One of Pennsylvania’s iconic state parks is Kinzua Bridge. There is a large visitor center and an opportunity to walk out onto the old railroad viaduct with impressive views of the valley below.
The Viaduct was once the longest and tallest railroad structure at 2,053 feet long and 301 feet high. It was partially destroyed by a tornado during 2003. Reinvented as a pedestrian walkway in 2011, visitors can stroll 600 feet out on the remaining support towers, peer miles out into the Kinzua Gorge, and gaze down through the partial glass platform at the end of the walkway. The Kinzua Bridge State Park Visitor Center features great views, self-guiding exhibits, and information about the surrounding area.
A view to the valley below. This photo really doesn’t do it justice.Some exhibits in the Visitor’s Center.A unexpected photo op – the Swedish Viking Ship sculpture in nearby Mt. Jewett.
After an overnight stay in the Dubois area, I headed north to Bendigo and Elk State Park. The small Bendigo has a swimming pool and fishing and kayaking in the east branch of the Clarion River. Here are a couple of looks at the pool.
A bit further north is Elk State Park which boasts a large reservoir and a campground. The lake is large enough for unlimited horsepower boating. I have included a few shots of the lake, dam and a cabin the camping area.
Simon B. Elliott State Park and Parker Dam State Park are two parks that offer great access to the area of the “Pennsylvania Wilds” and the Elk Visitor Center. I wanted to check them out to for potential future trips to the area. The first stop was S.B. Elliott. It was gray and raining when I arrived. This park features a lot of interesting CCC built structures surrounded by the Moshannon State Forest, including rustic cabins.
Parker Dam is not far away from S.B. Elliott. As the DCNR website says “a scenic lake, rustic cabins, quaint campground, and unbounded forest make Parker Dam an ideal spot for a relaxing vacation.” This park is great for access to hiking and mountain biking, including a walk through tornado ravaged woods. The lake offers swimming, boating and fishing. Stay overnight in a cabin or in the campgrounds. You may even see some elk.
The beach.The Parker Dam dam.The unique octagonal Tyler Log Cabin is available for rent.
I had previously travelled through this area in Union and Clinton Counties but did not have the opportunity to visit all of the state parks. I routed myself through this area on my way to western Pennsylvania. My first stop was Sand Bridge State Park, the smallest state park, which occupies three acres. It is used for picnicking and fishing.
I next made a quick stop at the lake and dam overlook at Raymond B. Winter State Park on my way to McCalls Dam State Park. I had previously been to RB Winter and hope to return to do some camping. This park has a wide variety of activities including hiking, fishing, swimming, camping and mountain biking.
The nearby McCalls Dam State Park is also one of the state’s smallest, consisting of a picnic area along with access to hiking, hunting and fishing in Bald Eagle State Forest. I first stopped at a scenic overlook on McCalls Dam Road on my way to the park. Note that even the state can’t decide if there is an “s” in the name of this park or not.
The last stop in this cluster of parks was Ravensburg State Park. It lies in a narrow gorge carved by Rauchtown Run. It was a popular spot with local Amish couples out for a drive on this Sunday afternoon. This lovely spot provides camping, picnicking, hiking, hunting and fishing opportunities. I managed to miss the entrance into a section of the park, but this is a location which will be easy for me to get back to.
Before we head to western Pennsylvania, let’s take a look at some shots from a nice Spring day in Lancaster County. It was a good day for photography, the sun was shining and the cows seemed happy.
A few weeks ago, I took a long awaited trip to areas of Western Pennsylvania that I have not been to in quite a while. Blog posts from this trip should be online in upcoming weeks.
As part of my recent experimentation of getting back into film photography, I took out my Canon A2E for the first time to shoot some black and white at Evansburg State Park. Here are some of the results.
A day out in the rural areas of Lancaster County will provide many encounters with horse drawn buggies, whether in motion or stationery. Sundays tend to be particularly busy, with people going to church or visiting neighbors.
A small child looks on …Traffic Gap with a miniature of the Clock Tower (full size below).People who drive buggies need to shop too. Stores in the area often have hitches, or even simple open sheds, for horse parking.
I have been working on doing a little more film photography these days, which is something I haven’t done much of in over 20 years. The experiment started with a Lomography 120 film camera which is a little more than a toy. I have never used 120 film before, so I didn’t know what to expect. The results weren’t too awful – kind of arty in a good way, including some interesting double exposures. These are views around Tredyffin Township, Chester County. Better pictures will return soon. LOL
Below are a few photographs of a favorite corner of northwestern Chester County. I go here in hopes of finding some grassland species of birds that sometimes frequent farmers fields. So far I have just found horned larks, but there have been snow buntings, eastern meadowlarks and others spotted in the area, so you never know ….
I have better luck with ponies and goats.One of the many beautiful farms.I love the trees around this farmstead.A subject you may have seen here before …and another view.Another impressive farm.
