Pine Creek Gorge – The Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania

After our recent visit to the Grand Canyon, we wanted to stop over by the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania. I know you would be wondering about the Grand Canyon in PA. In fact, we were also in complete surprise when we heard about the Grand Canyon PA. Since then, it was on our “Must Visit” list and it was just 4 hours away from Pittsburgh.  Our friend, Saravanan visited us last weekend. What would be a perfect occasion to visit Grand Canyon? We wanted to show him the canyon in PA. By the way, he lives in Vegas and has visited Grand Canyon almost five times.

What do you mean by Grand Canyon of PA?

The Pine Creek Gorge surrounded approximately by 165,000 acres of the Tioga State Forest is known as the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania. The gorge winds its way through a vast land of breathtaking beauty. The canyon begins at Ansonia, along Route 6 near the beautiful town Wellsboro and runs for 47 miles through Tioga County and Lycoming counties. Within the canyon lies Pine Creek, a tributary of the Susquehanna River.  The west branch Pine Creek and Marsh Creek join at the entrance of the Pine Creek and flows through the length of the canyon. The gorge is drop-dead gorgeous and received the National Acclaim in 1968. A 12-mile section of the gorge is designated as the National Natural Landmark.

Formation of the Gorge:

Before ice age, glaciers covered this part of Pennsylvania, the course of Pine Creek was separated by the Highland divide. The streams north of this divide flowed to the northeast while the streams to the south flowed southwest. Over a million years ago, an advancing ice sheet –The Laurentide Continental Glacier, blocked the north- and east-flowing streams. Meltwater lakes formed in the valleys. Over the next thousand years, ice sheets advanced and receded over Pine Creek Gorge several times. The flow of the gorge is reversed to the current southerly flow.  Each period of glacial scouring and water erosion played its part in the formation of Pennsylvania’s Grand Canyon. The Meltwater Lake in the Upper Pine Creek – crooked creek valley overflowed into a powerful waterfall in the shallow dip of the highland divide. The force of the water began to deepen the Pine Creek Gorge. The deepest section of the canyon is 1450 feet at Waterville, near the southern end.

We planned to visit the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania during the July 4^th long weekend. Our plan was to start from Burgh around 9 on Saturday morning, once Saravanan reaches Burgh. We planned to visit the state parks – Leonard Harrison and Colton Point State Parks which offer beautiful vistas with spectacular scenic viewpoints of the Pine Creek Gorge. The Pine Creek Rail Trail, which is often rated as one of the top 10 places to take a bike tour, is a 65-mile bike trail running along the Pine Creek and is a must –visit. Hikers and bikers consider this trail as paradise and bike for about two days along the Central Railroad. We are neither experienced hikers nor long distance bikers to visit the Pine Creek Rail Trail. Hence, we planned to visit the state parks and do short hikes.

It was a pleasant Saturday morning and we started around 9:30 from Burgh. After continuous drive for about 2 hours, we stopped to have our caffeine in a small village. And then, the accident happened. A car while backing up hit the left corner of our car in the parking lot. It was a sudden blow and thank God, Subaru saved us. We were enjoying our lunch and then, a sudden hit at the back shocked us. After discussion with the other person, we started from the parking lot after an hour. SJ felt pain in his lower back. We wanted to do a thorough check up before proceeding, hence we headed to Med Express. After an hour wait, the doctor examined and confirmed that it’s just a muscle tension and suggested him to consume muscle relaxant.  Our plan was to reach Leonard Harrison Park by Saturday afternoon and do a short hike before heading to the campground in the late evening.  As we had an unexpected accident on the way, we changed our plan and reached the campground. We reserved our visit to the park for the next day. We had booked the campsite in the Canyon Country Campground. Yay, our first camping. It’s been our long-term desire to go for camping and we were excited about it. Let me write about our first camping experience in a separate post.

We camped for the night in the campground – had a chit chat, did camp fire, played cards. It rained for the entire night and it was an exciting experience to sleep in a tent hearing the tune of rain. We planned to visit Leonard Harrison Park on Sunday morning and Colton Point State Park in the afternoon. We wanted to do short hikes and hence, we started earlier from the campground.

