Tuscarora State Park, 7.5 miles, December 31, 2023

December 31, 2023

Getting in one last hike for the year today at Tuscarora State Park.

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Delaware Water Gap, Christmas Eve Hike, December 24, 2023, Mohican Outdoor Center to Catfish Tower, AT Out & Back, 4.3 Miles RT, 522' +/-

December 24, 2023

We took a Christmas Eve hike in the Delaware Water Gap, New Jersey side starting at the Mohican Outdoor Center. The weather was cloudy and damp. We did not see any sunshine today although it tried to peek through the clouds unsuccessfully. From the center we ascended the Rattlesnake Swamp trail connector to the Appalachian Trail to hike the ridge to Catfish Tower. We passed by two other hikers along the AT and the met a large group when we reached the tower. A few from the group were dressed in Santa hats and everyone looked like they were having a fun hike. We made this our turnaround point and headed back to the center for lunch. The ladies working at the center always remember us, and we were treated to a new menu item which was a hot roast beef sandwich topped with horseradish. We had our meal in the lounge. The fireplace was blazing and another group of hikers were sitting on the couches enjoying the warm flames and the ambience of the lodge. It was so cozy decorated with a large Christmas tree and we took our time, enjoyed our lunch and hot coffee before heading home.

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Janet Johnston Housenick & William D. Housenick Memorial Park, Winter Solstice Morning Walk, December 21, 2023

December 21, 2023

The Janet Johnston Housenick & William D. Housenick Memorial Park and Archibald Mansion has become my favorite place for a nearby walk, morning run or birdwatching. This is a birding hotspot! I’m starting to recognize the regulars who come every day with their binoculars and cameras. I discovered the park in October. I had no idea it was even here. There’s a paved walking path that’s great for running and exercising and afterwards, you can take a walk along the Monocacy Creek and past the Wetlands. Today I came with my husband for a slow, peaceful walk. There was quite a bit of bird action and we were treated to a a fox as he (or she) displayed her hunting skills as she/he caught what appeared to be a large rodent. There’s always something magical here at the park. I’ve spotted many species of birds including bald eagles, red tail hawks and pileated woodpeckers. Enjoy this short series of photos I took on our walk today on the morning of the winter solstice.

Delaware Water Gap, Thanksgiving Hike, November 24, 2023, Blue Mountain Lake, Hemlock Pond, Crater Lake, 8.19 Miles RT, 961' +/-

November 24, 2023

Thanksgiving morning we hiked the Delaware Water Gap starting at Blue Mountain Lake on the New Jersey side. We brought along the Jetboil to make a Mountain House breakfast of scrambled eggs with sausage and peppers. When we arrived at Hemlock Pond, we made ourselves comfortable on the rocks and prepared coffee and breakfast. It was chilly in the shade, but the sun felt good. As we sat and gazed out upon the lake, a group of fellow hikers arrived. They had the same idea and made themselves at home on the rocks to enjoy a Thanksgiving morning breakfast in the outdoors. We chatted briefly then packed our things and headed back onto the trail. Our next stop was Crater Lake. We stopped here to look out along the lake. We met another couple hiking with their dog. They were from Germany and now living in New Jersey. I always love meeting people on the trails who share a similar passion. From Crater lake, we made our way back. Along the way we noted the beaver dam at Lake Success. We could see they’d been very busy sharpening their teeth on the trees since the last time we were here. The next stop was Indian Rocks. We took off our packs and laid out on the flat rocks warm ourselves in the sun, then headed up a little farther to the cliffside viewpoint. We listened to the familiar sound of the wind blowing through the pines on top of the mountain. It was a perfect way to spend our Thanksgiving.

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Delaware Water Gap, October 22, 2023, Orchard, Hamilton, Pioneer, Van Campens Glen, 10 Miles RT, 1,040' +/-

October 22, 2023

We had more beautiful fall weather today and I wanted to stay out on the trails as long as possible. Once again, we headed to the Delaware Water Gap, New Jersey side. My plan was to park at Millbrook village and take the Orchard Trail to connect with Hamilton Ridge. We would then descend down to the River on the Pioneer Trail, have lunch at one of the river campsites and then continue on to Van Campens Glen and back.

