Christy, Saucony, and I traveled to central Pennsylvania last week to visit her family and enjoy a long weekend. After a fun-filled fourth that included briefly setting the neighbors grass on fire with an illegal rocket, I was ready to do some hiking. We were staying at her family's camp near the Quehanna and Elk State Forests, and I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity. Christy wanted to spend the day with her family, but she graciously dropped me off at the trailhead at 8:30.
The Quehanna Trail makes a long loop (70 miles or so?) through the State Forest. It is mainly known for its thriving Elk herd, which was re-introduced some years ago. After much deliberation, I selected a section beginning at Wykoff Run. I followed the trail up along a tributary, but quickly climbed away from the stream. I passed the remains of an old house which looked like it came from the set of "The Blair Witch Project". I checked it out briefly, but soon I was hiking on.
The biggest attraction of the Quehanna State Forest is the wildlife. I had left Saucony behind in hopes of seeing more animals. However, the first two wildlife encounters were heard, but not seen. Above me, I heard the distinctive sound of turkeys gobbling. A few minutes later, there was a tremendous splash in the creek far below. I don't know what it was, but it was huge. It could've been a big deer, but it seems more likely that it was an elk or a bear.
The trail passed through a thicket of mountain laurel which was still blooming. Unfortunately it had rained the previous night, and soon I was soaked from the wet leaves. Eventually though the thicket ended and I entered an open forest full of ferns. Here I saw the first of 5 deer that day. The trail then passed through a beautiful meadow before heading into another fern filled forest.
The second meadow I reached was full of blueberries. Only a few on each bush were ripe, but the bushes were everywhere. Almost the entire hike passed through blueberries. I hadn't needed to pack a lunch. Luckily I didn't see another person all day. Otherwise, my blue face might have been hard to explain.
I eventually crossed a dirt road and reached the first vista of the day. It was a nice view, looking out from the plateau to one of the valleys below. I enjoyed an early lunch here, of which blueberries were only a part. From there, I passed Arch Spring and some truly outstanding campsites. The best spots were at the foundation of an old building, in the middle of another fern filled woodland.
That afternoon I was startled by grouse on two occasions. The biggest excitement came though while I was consulting the map. I heard a loud snort (!) from the woods behind me. An Elk! I bushwhacked into the thicket, but he was long gone when I reached his spot. However, he did leave his calling card in a big pile back in the woods.
Later I took a side trip out to the "Gore Vista". This turned out to be the biggest disappointment of the trip. The summit was heavily forested, and there was only a narrow, restricted view of the next peak. When I arrived, the clouds were building, but somehow I escaped. The clouds came and went, though I found out later that camp had gotten a lot of rain.
The last couple of miles took me through the Wykoff Natural Area. This stretch of woods featured some large hemlocks and some paper birch. The hiking here was extremely pleasant and quiet.
I met Christy a few minutes before our scheduled meeting time. We drove back to camp, while I looked back on my hike. In 14 miles, I had seen all kinds of wildlife, but no other people. The scenery was nice, but the wildlife and solitude stole the show. Upon further review, I'd say that north central PA is clearly an under-rated hiking destination. I'm certainly looking forward to getting back up there.
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