The (Not so) Rural Pennsylvanian

  • A Wintery Lock 60

    The Schuylkill River once had a navigation along its length. A few structures associated with this waterway remain – including Lock 60 at Mont Clare, Montgomery County. I visited on Valentine’s Day as part of a trip along the River to look for waterfowl. A few areas of the River that were free of ice had groups of ducks, including Hooded and Common Mergansers, Goldeneye, Mallard, Greater Scaup, Ring-necked, Bufflehead and a rarity – the Tufted Duck.

    Lock 60 is a fully restored, working lock on the Schuylkill Canal, originally built as part of the Schuylkill Navigation system. The lock is demonstrated for groups and during special events by the Schuylkill Canal Association. This lock, one of 71 originally built on the canal, was constructed in the 1820s and was originally part of the Oakes Reach. The site includes the original Locktender’s house as well as canal information and interpretation. The house is open by appointment and during special events. 

    The lock gates

    Some views of the lockkeeper’s house.

    The Locktender’s House

    Some looks along the Canal and the River – sadly no ducks were present here, as both areas were covered in ice.

  • A Lucky Birding Day

    This winter has been particularly harsh, with prolonged periods of below average temperatures that have kept me trapped at home when the snow fails to melt around my car. I did, however, manage to travel to a farming area in northwestern Chester County to do some birding on New Year’s weekend.

    This area is known for attracting winter migrant species that prefer open habitats, such as horned larks, Lapland longspurs, and snow buntings. I have had lucky seeing the horned larks before. This time, I saw the flocks of birds but had difficulty making out individuals with my binoculars or camera. However, a popular bird sound id app did pick up all of the species above, including the snow bunting and longspur. To access this site, one has to try to pull off by the side of the road and sit an wait. There was one other car during the time I was there. The locals must think we are crazy.

    In terms of pictures, I had to content myself with scenes of the local area.

    Gee, this farm looks familiar.
    Cows sheltering in the woods.

    I made my way home via Marsh Creek State Park. Alas, the gull photos I took there were too distant and blurry.

    A pensive scene on an overcast day.

  • McCalls Dam Road Vista in October

    The scenic vista on McCalls Dam Road in Clinton County provided a good overview of the area’s fall foliage. I felt this year’s foliage was not spectacular, but still nice, perhaps due to warm and dry conditions in the preceding weeks. This vista sits above Raymond B. Winter State Park, and the road is paved from that park to this location. It is also south of McCalls Dam State Park on the same road. Confusingly, there is no longer a dam at McCalls Dam. The small park is adjacent to White Deer Creek, and the surrounding forest contains pines, hemlocks, maples, and oaks. There is a small picnic area with picnic tables and and a bench next to the creek. The park also provides access to hunting, fishing and hiking.

    Here is an actual dam at Raymond B. Winter State Park.

    A view of the lake and the beach.

  • Ravensburg Revisit

    I made a quick stop at Ravensburg State Park on my way home from the Pine Creek area because I realized I had missed most of its features on my first trip. Ravensburg is small wooded park with picnicking, hiking, hunting and fishing, and a rustic campground. The campground was already closed for the season in mid-October.

    The park lies in a cozy, steep-walled gorge carved by Rauchtown Run through the side of Nippenose Mountain. A northern hardwood forest blankets the bottomland along this spring-fed stream.

    Talus (rock) covered slopes and interesting rock formations are interspersed among a stunted oak forest growing on the steep mountainsides and ridges. This pretty valley is especially beautiful when the mountain laurel blooms during late June and during the fall foliage of October.

  • Why is There a Graveyard Next to My Yurt

    I was surprised to find a small cemetery next to my yurt at the Little Pine State Park campground.

    It seems this cemetery was part of the town of English Mills. As is sadly the case with many large reservoirs and lakes in the state, communities are flooded to make way for them.

    During 1782, the first American settlers in the Little Pine Valley were brothers John and James English. These brothers built two sawmills along Little Pine Creek in 1809, one of which was at the southern end of the present park boundary. The village of English Mills was established in 1816 and housed the families of the loggers, occupying what is now the park campground. The cemetery of English Mills is on a small knoll in the middle of the campground.

    Another prominent name in local history is Robert Carson. He was the first of his line to settle in the Little Pine Valley, and his descendants, who made homes near his homestead, gave rise to the village of Carsontown. Robert Carson was one of the first farmers in the area, and also operated a sawmill. The Carsontown cemetery can be found at the northern end of the park.

    Some other views around the campground.
    These trees seem much taller than when I first visited the area and largely obscure the view of the dam from the campground.
    Views of the yurt and the interior (below).
    The neighbors.

  • It’s Not a Grand Canyon

    Pine Creek Gorge is a 47-mile (76 km) gorge carved into the Allegheny Plateau by Pine Creek in north-central Pennsylvania. It sits in about 160,000 acres (650 km2) of the Tioga State Forest. The gorge begins south of Ansonia, near Wellsboro, along U.S. Route 6 and continues south. Its deepest point is 1,450 feet (440 m) at Waterville, near the southern end.