Over Look Tower:

There is an overlook tower near the Grand Canyon Campground. One could see the board with the directions to the tower on the roads. The tower is open from dawn to dusk and costs $3.00 per person. One could climb up 120 steps in the old tower to reach the top and the tower offers a scenic view from the treetop. Exercise caution while climbing up the tower.

Leonard Harrison State Park

The Leonard Harrison State Park is located on the east rim of the canyon and the park spans over an area of 585 acres. The state park offers the most beautiful views of the canyon, picnic tables, fire rings, and campsites. The park is open from mid-April through late-October. We reached the park around 9 on Sunday morning and planned to do the hikes in the park. There are two hiking trails in the Leonard Harrison State Park – Overlook Trail and the Turkey Path. The park has accessible platforms near the visitor center which offers a gorgeous view of the canyon from 800 feet.

Overlook Trail – 0.6 mile

Overlook trail is the easiest hike which would approximately take about 30 -40 minutes. The loop passes through the Otter view, a viewpoint which offers the impressive view of the south side of the canyon.

Turkey Path – 2 miles round trip

If you are looking for a challenging hike, then I will highly recommend doing this hike. This is a difficult trail which descends steeply one mile to the bottom of the Pine Creek Gorge. The trails descend to the river flowing through the canyon and one could view the mountain on the other side, however, there is no bridge to cross the Pine Creek Gorge. The upper part of the trail descends through a series of the switchbacks to a view of Little Four- Mile run at 0.5 miles, then on a short distance to the first waterfall. The lowest part of the trail is the series of waterfalls and ends at the Pine Creek Trail. The trail was improvised with the wooden steps, decks, and bridges which help the hikers. One could witness the most beautiful waterfalls along the trail and exercise extreme caution in case if you would love to view the waterfall close by, like what we did. The down hike is comparatively easy than the return trip which was a steep upward hike. We did hike in the morning when the sun was mild and was less crowded by the hikers. Early hiking will also have clean wooden steps without the muddy patches on it.

It took almost 1.5 hours for the roundtrip. After the hike, we treated ourselves with the maple walnut ice cream sold at the park to gain those calories which we burnt during our hike.

We then visited Colton Point State Park after our lunch.

Colton Point State Park

The 368 –acre Colton Point State Park is located on the West Rim of the Grand Canyon and offers the rustic charm of the Civilian Conservation Corps era of the 1930s. The rugged overlooks offer some great views of the gorge. We planned to do trails in the Colton Point State Park – Rim Trail and Turkey Path.

Rim Trail – 1 mile

This is the easiest hiking in the park and links all of the overlook view areas into an easy hike. It is a flat hike and everyone can do it. We did Rim trail and then planned to do Turkey path.

There is another West Rim Trail, a 30-mile trail which follows the western edge of the Ping Creek Gorge from Ansonia to Blackwell passes through Colton Point State Park.

Turkey Path – 3 miles round trip

This is the difficult trail with narrow paths descending 1.5 miles steeply to the floor of the canyon. Again there is no bridge at the lower part of the trail to cross the Pine Creek Gorge. We wanted to do the Turkey path but then returned half way as the path was too narrow and we expected a downpour which would make the return trip difficult with the watery path. There is a 70-foot waterfall along the trail which we wanted to visit but then returned due to the climatic and the path conditions.

We had half a day to do other activities and explore the nearby area.

Pine Creek Rail Trail

The Pine Creek Rail Trail is rated as one of the “10 great places to take a bike tour” by USA Today. The trail is open year around and offers recreational activities in the Endless Mountains. The trail is approximately 62 miles long with a 2% grade over its entire length and travels through the Gorge starting at the Wellsboro Junction and ending at Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania. The trail is a hard-packed gravel surface available to hikers and bikers. We really wanted to do the trail but then we are not experienced hikers or bikers to do 62 miles trail. But then, there are a lot of options available to do the trail like Biking, Hiking, Wagon Rides, Kayaking, rafting, canoeing trips, Horseback rides and shuttle services. There are campgrounds available near the north and south end of the trails.