The fall foliage was at peak. I’m still awestruck by the fall colors. Everything looks so psychedelic! We ascended up the trail on Orchard until reaching the ridge top where we met up with the Hamilton Trail. This used to be a road and one point, but it’s a pleasant walk before intersecting the single track Pioneer Trail which took us down to the river. We turned off the trail to head to the river and have breakfast at one of the campsites. We cooked on our portable camp stove, drank coffee and hung out for a while enjoying the day and the scenery. I couldn’t get over how we were the only people on the trail because it was such a gorgeous day. After breakfast, we packed up our gear and made our way to Van Campens Glen. We hiked to the waterfall where we took off our packs. I sprawled out on one of the big flat boulders to listen to the sound of the falls and watch the clouds roll by. It was a wonderful meditation spot. After the rest I felt completely refreshed so we backtracked through the glen and enjoyed the rest of the hike and this amazing day.

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Delaware Water Gap, October 15, 2023, Mohican Outdoor Center, Appalachian Trail, Catfish Tower, Rattlesnake Swamp, 10 Miles RT, 1,040 +/-

October 15, 2023

Today we went back to the New Jersey side of the Delaware Water Gap. There seems to be more options here for routing longer day hikes and also more challenging terrain. I also really like the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Mohican Outdoor Center. The ladies who work there are super nice and they already remember us. We parked at the MOC. My plan was to hike the 5 mile loop from the MOC, up to the ridge on the Rattlesnake connector trail, follow the ridge northeast on the AT passing by Catfish tower and circle back through Rattlesnake Swamp.

We had perfect weather. The hike along the ridge in this direction was lovely. We reached Catfish tower and climbed up it as far as we could go to look at land from above. The winds were fairly strong today, but the sun was shining and it was a great day for hiking. After descending from the ridge, we hopped off the AT and onto the Rattlesnake Swamp trail. The area through the wetlands offered a variety of ecosystems much different then the dryer sections of trail on the ridge.

Once back at the MOC, we stopped for breakfast. They make the best cranberry orange pancakes. I highly recommend stopping here after your hike.

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Hickory Run State Park, October 9, 2023, Gould, Switchback, Hickory Run, Fireline Skyline Loop, 5.4 Miles RT, 899' +/-

October 09, 2023

Today we hiked in Hickory Run State Park. It had been a while since we’d been here, and I knew the fall foliage would be starting to change into autumn color.

Hickory Run was once territory of the Lenape, Susquehannock and the Iroquois Nation. When the colonists arrived, they named the area Shades of Death due to the rocky unfarmable soil and swamps.

We started on the Gould Trail which took us through the woods and down to Hickory Run via the Switchback Trail. Hickory Run was beautiful and the leaves were starting to change to golden color. We headed north on the Fireline Trail which took us up the hillside overlooking the Lehigh River and the distant State Gameland 149. I particularly enjoyed the Pitch Pines along the trail. We passed an overlook with a clear view of Lehigh Gorge. Heading east on Fireline, we turned south to take the Skyline Trail back to Gould to make a lollipop loop. But before reaching the trailhead, we found a comfortable log just off the trail to stop, make coffee and have light breakfast on our campstove. I miss camping. We haven’t been since we left California. Most of the campgrounds in our area are very developed and mostly made for large campers. I’m not a fan of this type of camping, so I haven’t had much luck finding more remote space.

It was a lovely day. As we reached the trailhead the sun began to hide behind the clouds and we headed back home.

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Graver Arboretum, October 8, 2023

October 08, 2023

The Lee and Virginia Graver Arboretum of Muhlenberg College is a great place to come for a quick walk. I’ve come to know the conifers here quite well over the time I’ve spent visiting. I particularly enjoy the Pitch Pines and also the Bald Cypress with its unique roots or “knees” as they’re called.

The arboretum serves as an outdoor laboratory for course activities and field work for the students of Muhlenberg College. It’s also free for the public to enjoy. Autumn is a particularly beautiful time of year here, as the trees change into their fall colors.

