hike

Worlds End State Park, Loyalsock State Forest, Canyon Vista Trail, 5 Miles RT, 780' +/-, May 18, 2024

May 18, 2024

This was our first Pennsylvania camping trip. It had been a long time, and I think the last time we used our overnight gear may have been when we backpacked the Mt. Whitney trail in the Eastern Sierra. I was excited to experience an overnight in the woods. Our previous overnights were high up in the mountains of California, a completely different experience. But I enjoy the woods and the quiet of the forest. I find being surrounded by lush green forest and birdsong very relaxing. The Wood Thrush and Ovenbirds are back for the season. They are my favorite sounds to hear while hiking through the dense woods.

We planned a night at the campground in Worlds End State Park. The camping here is much more modern than what I’m used to. There are modern bathrooms and even showers. I feel like I could get used to this. We chose one of the “walk-in” campsites. The walk isn’t far from the car but set back enough not to be right on the edge of the road that loops through the campground. We had a picnic table, fire ring, and there was even a tent pad with mulch.

When we arrived in the morning around 11:30 am, we stopped at the visitors’ center. We picked up a map and chatted with a very helpful woman at the center who showed us exactly where our tent site was and recommended some hikes. I’d already done my homework and knew I wanted to start with the Canyon Vista Trail which was the hike she recommended.

We left the center and parked at the campground heading towards Loyalsock Creek to begin the loop in a northeast direction. The first part of the loop took us around Loyalsock Creek just off the side of Route 154 across from the campground. There were fishermen here and the creek looked very pretty. The trail eventually crossed over the 154 and began to ascend switchbacks into a forest of hardwood and fern. Light rain fell off and on, but the temperature was warm. The forest looks like green technicolor in the rain. The trail met up with the Cold Run extension trail loop and we took a short side adventure to explore the impressive boulder formations that made me feel as though I was in Jurassic Park. I wondered how many millions or possibly billions of years old this geology was. We could have hiked the Cold Run loop and added another mile and a half, but with the weather being unpredictable, we opted to stay on the Canyon Vista trail and explore Cold Run another day. The forest had a heavy mist of fog lying low all around us. It was beautiful. When we made it to the top of the trail, there was a viewpoint overlooking Loyalsock Canyon. This is the most expansive forested area I have seen since being in Pennsylvania. Most of the views I have experienced in this state have been blocked by trees or they overlook farms or freeways. It’s been difficult adjusting to the lack of wild spaces like I was used to coming from out West, but Loyalsock was an exception. And while the mountains are not high peaks, the name of this range “Endless Mountains” was fitting. The vista is accessible by car and you can drive up from Mineral Springs Road if you don’t want to hike it. It is also ADA-accessible. After enjoying some time at the vista, we made our way back to camp, got a fire going and enjoyed the rest of the evening.

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Nescopeck State Park, Snow Hike, 3.55 Miles, Januar 21, 2023

January 21, 2024

The temperatures have been below freezing and there were two snow storms this past week. We drove to Nescopeck State Park with the intention of a snow hike or possibly snowshoeing. When we arrived at approximately 11:15 am, the winds were gusting at around 16 mph, and the temperature was 20 degrees. The wind made it feel colder then it was. I opted to hike with microspikes because I did not do a very good job of checking my snowshoes and realized they’d need some adjustments. The snow level was about 4 inches over ice and easy to walk. I recalled the last time we were here, the Creekside Trail had a lot of mud, roots, downed trees and a few of the bridges were out.

We began the hike walking along the southern shore of Lake Frances heading onto the Nescopeck Trail. It was bitter cold, but the sun was shining, the forest looked lovely, and I warmed up as we hiked. The wind gusts seemed to lessen as we got further into the woods.

Hiking along the Creekside Trail, I heard the ice crack under the snow. I suspected this would be the case remembering that the last time I visited, much of this trail was very muddy. We had to cross the frozen creek a few times to continue the loop because of the bridges that remained broken.