The entire biking trail is a great place to immerse yourself in the beauty of the endless mountains and enjoy the tranquility. Apart from the green lush, the trail is also home for the wildlife like a bald eagle, whitetail deer, beavers, raccoons, rattlesnakes, opossums and black bear. Not the entire trail runs through the Gorge, it winds its way through country inns, restaurants, ice cream shops and general stores which provide a stopover spot to relax oneself in calm and serene small towns along the trail.

History says the Seneca Indians used the Pine Creek Path as a link between the Great Shamokin Path along the Susquehanna River and the Iroquois settlements along the Genessee River in New York. The route was first developed for commercial use in 1893 when the Jersey Shore, Pine Creek, and Buffalo Railway built railroad tracks to service area sawmills during the great timber boom of the turn of the century. Ownership and use of the corridor shifted multiple times between timber, coal, and other industries, and ended in 1988 with the last Conrail freight train passing through on October 7.

Almost immediately the Rails to Trails Conservancy began lobbying the state legislature to acquire the route for recreational development. After some discussion, the trail was purchased from Conrail for a whopping $1.00. The Pine Creek Rail Trail opened in 1996 and follows the river for all but seven miles of its route, passing through two state forests (the Tioga to the north and the Tiadahton to the south) and many beautiful wilderness scenes.

Though we couldn’t do the entire trail, we wanted to try a short hike in the limited time we had on our hand. There are many stopping points in the Trail and Pine Creek Outfitters offers bike rentals, rafting trips, and shuttle services. They do drop offs, pickups, transport your own cars and gears to the desired locations. We wanted to do a short hike either by biking or by using their shuttle service. But then, we were tired as we squeezed two day’s plan into one. There are many stop points along the trail and Pine Creek Outfitters offer shuttle services till the points from where you can do a hike or bike around. I highly recommend you to check their site to know the schedule and timings as they have prescribed pick up time and points. I have included the trail map below which would give more insights about the trail.

Covered Wagon Rides:

There are wagon rides available for a certain distance in the Pine Creek Trail and we wanted to try it out.  Wagon rides are offered by Ole Covered Wagon Tours located 12 miles west of Wellsboro on Route 6. The wagon tours is a family owned business operated in the Tioga County and offers guided rides along the trail narrating the tales of the trail.

They offer Waterfall rides, fall foliage rides and summer classic tour along the pine creek trail, where the visitors will be taken in a covered wagons driven by horses with a knowledgeable guide narrating the tales of the gorge.

Most of the recreational activities are not operated on Sundays and this was the first time, the wagon tours were operated on Sundays due to the overwhelming response from the visitors. We called to block our seats for the afternoon ride but then the owner replied they operated on Sunday for the first time in their history and it was booked completely. Hence, we were not able to do wagon rides.

I highly recommend checking their schedule and plan accordingly. If you are visiting the Gorge on Sunday, you might miss most of the activities.

S.No	Rides	Season	Day	Time	Rates	Duration	Highlight
1	Summer  Classic Wagon Tour	May 20 – Sep 1	Thursday, Friday, Saturday	10:30 & 2:30	$25	2 Hours
2	Summer Waterfall Rides	May 20 – Sep 1	Wednesday	2:30	$40	3 ½ to 4 hours	Little four mile falls
3	Fall Foliage Waterfall Rides	Sep 6  – Sep 26	Wednesday	2:30	$40	3 ½ to 4 hours	Little four mile falls
4	Fall Foliage   Classic Wagon Tour	Sep 1 – Oct 28	Thursday, Friday, Saturday	10:30 & 2:30	$25	2 Hours

 

