left to go).  He was really nice to talk to and, he suggested we start our hike on an unmarked path that would lead us around Hopewell Lake.  The Dam picture above was actually located at the opposite end of the lake from where we started, so my pictures a little out of order. 

Beaver Dam located a short distance from the beginning of our hike.  The Ranger told us we would see two beaver dams and a beaver hut.  We really hoped to see a beaver, but on this day had to be satisfied with seeing their home and cleaver carpentry work instead..... still satisfying. 

Butterflies galore filled the air as we made our way around Hopewell Lake.  This one didn't seem to mind me take picturesof it, as it basked on the purple clover.

Aview of the lake  looks like a picture Monet would love to paint.

Our hike took a little over an hour.  Dave did good with his hips, but the groin cramp didn't help.  A short break and a snack from our handy-dandy back pack helped.  This park has so much to offer from boat rentals, nice fishing areas, trails, picnic areas, nice play area for kids, and camping.  I'm sure this must be a popular spot for Philadelphians.

From here we headed out to find Marsh Creek State Park, which has a lake used for sailboating, kayaking, and canoeing.  This park is only supposed to be 20 minutes away according to the ranger.  The windy Rt 345 seemed like it took forever to lead us to Rt. 82 and then RT 282.  Our GPS has come in handy, but without a street address for Marsh Creek, we are on our own.  Now, if you have ever ridden with me and my hubby, you know this can be dangerous.  Of course, it didn't help that it was mid-afternoon and we hadn't had lunch yet, so with sugar levels low, we missed the very small and brush hidden sign for the state park and headed south toward West Chester.  Finally we found a Micky D's, and stopped for a little break. 

We set out for our drive home, figuring we were going to have to miss Marsh Creek.  Low and behold ten minutes down the road I saw the road sign for Marsh Creek.  This very picturesque lake was dotted with sail boats, and actually boats of every kind.  It has hiking and biking trail  We didn't stay long at this park, I think we were really ready to go home and relax.

We were satisfied though that we made it to the park and could be honest to the Ranger's signature in our passport book. 



We hope one of these southeastern PA parks will spark your interest and become a destination for your future agenda.  Until then, keep your hiking boots ready, and may the Fall sunshine warm your toes!

Happy Hiking..... Apryle and Dave

Bald Eagle Forest hikes

Wow, I finally created a blog and hope you check in periodically to hear about our hiking adventures in Pa's beautiful state park system. 

I thought the idea of passing along our adventures in hiking from the perspective of two Seniors that truly enjoy the great natural outdoors might inspire others to get up, get out and enjoy our natural resources.  We are so lucky to live in the beautiful state of Pennsylvania that nurtures a state park system numbering at 120.

Last weekend we were just sitting on the back porch, and I was talking about an article I saw in the paper about Bald Eagle State Park in Central PA, and the PA State Parks and Forests Passport.  Then I said, "you want to go today?"  and my hubby's reply was "yeah I'll go."  I should have know, he rarely turns down the chance to hit the road.  So one hour later we were on the road with an overnight bag and a mission to go to the Bald Eagle State Park.

Well, about 2 1/2 hours later we finally made it to our destination.  A little tired (we didn't start the trip until 3 pm and had already spent 3 hours early in the day at the annual Hamburger Festival.... yes, I said Hamburger Festival) we parked our car in front of the park office.  We were fortunate the office was open, and yes indeed they did have the Passport books for sale- only 10 bucks.  So we got our very first passport stamp on Sept. 1, 2012 for Bald Eagle State Park.  The park ranger on duty was very helpful and gave us lots of info.

It was pretty late and we didn't have much time for hiking, but wanted to see as much as possible.  First we headed up to the Nature Inn at Bald Eagle, hoping they might have a room available for the night.  Unfortunately, a wedding party had booked the 16 rooms.  Would have loved to stay in this new facility that was very clean, fresh and modern looking.  Situated on a hill above the an 8-mile long lake, and across from the Bald Eagle Mountain.  Camping, and cottages are also available. This park would be a great destination for boating lovers. They even have a pair of eagles that nest each year directly across the lake from the Inn.  We did walk around a bit, but knew we needed to head down the road to find a spot to lay our heads for the night and find a bite to eat.  We only had to go 10 minutes or so down the road until we got to a Quality Inn, and 5 minutes from there we ate a a Brother's Pizza (pizza was good).

I love the spur-of-the-moment adventures, and this trip was well worth our effort.  The next morning after having a surprisingly good breakfast at the hotel, we decided to head out to another park.  We took Rt 192 and headed to R. B. Winter State Park.  This gem of a park is nestled between the Rapid Run Natural Area and the Bald Eagle State Forest.  The first trail we hiked was the Overlook Trail, less than 1/2 a mile but felt like much more due to its vertical climb that zig-zagged to an overlook.  The view was awesome and we got our first picture together on our quest to visit all the wonderful parks of PA.

The second trail we took at RB Winter was the Rapid Run Nature Trail (1.9 miles) of easy walking among the old growth hemlock, white pines, wetland, springs and sphagnum bogs.  To me it was the place of leprechauns, full of every hue of green you can imagine.  How apropos that I would be with an Irishman, but I didn't get to see a leprechaun.  Dave was really happy that his hips held out so well after the problems he has had with them this year (I'm proud of my 64 year-young hubby).  This park has bear sitings, but we fortunately did not see any (nor did we see any rattlers which call this park home). After leaving the last trail we made our way to the park office and, yes indeed, we did get our 2nd park stamp of the weekend!  The park ranger and clerk were very informative and suggested we might want to stop by Sand Bridge State Park only 4 miles down the road.  They even gave us a stamp for Sand Bridge- yea our 3rd stamp of the weekend!  So, you know we had to stop to this park, which is not very eventful because it is known as the smallest of all of the state parks in PA. A nice picnic area (a family reunion was going on in the pavilion).

We left Sand Bridge just as it was starting to sprinkle, and ran in and out of spritz of rain.  We had a great start to our PA State Park adventure.  As we continue to visit more, we will keep you up-to-date on our findings.  Hiking is good for the body, spirit and mind and we hope you have some of your own adventures.

Happy hiking
Apryle & Dave