Nonetheless, the waters of Nescopeck Creek were sparkling in the sunlight and glistening snow. I could hear black-capped chickadee in the trees and the forest was beautiful in all its winter glory.

After crossing a bridge that looked to have been repaired, we got on the Fern Trail to continue the loop. This trail took us away from the creek and into hardwoods. We passed a few cross-country skiers enjoying the day.

We took the Hill Trail to the turtle pond on the eastern side of Lake Frances. We stopped to listen to the quite and enjoy the stillness of the winter day.

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The last of autumn at Mariton Wildlife Sanctuary, October 27, 2022

October 27, 2022

The trees remind us that we are shifting into the dark half of the year. Soon the vibrant, golds and yellows will be replaced with earthy brown and bark as the trees rest deep in the earth until Persephone emerges and spring will return once again.

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Adirondack Park, Cat and Thomas Mountains, 7.8 Miles RT, 1,647' +/-, 2,031 Max Elevation, July 12, 2022

July 15, 2022

Today we hiked both Cat and Thomas Mountains. Both summits are part of the Lake George 12ster challenge. The day prior we had hiked hiked Sleeping Beauty, also part of the 12ster. So we’ve now done 3 of the 12 peaks should we decided to complete the challenge in the future. The weather was calling for potential severe thunder storms, so our Plan B was to just do Thomas if the weather decided to turn since we’d already hiked to the top of Cat the last time we were in the Adirondacks. At the start of the hike at the trailhead off Valley Woods Road we heard thunder. We began hiking but noted the time to see if we’d hear more rumbling. Luckily it seemed to pass, and when we reached the summit of Thomas the weather looked promising. We we decided to continue on to Cat Mountain and complete the loop. The hike to Thomas was fairly easy up an old carriage road. The summit opened up to beautiful views of Lake George. At one time there was a cabin on the summit, but it has since been taking down. Next we found the trail to continue on to Cat. From here the trail quickly made a steep beeline down. The trail had quite a bit of up and down and a few easy scrambles. When we arrived at the spur for Cat, we decided to hike up even though we’d done it before. The weather was still holding in our favor, so we took in the views and then made our way back down and back to the trailhead. The weather Gods must have been in our favor today because on the way out, the sky opened up and it began to pour. I was happy we were able to get in the two peaks in one hike. Another beautiful day in the ADK!

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Nockamixon State Park, July 1, 2022

July 01, 2022

Had a nice morning walk around Nockamixon state park this morning.

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Woodland Hills Preserve Walk, June 21, 2022

June 21, 2022

Walk around Woodland Hills Preserve. Always enjoy seeing the red-winged black birds here. Great way to start the day listening to the sounds of nature.

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Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, North Lookout, June 13, 2022

June 13, 2022

This was my first trip to Hawk Mountain Sanctuary. I’ve known about this place since we came to Pennsylvania, but avoided it because of how crowded I understand it gets. Since it was a weekday, I took a chance on it being less crowded and I’m really glad I did. There are so many trails here to explore and the visitor’s center (complete with gift shop) is wonderful. We did an easy out and back to the North Lookout. There are harder routes here with lots of rock scrambling which we will try another time. Today was a day for sight seeing and checking things out. I can only imagine how awesome it must be up here when the birds are migrating along the flyway. We didn’t see a much today aside from a turkey vulture riding the thermals, but it was a nice day to come and explore and learn a little bit about the history of the place which I didn’t know at all. Hawk Mountain was founded in 1934 by Rosalie Edge, a conservationist who eded the pointless hunting of raptors migrating along on the Kittatinny Ridge. Raptors were once thought to be a threat to “wild game” and humans thought they needed to interfere with nature by slaughtering thousands of raptors. Heartbreaking. Thankfully, Rosalie Edge stepped in and silenced the rifles. Today Hawk Mountain Sanctuary is a place to learn and explore. There’s also a wonderful native garden with a turtle pond just near the entrance. We will definitely be back to hike more of the trails and do some bird watching.

