The (Not so) Rural Pennsylvanian

  • Eastern Lycoming County and Muncy Valley

    I made my way into Lycoming County back in September. Before we head there, here are some remaining shots of Sullivan County, featuring the town of Muncy Valley. This particular house, on a sharp turn on Route 42, is always decked out with lots of flowers, in season.

    The view from the firehouse across the road.

    I travelled into Lycoming County on this trip because I specifically wanted to see Rose Valley Lake, which is known as a birding area. The lake is a reservoir that covers 389 acres (1.57 km2) in Gamble Township. The three-hundred-and-sixty-acre artificial lake is owned by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and was given its name, “Rose Valley Lake,” in May 1973 by the Pennsylvania Fish Commission, following approval by the commonwealth’s Geographic Names Committee. Created by the Pennsylvania Fish Commission, via the construction of a twenty-five-foot-high, four-hundred-and-ten-foot-long earthen dam on Mill Creek in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, Rose Valley Lake is a three-hundred-and-sixty-acre artificial body of water. The most common game species of fish in the lake are largemouth bass, bluegill, black crappie, muskellunge, yellow perch, chain pickerel, pumpkinseed and walleye.

    The area around the lake is quite scenic.
    A small church in Lycoming County.
    A valley farm.
    Another interesting old church.
    Mt. Zion Lutheran Church. A lot of ancestors and relatives are buried here.
    Eating lunch at the Lairdsville Cornerstone Restaurant.
    An interesting player piano.
    And an old stove.

    Finally, the Lairdsville Covered Bridge is a wooden covered bridge over Little Muncy Creek in Moreland Township, Lycoming County. It was built in 1888 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It is also known as the Frazier Covered Bridge. The window with the exposed beams is a unique feature.

  • A Visit to Powdermill Nature Reserve

    On my way to Linn Run State Park, I came across the Powdermill Nature Reserve of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. The Museum is in Pittsburgh, but the Powdermill Reserve is in a beautiful area of the Laurel Highlands. The reserve’s website can be found here.

    Welcome to Powdermill Nature Reserve.

     Powdermill Nature Reserve is a field station and laboratory where researchers do long-term studies of natural populations in western Pennsylvania. It is a great place for outdoor fun and education.

    You can explore the beautiful woodlands around the reserve via the hiking tails. You can also visit the nature center, which features exhibits that highlight local wildlife, a room of beautiful mounted specimens, an indoor stream, a fish tank, and a “marsh machine” that uses a living plants to purify waste water.

    The reserve does permit hunting on a limited basis through a annual lottery for 100 permits. Due to some inclement weather and limited time, I confined myself to the visitor center on this trip.

    This is an interesting paludarium style fish tank. Forgive the glare from the very bright back light.
    Check out the fish in this tank.
    The really cool stream tank – I think my little buddy wants to be fed.
    .A description of the “marsh machine” that treats the center’s waste water.
    Here is a view of the marsh machine.

  • Even More State Parks

    Southwestern Pennsylvania is a great area for state parks. In my last post, I explored the state parks with “laurel” in their names (due to the fact they are on or around the long ridge line known as Laurel Mountain). Today we’ll add a few more in the area.

    Starting in Bedford County, I exited the turnpike at Bedford and soon found myself a Shawnee State Park. This park has a large lake, campground, beach, disc golf, hiking, fishing and other amenities.

    Boats at Shawnee State Park

    The following day I went to check out Kooser State Park. This one also has a lake with fishing, hiking and picnicking. There is also a very nice small cabin colony there.

    A peek at Kooser State Park.

    On my way to Laurel Summit State Park, I passed through Linn Run State Park. This a beautiful, forested park follows along the course of Linn Run. It is adjacent to the Forbes State forest. It offers stream fishing, hiking, picnicking and has a beautiful cabin colony for overnight stays. Admas Falls on Linn Run is a favorite scenic spot and has a picnic table available.

    Falls on Linn Run

  • In Search of Laurels

    I spent Labor Day weekend in the Laurel Highlands with a stay at the cabins in Laurel Hill State Park. I also set out to visit some of the other state parks in the area, as well as a few other locations. Let’s start off with a look at my home base for the weekend.

    Laurel Hill State Park contains a lake with a beach, boating opportunities, hiking trails, fishing, picnicking, camping and all the summer time fun that accompanies those things. It is located in Somerset County and reasonably convenient to the turnpike. The park is near several other state parks and Forbes State Forrest.

    Men working for the WPA and CCC began the process of building what was to become Laurel Hill State Park on July 1, 1935 at CCC camps SP-8-PA and SP-16-PA. There is statue in the park commemorating these workers.

    CCC worker, Laurel Hill State Park

    The lake is beautiful and surrounded by steep hills on one side.

    The beach at Laurel Hill State Park.
    Looking toward the dam.

    There is fishing on Laurel Hill Creek and Jones Mill Run.

    View of Laurel Hill Creek from accessible fishing area.
    Handicapped access to fishing area on Laurel Hill Creek surrounded by beautiful flowers.
    Lovely jewelweed along the path down to the creek.

    I also stopped at some of the other nearby parks. I had quite a time getting to some of them, mostly due to relying too heavily on google maps. I ended up on some really sketchy forest roads, and I’m not typically one to shy away from a forest road. If I had double checked google’s routes versus a map, I would have done much better. At least I a saw a turkey.

    Laurel Summit State Park is a small park with picnicking and acts as a trail head for the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail and other trails. It is best accessed via Linn Run State Park. This route provides paved roads for most of the trip up the mountain to the park.

    Picnic pavilion, Laurel Summit State Park.

    Laurel Ridge State Park has multiple sections along the ridge of Laurel Mountain. The Laurel Highlands Hiking Trails passes through its sections. It is otherwise mostly undeveloped except for backpacking shelters and one picnic pavilion. The best access points are directly on Route 30 or 31 if you want to say you’ve been there and aren’t hiking or wildlife watching.

    Sign for Laurel Ridge State Park. This may be the only way you know you’re there.

    Finally, I attempted to visit Laurel Mountain State Park, which houses a ski area. I was there many years ago and hoped to drive in and take a look. Unfortunately, the gates were closed in the off season.

  • Outdoor Tubbing Update

    My little balcony water garden seems to be doing pretty well. There has been some growth on the plants. I removed six baby plants from the water hyacinth. No wonder they are highly invasive in warmer climates, I added 11 long fin white cloud mountain minnows. So far, they seem to be doing well. I removed the pot scrubber islands for the birds about as soon as I installed them, realizing that the birds would probably just get entangled.

    Balcony tub with new growth. The spearwort looks great and the equisetum is getting some height..

  • Back to Lancaster County for Something Different

    I traveled to Lancaster yesterday to pet superstore That Fish Place/That Pet Place to check out a small vendor and hobbyist swap they were hosting in conjunction with the Aquarium Club of Lancaster. It was a great event. especially if you were in the market for cichlids or plants. Alas, as I was looking for some specific types of community fish, shrimp and snails, I didn’t get anything. The store is well worth checking out, and I bought some supplies – some fish food, nitrifying bacteria supplement for a new tank and test strips. One of the coolest things in the store is this shallow ray tank:

    Check out the rays and other fish. Excuse the glare and reflections.

    I took route 741 across Lancaster County and saw quite few buggies and horse plow teams out on a sunny Saturday. Hopefully I can get back for some pictures soon. I also stopped at Stuaffers to pick up some catnip plants for my cat, Kona. He wouldn’t be happy if I came back empty handed.

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