    The Gorge has the unfortunate nickname of “The Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania.” Not only is this a wild exaggeration, but the area’s unique beauty deserves to stand on its own and does not require comparison. The area most associated with the Gorge is near Leonard Harrison and Colton Point State Parks, where it is more than 800 feet (240 m) deep and the distance rim-to-rim is about 4,000 feet (1,200 m). I visited Leonard Harrison in October.

    The Visitor’s Center
    The view down into the Gorge.
    That’s Pine Creek down there.

  • Little Pine Redux

    Little Pine State Park has many lovely spots away from the main day use area. The first location going north from Waterville is the Little Pine Lower Picnic Area. On that day, it was showing its fall colors.

    Little Pine State Park also has an archery and a shooting range. to the north of the main day use area. These features are unusual in a Pennsylvania state park.

    The archery range.
    This is one of the nicest shooting ranges I’ve seen in the state.

  • On Little Pine Creek

    My Autumn destination this October was Little Pine State Park in northern Lycoming County. The 2,158-acre Little park is surrounded by a beautiful mountain section of Tiadaghton State Forest . The 45-acre Little Pine Lake, hiking trails, campground, and nesting bald eagles are prime features of the park, along with nearby access to Pine Creek.

    During 1933, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built Camp S-129-PA and a small picnic area along Little Pine Creek. During 1937, the camp was closed and the property turned over to the Bureau of State Parks. When the park opened, it used many of the CCC buildings. In 1950, a dual-purpose flood control/recreation dam was constructed. The park remained a picnic area until the campground, beach, and swimming area were constructed in 1958. In 1972, Hurricane Agnes flooded and destroyed many park facilities, including all but a few remnants of the former CCC facilities. Hurricane Agnes was the only time water went over the spillway. In 1975-76, federal disaster aid helped build a new beach house, office, maintenance area, and a new campground with modern restrooms. As part of the “Growing Greener” initiative, several major improvements began in 2002, including, enlarging and modernizing the park office and putting showers in the campground.

    Below are photos of the lake and day use area.

    A gaggle of geese.

  • A Pair of Parks

    A trip into Bucks County led me to several covered bridges. Near the Cabin Run Covered Bridge is Tohickon Valley Park, a pleasnt spot with parking, picnic tables and fishing access to the Tohickon Creek. It is close to several other county parks. The 612-acre Tohickon park also has playgrounds,hiking, ball fields, and a swimming pool in season. Overnight stays include group and family camping and cabins on 22 campsites. It is deceptively large, which is why I missed a portion of it when I was there.

    Views of Tohickon Creek.

    Nockamixon State Park has been featured on this blog before.so I will not go into detail here. It is a large park in Bucks County with a lake, full service marina, hiking, picnicking, hunting and fishing. It is actually a decent location for astronomy close to the city of Philadelphia. The Tohickon boat launch area is used for astronomy and provides fairly open horizons and a 20.10 mag/arssec^2 sky.

    Almost sunset, but not quite.

  • A Park and a Historic Church

    The Willows Park Preserve in northwestern Delaware Country has been a popular spot for birding, fishing, picnicking and walking for decades. Built in 1910, the Willows Mansion is surrounded by 47.5 acres of public park with water, meadow, woodland and garden views. Closed for nearly a decade, the deteriorating mansion sits idle while park life carries on. However, efforts to restore the Mansion are ongoing. It was once a very popular wedding reception venue.

    The pond, fed by Little Darby Creek, is popular with fisherman. The stream is stocked.
    Who you looking at?
    Some interesting tiles on the bridge over Little Darby.
    He’s behind me, right? Parent Robin pursued by begging fledgling.
    A good look at a fledgling robin.
    Looks like a female red-winged blackbird.

    I made another stop that day at St. Davids Church, which lies mostly within Radnor Township, Delaware County. The parish is more than 300 years old. Toward the close of the seventeenth century, a hardy group of Welsh colonists settled in an area which became known as Radnor. In 1704, a 100-signature petition for Welsh prayer books and a Bible, but more particularly for a Welsh-speaking missionary, was dispatched to the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in London. Ten years later, in return for this long-awaited recognition, the settlers “heartily engaged themselves to build a handsome stone church,” to be named after the Patron Saint of Wales. The cornerstone was laid on May 9, 1715.

    With the coming of the Revolution in the colonies, a rapidly swelling wave of resentment against the Church of England arose among the patriots of the congregation. A leader of this opposition was Anthony Wayne, later appointed major general of the American forces, who is buried in St. David’s historic churchyard. The church building provided shelter for soldiers of both sides.

    A view of the original church.
    The churchyard is a tranquil place.
    Some lovely color on these trees in late Spring.
    As an old church, there are some interesting mausoleums.
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