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Woodland Hills Preserve, Morning Meadow Walk, June 6, 2022

June 06, 2022

Photos from a quick morning walk around Woodland Hills Preserve. I like coming here because 1) it’s fairly close to my home and I can get in a quick nature walk before heading to work and 2) it brings me great joy in knowing that this used to be a golf course. Don’t you just love it when nature takes it back? The meadows are filled with mugwort, yarrow and the common milkweed is just starting to bloom. Soon this place will be filled with butterflies, sphinx moths and pollinators galore. As I passed through the wetlands, tall stalks of poison hemlock towered above the marshy grass. Dozens of red-winged blackbirds perched high in the trees drooping their wings and singing flute like notes that tapered off into a trill. Frogs in the pond chimed along with their deep croaks and bellows making for a melodious morning chorus as I walked along the paths. I spotted a monarch or two fluttering about sampling the first taste of sweet nectar on the newly blooming milkweed. And on the wing still are the Little Wood Satyrs although some of them were a little tattered and past their prime. Wild rose was blooming and the aroma wafting through the air was just incredible. It was a marvelous way to start my day. I always enjoy coming here.

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Jacobsburg State Park, Summer Azure, June 1, 2022

June 01, 2022

A quick morning walk around Jacobsburg State Park this morning to check out what was blooming and spot some butterflies. At the start of the trail which is just off the side of a busy road, I immediately saw a fluttering of tiny wings. This, I’m pretty sure was the Summer Azure butterfly. I could, of course, be totally wrong here, as there’s also a Spring Azure which looks almost identical. (At least to me as a novice citizen scientist and long-time butterfly enthusiast.) I crouched in the bushes along side of the road to get my photos as cars drove by either not noticing me at all or if they did, they probably thought I was just some crazy person. But I managed to get some pretty decent shots of the tiny little beauty at the very beginning of my walk. As I continued along the trail, I saw quite an abundance of wildflowers in bloom including: dames rocket, solomon’s plume, wild rose, buttercups, golden alexander, fleabane and forget-me-nots just to name a few (Thanks iNaturalist!). Along my route I spotted some interesting mushrooms which I later ID’d as Petticoat Mottlegill. Quite a dainty little name for a mushroom that is noted to mostly grow on poop. I guess this would make sense since I was on a horse trail. It was a lovely morning and I enjoyed the walk and fresh air to start my day.

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Van Buskirk Farm Preserve, Toads & Witch's Butter, May 22, 2022

May 22, 2022

Today we went back for a visit to Van Buskirk Farm Preserve. It’s one of those places I doubt many people even know about much less visit. The preserve is hidden in plain sight just off the side of a major road and if you didn’t know where to look for the trailhead, you’d probably drive right past and miss all the beauty it has to offer. Today Cranberry Creek was sparkling with bright tones of emerald green reflected by the moss carpets clinging to the large boulders strewn about the creek. Boughs of the great hemlock trees bent and swayed along with the the breeze and the water cascaded in a rhythmic natural orchestra. As we made our way to the bridge that crosses the creek, I noticed some work was done to the trail to clear the heavy the storm damage I’d seen the last time we were here.

As we hiked the the dirt trail navigating the muddy sections always to be expected this time of year, I noticed an American Toad sitting quietly hoping to blend in with the leaf debris and waiting for us to pass. We continued onward through the forest and came upon two little red efts making their way along the trail. We hiked up to the red rock quarry, passed the vernal pool that is usually filled with the sound of chirping frogs and made our way down to the ruins of the old farm. I spotted an interesting fungi today which I ID’d later as “Witch’s Butter”. Witch’s Butter is an edible fungus also known as yellow brain, golden jelly and yellow trembler. The names seemed appropriate to match its description. This type of fungus is typically found on fallen branches and grows in crevices of bark during rainy weather. It dries up a few days after the rain, but it can revive itself when it gets wet again. Fascinating.

