To me, Pennsylvania always seemed like the worst state; I felt a great deal of disappointment every time I visited the West Coast, or even most other places on the East Coast, then came back home to my suburban town right outside of Philadelphia. Our “mountains” are actually hills that always seem to have a big deforested strip right through the top for telephone wires, our oceans are overcrowded, and our rivers are polluted by all the leachate escaping local landfills or sewage plants.
It wasn’t until this past summer when the pandemic hit that I was able to investigate and find some really unique and exciting adventures in my previously despised home. In fact, throughout my voyages, I began to enjoy Pennsylvania more than I had enjoyed different trips to New Hampshire and Vermont in the past. In this post, I’ll share my different thoughts and experiences visiting these beautiful landmarks, as well as information on how to get to them.
1. Ohiopyle State Park
Ohiopyle is located along the Youghiogheny River just about an hour and a half south-east of Pittsburgh. It offers a variety of activities and attractions, such as white water rafting, canoeing/kayaking, biking, and hiking/camping near 30 foot tall waterfalls and swimming holes. However, these are not the only adventures; hidden along the Meadow Run tributary river are natural water slides.
The limestone rocks carved by the stream creates a smooth and enjoyable ride for anyone interested in a natural water park experience. It is, however, important to mention that the Meadow Run parking lot fills up fast, so these slides are best visited in the early morning or evening right before sunset.
2. The Black Forest Trail and The Grand Canyon of PA
For those interested in a multi-day adventure way off the beaten path, the Black Forest Trail (BFT) is certainly the way to go. I first heard about the BFT when my plans to backpack in the White Mountains of New Hampshire were squashed by a COVID scare; I had to reschedule the trip and shorten the amount of days camping/hiking. This limited me to backpacking somewhere in a three hour radius of my house near Philly.
The Black Forest Trail is a 42.3 mile lightly trafficked backpacking loop nestled right on and in the Pine Creek Gorge, also known as the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania. It is rated moderate, which in my opinion and that of others I met along the trail, is certainly an understatement; during certain portions of the BFT, hikers march straight up mountains only to drop right back into the valley with barely any switchbacks. However, don’t be discouraged; although it is strenuous at times, there are stretches of flat that allow for recovery and there are incredible views of both the gorge and surrounding dense state forests. The backcountry camping is also incredible; there are options all over the place, and the sites are very comfortable and rustic.
Here are some other surprises worth mentioning: I hiked the BFT in the beginning of August, which happens to be mating season for rattlesnakes. I came across three during my three days of hiking; I was not expecting this at the beginning of the hike, so the first one I encountered was a very close call and could have ended badly. I’d suggest studying the route each morning before packing up camp to understand exactly where road intersections are just in case something went wrong and there is no access to a satellite phone.
Speaking of safety, I would definitely recommend downloading the map of the BFT on your phone before setting off. Personally, I did not want to pay for a membership to Alltrails or GAIA GPS, so I downloaded the GAIA GPS map of the BFT to my phone’s cache, then downloaded the trail .gpx file from Alltrails on my phone. I then uploaded the Alltrails .gpx file to the GAIA GPS map in my cache. In order to do this, both the GAIA GPS and Alltrails apps are needed. Bring extra phone batteries as back up to ensure access to this map throughout the entire trip!
3. Loyalsock State Forest
Finally, I think it is certainly worth taking the time to mention my trip to the Loyalsock State Forest. The Loyalsock State Forest is probably best known for being home to many waterfalls. However, when I visited with my sister, we went to a lesser known gem along Rock Run called the Rock Run Swimming Hole. Rock Run is a small river constructed very similarly as that of Meadow Run mentioned earlier: the water flows over patches of limestone, which sculpts it into a smooth looking “waterslide”. However, this time, visitors don’t slide down the river; they swim in blue-water swimming holes and cliff-jump off waterfalls.
This was certainly my favorite day trip this summer. My sister and I walked from the first swimming hole (pictured above) all the way up stream to the upper falls swimming hole. There were lots of small pools to relax in and enjoy the surrounding nature.
If you are like me and find it hard to appreciate the state you were born in, a simple Pinterest search goes a long way; I found all of these locations by typing in key words of interest into Pinterest, such as, “blue water PA”, “multi-day backpacking PA”, and “swimming holes PA”, and those searches changed my entire perception of my state. I hope you enjoyed, and please comment below if you have any questions or want more information on different gems in PA!