Dr. Lee and Virginia Graver were nature lovers and conservationists who cleared thick brush and woods to create this beautiful environment. Here you’ll find ferns, mushrooms, rhododendrons, wildflowers, native and rare trees and over 150 species of conifers.

Today I was super excited to come across a large patch of Jack-o’-lantern mushrooms (Omphalotus olearius). These mushrooms are poisonous if you try and eat them, but they’re a wonderful sight to see considering this time of year.

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Mariton Wildlife Sanctuary, October 6, 2023

October 06, 2023

Just a short forest bathing walk around Mariton Wildlife Sanctuary. The leaves are starting to change color and the trees will soon be taking their energy down into their roots for the winter. It’s always a bittersweet time of year for me. I love the smell of the decaying ferns. It’s a unique smell that I’ve only experienced on the east coast.

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Delaware Water Gap, September 17, 2023, Copper Mine, Mohican Outdoor Center, Rattlesnake Trail, Appalachian Trail, Kaiser Trail, 10.15 Miles RT, 1,821' +/-

September 17, 2023

It felt so good to be back out on the trail! The humid summer weather is finally starting to let up, and I’ll be able to get back out there and put some mileage on my hiking boots. Today we headed out to the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area to the Copper Mine Trail. We’ve done this one several times before, but there are a lot of connecting trails you can pick up and make the day as long or short as you want. We headed up past the mine, crossed the bridge over a small waterfall and then began to ascend up the ravine. It was one of those misty mornings where the sun’s light shines down through the mist, making the trail look extra pretty. We continued to the top of the waterfall and entered into a forest of mostly hardwoods where the trail leveled out. Soon we reached Camp Mohican Road and decided to check out the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Mohican Outdoor Center. It was a nice surprise that we’d never been to before. The center has coffee, food, outdoor picnic tables and also a recreation and rest area for weary A.T. thru hikers. After checking out the center, we decided to head further up the road where we would climb up the Rattlesnake Swamp Connector Trail to the top of the Kittatinny Ridge, follow the A.T. Southwest and then loop back to the Mohican Outdoor Center to get some food. The loop trail Rattlesnake Swamp started out on flat boards crossing a wetland. It soon climbed steeply up to the top of the ridge where we had mostly unobstructed views along the A.T. We followed the A.T. about 1.5 miles until we were back at the road to the Mohican Outdoor Center. I had my eye on the pancakes I’d seen when we were there earlier. As far as I’m concerned, there’s nothing better than finding a place that serves coffee and pancakes in the middle of a hike. The ladies working at the center were super nice and we chilled out at one of the outdoor picnic tables and ate before heading back on the trail. Before hiking out, we checked out some of the campsites in the area for a future overnight stay. We then headed back along the ridge on the A.T. and took the longer route via the Kaiser trail back to the trailhead. We ended up with about a 10 mile day. It felt so nice to be back out there. Now that the weather is cooling off, I’m looking forward to spending more time doing longer hikes with more mileage again.

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Mariton Wildlife Sanctuary, August 2, 2023

August 02, 2023

Mariton Wildlife Sanctuary

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Thomas Darling Preserve, July 30, 2023

July 30, 2023

It had been a long time since we visited Thomas Darling Preserve. The first time was back in January of 2021. Thomas Darling Preserve is part of the Wildlands Conservancy Land Trust and was named after conservationist, Thomas Darling Jr. The area has one of Pennsylvania’s largest spruce forests and is made up of 2,500 acres with glacial wetlands, meadows, bogs, and forest. Two Mile Run traverses the preserve before spilling into Tobyhanna Creek. The hike around the preserve is a short 2.5 mile loop, but it really packs in the scenery. Today the forest was filled with so many different kinds of mushrooms. Luckily the day wasn’t super humid, so the bugs were pretty minimal. My favorite part of this hike is the boardwalk which takes you right through the wetlands. It’s a place you’d never see otherwise and having the privilege of walking through this unique ecosystem is simply magical.

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