The hike is fairly short, but it was a perfect spring day to drive to the Poconos and simply enjoy the nature. We sat on the bridge for a while before heading back and as we did the sun began to peak through what had started out as on overcast day. It was a perfect morning.

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Jacobsburg State Park Wildflower Walk, May 10, 2022

May 10, 2022

Wildflower walk at Jacobsburg State Park. I use the iNaturalist app to ID and it’s been really helpful in learning the east coast flora. Today’s finds included the following: Common Blue Violet, Dandelion, Spanish Bluebell, Jack in the Pulpit (one of my favorites), Virginia Spring Beauty, Wood Anemone, Red Deadnettle, Trout Lily (which were past bloom), Buttercups, Mayapple, Poison Hemlock, Garlic Mustard, Golden Alexanders, and Garden Yellow Rocket. Everything is suddenly turning green and the days are starting to warm. Everything smells so new and fresh. Spring is a lovely time of year.

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Red Rock Trail & Mount Sophia, May 8, 2022

May 08, 2022

Today we hiked the Red Rock Loop and Mt. Sophia. This trail is part of the Mount Airy Trail Network in the Pocono Mountains. We’ve been here a couple of times before and it’s lovely, mellow trail. My favorite part of this hike are the beautiful eastern white pines on top of Mt. Sophia. If you peak through the trees, you can also catch a glimpse of Camelback mountain. But the highlight of my trip today was seeing a barred owl. In Los Angeles, I spent so many nights walking the hills of Griffith Park at dusk listening and watching the families of Great Horned owls hoot and hunt just after sunset. This was the first owl I’ve seen since being in Pennsylvania, and my first barred owl so it was a real treat!.

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Catskill Park, Overlook Mountain Fire Tower & Hotel Ruins, 5.82 Miles RT, 1,640' +/-, April 24, 2022

April 24, 2022

We took a day trip to the Catskills to explore the area and hike. Our first stop was the visitors center where we asked for some recommendations and picked up a few maps. We decided to check out Overlook Mountain which was one of the hikes I’d read about when I was researching before our trip. We got back in the car, drove through Woodstock and found the parking lot at the trailhead off Meads Mountain Road across from a Tibetan Buddhist monastery. It was later in the day, and with this being a popular hike, the lot was at capacity and we ended up parking along side the road.

The hike is on an old carriage road and the views didn’t change much as we made our way up steadily gaining in elevation. In a little over a mile and a half we came upon the ruins of the old Overlook Hotel. The ruins here are the remains of the third building that was built at this location. The first was built in the early 1800s. Over the years, the Overlook Hotel changed hands serval times. It seemed to be a failed endeavor right from its start. It burned down twice before it was rebuilt it in concrete. In the early 1900s, the failed Overlook Hotel closed its doors indefinitely as the trend of luxury resort hotels in the Catskills phased out and the clientele took their money elsewhere. Today, the Overlook’s ruins are one of the only historic resorts left in the Catskills. In the 1970s, the hotel burned yet again, but the concrete structure withstood the fiery blaze.

After exploring the ruins, we continued up the trail until we reached the summit of Overlook Mountain at 3,140 feet. There’s a cabin just before the fire tower and a short spur trail that took us to a rocky outcropping with expansive views of the Hudson River Valley and Ashokan Reservior. After checking out the vista, we continued to the fire tower. We climbed the tower’s stairs, but the door to the actual lookout was closed. We cllimbed up the 60 foot tower as high as we could go and enjoyed the views before heading down to have a snack at one of the convenient picnic tables on the summit.

After our snack, we began to make our way back. We decided to quick check out a side trail to Echo Lake which had much less people, but as we began to give up elevation, we decided to turn around and save it for another day since it was a little late and we’d have to hike it back up and then down again on our original trail.