Choose your way to visit Pine Creek Rail Trail

There are numerous way to do the Pine Creek Rail Trail

• Do a wagon ride offered by Ole Covered Wagon Tours.
• Take a shuttle and get dropped at your desired point on the trail. Do a hike or bike from the point. Get picked again at your desired location. Please ensure to check their shuttle timings before your proceed.
• Get your own and bike along the Trail. Usually, it takes two days to complete the trail in bikes. There are campgrounds available in the trail which needs a reservation.
• Rent a bike and bike according to your desire.
• Enjoy an hour or 2 hour horseback trail ride offered by Tioga Trail Rides.
• Do a guided Canyon rafting trips offered by Pine Creek Outfitters. The rafting trips are available from March to May as the gorge is not floatable during summer. The trip starts around 8:30 in the morning and ends at 3 Pm near Ansonia where a shuttle picks you back to the initial location. They do provide free buffet lunch at the midpoint.
• Do 2-3 hours guided Upper pine half a day Kayaking trip offered by Pine Creek Outfitters in the upper Pine area. Prior Reservation is needed.
• Do a guided Mountain biking or rock climbing in the wild Asaph area.
• Do a short hike and stay in the campground along the trail for free. There are over 40 short hikes (other than steep turkey path) available in Pine Creek Gorge and Tioga Forest, over 40 hikes in Potter County and the Susquehannock State Forest (which is usually referred as God’s Country) and hikes in Lycoming County and the Tiadaghton State Forest.
• Go for a backpacking trip in any of the below trails
  • West Rim Trail – 30 miles along the western rim of the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon, from Ansonia to Rattlesnake Rocks.
  • The Susquehannock Trail System – 84-mile loop trail through the heart of Potter County, aka God’s Country. Trailheads Denton Hill State Park (N) & Ole Bull State Park (S)
  • The Black Forest Trail – 42-mile loop trail through the rugged and beautiful mountains of the PA Black Forest.
  • The Mid State Trail—320 miles spanning from New York to Maryland.  Connects to the West Rim Trail in Blackwell.  It is also part of the Great Eastern Trail.
• And you can also visit the Pine Creek Gorge by car – but then the route should be followed very accurately and drives through country roads, sometimes through mud roads connecting the vistas and nearby towns. We didn’t try as we were running out of time but then the route map is available in the Tioga County website. Check out here – Vistas Driving Route.
• Whatever may be your need or wish, please ensure to stop by Pine Creek Outfitters for the hiking/biking advice or ensure to purchase the hike guide either online or collect information from the internet, as one would not be able to plan without the expertise and moreover mobile phones will not operate due to the lack of the signal in the gorge.

We hiked Turkey path which led us to the Pine Creek Rail Trail. I should admit that the trail is a hiking paradise and a trail to heaven with the green lush on the sides, river wading its way through the gorge and number of short waterfalls along the trails.

Someday I wish to do biking or a short hike in the Pine Creek Rail Trail and write an entire post about the trail. 

Since we didn’t get our slot in the Wagon tours, we decided to explore the nearby areas and recreational areas.

Tioga Central Railroad

Tioga Central Railroad which is located off of the Route 287 is considered as the Pennsylvania’s most scenic excursion railroad. The offer round trip rides from Memorial Day weekend through late October. The fall foliage season is very popular among tourists and locals alike which run September 24 through the end of the season on October 28. They operate excursion and charter trains on a thirty-four-mile railroad extending north from Wellsboro, Pennsylvania to a location about three miles south of Corning, New York.

They do not recommend reservations but then, since they operate only on specific days, it is better to reserve your seats. The Express does not go through the Canyon but it follows the crooked creek north to beautiful Hammond Lake.

S.NO	Rides	Day	Time	Duration	Highlights
1	Lake Shore Express	Saturday	12:00 PM	1.5 hours	Lake Hammond, Tioga County Countryside – 24 miles
2	Sunset Dinner	Friday, Saturday	5:00 PM	2 hours	Reservation needed. Pre-allocated seats. Dinner included. Operates from Wellsboro to Tioga and return

 

It’s highly disappointing that they don’t operate on Sundays. There are blogs which highly recommend visitors to visit “The Animal Land” near to the Grand Canyon Campground. It is closed permanently now (as of 7/2/2017). Hence, we request visitors as not to plan for the same and return with disappointment. We then visited The Muck.

