This was more of a walk then a hike. It was cold today. Even a little too cold for me, and I love winter. But we still wanted to get outside. This hike to Dingmans Falls is more of a walk then I hike. You’re walking a flat boardwalk the whole way - except for the road to the trailhead which is now closed so you have to walk the road to get to the start of the trail. Silverthread is the first waterfall you see on this hike. It was completely frozen over and we saw some ice climbers making their way up it. Then we walked over to see Dingmans falls. This waterfall is the 2nd largest in Pennsylvania at 130 feet. The tallest in Pennsylvania, also in the DWG, is Raymonskill which is 178 feet tall. Dingmans wasn’t totally frozen yet, so no climbers on it. We took some photos and then made our way back. Felt good to get out, but today wasn’t the day to spend too much time on the trail. Really enjoyed this little sight seeing excursion and it was a treat to get to see these frozen waterfalls
February of 2021 brought the Lehigh Valley 38.8 inches of snow, the highest amount for the month to date. The days have been dark and gloomy, but today the sun made a glorious appearance. It was bound to be an amazing day, so we gathered our gear and headed out on the road into the Pocono Mountains. Our destination was Natural Lands Bear Creek Preserve. The early morning temperature was 19 degrees and the parking turnout at the trailhead off White Haven Road was still frozen. We suited up and hit the trail. We started out by following the purple trail south which took us through a hardwood forest scattered with mountain laurel and moss covered boulder formations. The beech trees still holding onto their autumn leaves glistened with a warm orange hue. We passed by a ravine with a waterfall now frozen into a striking 10 foot flow of ice. Sunlight danced on the frosty boughs of hemlock that still hung heavy with snow. As we meandered along the winding trail we began to descend closer to Shades Creek. We then connected to the gray trail as we reached the swinging bridge and crossed over the rapids. The winter landscape looked so amazing as we followed along the snow covered banks. We made our way in and out of rhododendron tunnels stopping every few feet to admire the fast flowing cascades. Sparkles of snow glistened in the sunlight as they fell from the trees like fairy dust. Before we knew it it was already getting to be late afternoon. As much as we wanted to stay, we knew we should start heading back. When we reconnected with the purple trail, we decided to make a quick side trip and follow it south. It crossed over Bear Creek on a primitive bridge and from here we went off trail to continue a little further along its edge. It was a beautiful section of trail, but we didn’t go too far since it was too late in the day to explore. We turned around making note to save that adventure for another time. We ascended steeply back up the hill, back into the hardwood forest and past the frozen waterfall. By this time, the sun had shifted lower on the horizon illuminating the landscape with its radiant afternoon light. When we arrived back at the trailhead, the frozen parking lot was a swimming pool of melted ice. We loaded up the car and headed home after another amazing winter’s day.