It was a lovely day and although this was a more populated hike, I did enjoy the climb up the fire tower and it was a nice intro to the Catskills.

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Adirondack Park, Marcy Dam via Van Hovenberg Trail, 5 miles RT, 500' +/-, April 18, 2022

April 18, 2022

After our morning hike up Owl’s Head, we headed over to Adirondak Loj for a nice, mellow hike out to Marcy Dam via the Van Hovenberg Trail. We’ve done this section of trail several times before and being that it was shoulder season, we thought it was best to stay below 2,500’ to avoid soft melting snow and the ice still holding on at higher elevations. The hike to Marcy Dam is pleasant with much of it being easy, rolling trail. It was a perfectly beautiful day and upon arriving at the dam, we chatted with some hikers who’d just come down from Colden. They confirmed it was mostly still ice up there, which was not a surprise. We took our time and hung out at the dam soaking in more sunshine before heading back. We stopped at the Big Slide restaurant for lunch in Lake Placid before heading back to the hotel and checking out to drive back. We’d initially planned to stay another night, but a spring snow storm was predicted to roll in overnight and by this time, the weather service was pretty certain it would bring with it about 12 inches of snow. We checked out early and drove back home to be on the safe side and avoid unpredictable driving conditions the next morning. It was another wonderful trip to the ADK which has become my happy place since we are currently here on the east coast.

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Nothstein Preserve, April 4, 2022

April 04, 2022

This is one of my favorite Nature Preserves in Paradise Township the Pocono Mountains. I’ve been here several times and keep coming back to see the changes throughout the seasons. There’s always something new to experience along this very short hike of about 3 miles. Today’s weather was cloudy and a little on the chilly side. The sun popped in and out of the clouds throughout the morning. It cast beautiful light across the moss covered rocks along the cascading Cranberry Creek. Soon the trails here will be covered with bright red-orange Red Efts (a second stage eastern newt). It was a lovely morning and a nice way to start the day.

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Lake Towhee walk, April 3, 2022

April 03, 2022

Quick walk at Lake Towhee this evening. This is a 50-acre lake in Bucks Count Pennsylvania. I was here one time last summer for a short visit. Next time I’ll be sure to bring my binoculars because it seems to be a great place for birdwatching. I saw lots of waterfowl and plenty of red-winged black birds. There are some very short trails in the surrounding woods and we walked the short paths searching for spring wildflowers. First to be spotted was Blood root (Sanguinaria canadensis). Native to Pennsylvania, its name refers to the red-orange sap that comes from its broken stem and root. Native Americans used this plant as a dye and an insect repellent. (I really should try the latter, as the east coast is full of bugs.) Blood root is a spring ephemeral and grows in woodlands throughout the Northeast. It blooms in April and its flowers open in full sun and close at night. I've been seeing a lot of these on the trails.

Next up I saw Rue Anemone, (Thalictrum thalictroides). Another native to Northeastern Pennsylvania. The flowers are found in spring woodlands and I observed some with white petals while others were a light pink to lavender color. These little flowers bloom for a short time from April to May.

The yellow flowers posted here are Lesser celandine or pilewort and not native to Pennsylvania. They come from the buttercup family Ranunculaceae and are native to Europe and Western Asia. I believe they are marked as an invasive species to the area.

This is a nice place to stop for a quick walk or a quiet meditation by the water.