The Muck

The Muck is located past the Tioga Central Railroad off on the Route 287. Travel to the Marsh Creek wetland viewing blind at the Muck just outside of Wellsboro, and you can see a variety of bird species, waterfowl, and even some larger area mammals. We saw a snake and few birds.

Wellsboro:

Wellsboro is called as the home of the Pennsylvania’s Grand Canyon. It’s a small town with beautiful parks and eating outlets. Take a stroll around the main street, if you have ample amount of time. We stopped for a coffee in the late evening.

We started back to Burgh around late Sunday evening and reached home in the midnight with sore legs.

The Pennsylvania Grand Canyon might not be as magnificent as the real Grand Canyon but then it definitely offers something for everyone who visits the place. If you love camping, biking or hiking, then I highly recommend this place. Escape from the hustle and bustle of the City. Get lost in the endless mountains. Hike around. Appreciate the Nature. Take a deep breath and enjoy the vast wilderness of the mountains. After all, life is too short to restrict yourself within your own home.

To Remember:

• Wear Sturdy boots. Avoid sneakers, sandals, water shoes and street shoes.
• Let someone know where are you hiking and when will you be returning.
• Stay on the trails and follow the directions.
• Don’t take shortcuts from one trail section to another. Taking shortcuts down switchbacks is dangerous and cause damage.
• Leonard Harrison and Colton Point State Park are on the opposite sides of the Pine Creek Gorge. Both state parks offer beautiful vistas of the gorge.
• Leonard Harrison Park
  • Offers beautiful scenic view of the Gorge than the Colton Point State Park
  • Visit the park exhibit near the visitor center
  • Grab the park guide map from the visitor center. The guide has information about both the state parks – Leonard and Colton point.
  • Overlook Trail with Otter View – Easy trail to do
  • Turkey Path – Steep trail with waterfalls on the lower end
    • Ensure to hike the Turkey path in the morning where the wooden path is less slippery and without muddy patches
    • Ensure to carry water bottles
    • The paths are narrow in certain places. Hence, be careful when you hike.
    • Wear good hike shoes. Watch your steps.
    • Exercise extreme caution if you go out your way to visit the waterfalls.
    • The way back to the top will be exhausting. Hence, if you have breathing problems or problems in climbing up, then plan accordingly.
  • Restrooms are available in the park.
  • There is only one shop available in the park premises which sells coffee, ice creams, hot dogs and maple syrup.
  • Campgrounds are available in the park itself but then it requires prior reservation.
• Colton Point State Park
  • Colton Point State Park is not as well maintained as Leonard Harrison Park.
  • Offer Picnic areas which need reservations.
  • Mobile Toilets are available.
  • Rim Trail is the easiest trail to do. The West Rim Trail also runs through the Colton Point State Park. Ensure not to get confused with both the trails
  • Turkey path – Steep trail which descends down the gorge.
    • The paths are very narrow unlike the one in Leonard Harrison Park.
    • Wear good hike shoes. Watch your steps.
    • Carry enough water bottles.
    • There are more insects in the turkey path in Colton Park than the other one. Ensure to carry insect repellant with you.
    • There are no shops available in the Colton point state park.
• There are many campsites available near to the Grand Canyon. Ensure to read the review and reserve in advance if you would like to camp near the canyon.
• Ensure to check the weather before you plan for a hike.
• Grab the park guide booklet/hike guide map from the visitor’s bureau as you might get lost easily in the mountains.
• Wagon rides operate only on certain days. Please plan accordingly and reserve in advance.
• Tioga Central Railroad operates only on certain days in a week. Please plan accordingly and reserve in advance.
• There are not many shops inside both the parks. Hence, please plan your food accordingly.
• The Animal Land is closed permanently based on the court order as animals are treated badly in the place.
• There are various ways to visit Pine Creek Gorge as mentioned above. Ensure to plan in advance based on the suggestions from your group and according to your desire.
• The trail is known for wildlife. Hence, stay on the path and watch out for rattlesnakes or other amphibians.

Hope you loved the travelogue. If you visit the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania (which you must), then do let me know in the comments. 

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Thanks,

Karthi