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Nockamixon State Park, Old Mill Trail, March 27, 2022

March 27, 2022

Today we hiked the Old Mill Trail at Nockamixon State Park. I hiked this trail in July of 2021 on a very hot, humid day. It looked much different at that time with everything so green, but this trail seems to be muddy no matter what time of year you hike it. Today it was especially so. Luckily, I have a good pair of Keen waterproof boots and my feet stayed dry despite the boot sucking mud. The trail is about 5.6 miles and there’s a creek crossing to be negotiated at about .4 miles in if you start from the trailhead at Deerwood Lane. In July, we did this without issue, but today the water level was higher and I didn’t want to risk a slip. We decided to forego the water crossing and drive to the other side where you can park at a different trailhead off Old Bethlehem Road and pick up the loop from the other side. On our way back to the parking area at Deerwood Lane, we took a paved path that passed by Stover Mill and a small waterfall. We got back in the car and drove to a the trailhead on Old Bethlehem Road and continued with our hike on Old Mill. The day was chilly and the ominous clouds reflected like a mirror in the lake. Most of this hike takes you through hardwoods with scattered pine and cedar. As we neared our last half mile, it began to snow with some hail. Not too many people out on the trail today, but it’s always a good day to be outside if you’re prepared for weather.

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Graver Arboretum Walk, Spring Flowers Emerge, March 26, 2022

March 26, 2022

Photos from a relaxing early evening walk at Graver Arboretum, in Bushkill Township, Pennsylvania. I’ve been here a coupe of times and need to make it a point to visit more often. The arboretum is used as an outdoor classroom by the biology and other science departments of Muhlenberg College. Today I saw the first signs of spring in the form of the emerging Eastern Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus). It’s one of the earliest spring flowers in Northeastern Pennsylvania. These plants are unique in that they can generate heat to melt through snow making them one of the first wildflowers to be seen emerging in the spring. The plant produces a pungent odor if the leaves are crushed. Some compare it to rotting flesh. (I didn't crush the leaves to try it, because I didn't want to hurt the plant.) The odor, while maybe not so pleasant to a human, is attractive to pollinators. Another subject of artistic interest was the early evening light cast on the “knees” coming up from the roots of the Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum) near the pond. I spent about about an hour here walking, observing and enjoying my time discovering some trees I had not seen before such as the Lacebark Pine (Pinus bungeana). But as the sun sank lower in the sky, a large dark clouds threatened with stormy winds. I knew the sky was about to open up with rain, but luckily, I was dressed for weather because it started to hail. I loved the sound of the trees swaying in the wind, and the sound of the bark on the limbs rubbing against each other. It made the time even magical to be here at this hour with no one else around listening to the trees talk. The storm didn’t last long before the sun came back out. As I was driving home a gorgeous rainbow appeared in the sky. It was a nice way to wrap up a wonderful evening.

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Tuscarora State Park, 7.5 mile icy loop, March 6, 2022

March 06, 2022

Today we hiked a loop around Tuscarora Sate Park. The hike starts along the lake. It was fine on the south side but the north (where the sun doesn’t hit) was icy as I expected. We switched into light traction which was more to keep from slipping as there’s really not much elevation on this hike. I love Tuscarora. The terrain here is not your typical ankle breaking rocks jutting out of the ground like most of the trails I’ve experienced in Pennsylvania. I’m not sure why that is, exactly, but it’s so pleasant when you can actually look up from your feet and enjoy the scenery. This loop trail isn’t listed on the map. You actually have to walk along the street for a bit and then jump the guard rail to reconnect with it to make it a loop. We did this over the summer and it was just as pretty in the winter. I spotted a white robin today too. It wasn’t an albino though. The white is caused by a genetic condition called leucism which prevents pigments from reaching some of the feathers. I tried getting some photos, but since I didn’t have my birding camera with me, they didn’t come out very well. At least I got a good enough photo to I.D. the bird. After the hike we took time to enjoy the icy beach. I’m really enjoying these beaches in the winter when no one is on them. In the summer, that may be a different story! :)

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Jacobsburg State Park, Snow Day! February 13, 2022

February 13, 2022

What a difference a day makes. We went back to Jacobsburg State Park today. It had just finished snowing and it was just beautiful. Fresh snow, no tracks laid down yet and all was quite. We hiked the same trails as we had the previous day and what a difference in scenery. I will admit that is one thing I enjoy about the east coast… everything looks so different each season.

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