Hike #348 6/7/8
6/7/8 Lehigh Canal; Lehigh Gap (loop) to Northampton with Tom Petrucci, Russ Moyer, Marge Brennan, Jason-Michael "Jamal" Flintosh, Chip Denis, and Shawn Bishop
The group on the inferno of Lehigh Gap's east side
This was another one of those hikes I lost the journal entry to the fire...I guess I lost about 30 of them in a row unfortunitely. If anyone has a copy of them let me know!
View from the east side of Lehigh Gap
Climbing eat side of Lehigh Gap
East side of Lehigh Gap...not as easy since I broke my shoulder.
East side of Lehigh Gap
View upstream through Lehigh Gap
Lehigh Gap PA
Lehigh Gap PA
AT in Lehigh Gap PA
Winter Trail, Lehigh Gap PA
Winter Trail, Lehigh Gap PA
View from the Winter Trail, Lehigh Gap PA
Lehigh Canal in Lehigh Gap...this is where the aqueduct crossed the creek. The center pier area is still visible. Abutments in the woods.
An old Lehigh Canal lock in Lehigh Gap
Former CNJ railroad in Lehigh Gap
Former CNJ railroad in Lehigh Gap
Former Lehigh and New England Railroad trestle site in Lehigh Gap
Former CNJ railroad in Lehigh Gap
Historic building in Lehigh Gap
Lehigh Gap PA
Lehigh Gap PA
Lehigh Gap PA
Lehigh Gap PA caboose
Lehigh Gap PA
Lehigh Gap PA
Climbing a ladder down to the Lehigh Canal towpath
Train going by in Lehigh Gap
Train going by in Lehigh Gap
Swimming in the Lehigh, Lehigh Gap
Swimming in lehigh Gap
Lehigh Gap PA
Lehigh Canal at Lehigh Gap
Lehigh Canal towpath south of Lehigh Gap
Lehigh Canal south of Lehigh Gap
Old lock site on the Lehigh Canal
Old Lehigh Canal lock site south of Lehigh Gap
Lehigh Canal lock site south of Lehigh Gap
Old Lehigh Canal lock in Walnutport PA
Lock site on the Lehigh Canal in Walnutport
Walnutport PA
Walnutport PA
Walnutport PA
Lehigh Canal in Walnutport PA
Lehigh Canal in Walnutport PA
Lehigh Canal in Walnutport PA
Lehigh Canal in Walnutport PA
Old aqueduct site in Walnutport area
The lost town of Lockport PA
The lost town of Lockport PA
The lost town of Lockport PA
The lost town of Lockport PA
Former CNJ line south of Lockport
The lost town of Lockport PA. Norfolk Southern is trying to get the owner, whom they don't know, to give up crossing rights!
South of old Lockport pa
Former CNJ tracks heading south
Lehigh Canal towpath north of Northampton
Lehigh Canal towpath
Lehigh Canal towpath
Lehigh Canal towpath
A lehigh Canal boat salvaged after having sank in the quarry in the 1930s.
Salvaged Lehigh Canal Boat
Salvaged Lehigh Canal boat
Lehigh Canal Lock
This was another in my series to hike the entire Lehigh Canal, but it was by far the crappiest one, and one of the worst hikes ever overall.
We started in Lehigh Gap and hiked south to Northampton where we'd left off previously. This time, from Lehigh Gap, we first walked the AT to the top of the inferno on the east end. It was brutally hot and much more difficult than it would have been normally. We descended via the Winter Trail to the former rail spur that went around the north end of the mountain. This took us to the creek which goes out into the Lehigh at an old canal aqueduct site. We got on the canal here.
My first time visiting this site with Tea Biscuit, Rich, and Eric Pace was years before and one of the locks was still hanging there. By this time it was gone and only a little wood remained. We were able to walk the canal, somewhat overgrown for a ways, but then had to climb to the former Jersey Central Railroad above parallel to it. It soon let into the Lehigh River anyway, as it used just a towpath along the slack water of a dam that once existed just down stream. There was no tree cover and the heat was awful. We did see an old rail car and I think a station? Not sure.
When we reached the guard lock where the dam used to be, a ladder took us down to the towpath from the rail bed. Pipes had been put across the canal so we could walk over. I was the only one with enough sense to take a swim here, which was very refreshing.
The canal south of here was great to follow, but still had some really open spots. We met some people who were marking the Delaware and Lehigh Trail route.
The towpath entered a more wooded area before reaching the town of Walnutport where it was beautifully restored. It happened that on this occasion we walked right into the Canal Day celebration in Walnutport. We wandered through a bit and I think got some food before heading further south.
The canal remained really nice for a while south of Walnutport, but then the trail abruptly ended at an old aqueduct site. We bushwhacked through but following the canal itself looked totally impossible. Everyone else tried to bully their way through the weeds while I tried to continue on the canal route. What I came to was amazing, the ruins of the former canal town of Lockport, abandoned and forgotten. Buildings stood in ruins there, but nothing I could really go in, or that would be worth it. Once I saw the state of the canal towpath, very overgrown, i too made my way out to the parallel railroad tracks.
A little ways after leaving the Lockport Area we were all glad to see some hot dog stand out next to a parallel road, we had drinks and dogs and moved on.
We had to walk south for quite a while on the tracks. When we reached Treichlers, a small community, there was supposed to be another section of the canal where it was'nt just slack water, but it was just too tough to get to. We could see the lock on the south side from the tracks, but just kept to the tracks. In the section south of here Commando Tom and I took a swim I think, not being able to stand the heat any more.
We eventually regained the canal towpath via a short side trail Russ knew about. He saw a lady he knew in a house along the way who lived close by the old canal but it had no access. Once we got on the canal, Commando Tom, Chip, and I took a good much needed swim. We then continued on the towpath south. Along the way we were joined by our friend William "Guillermo" Fabel.
The canal was soon water filled and very nice. Back around the time of the abandonment the canal was opened into an adjacent quarry and boats were brought in and intentionally sunk. One boat was successfully pulled back up and sat along the canal in this section. It was great to see a true Lehigh Canal boat. We headed south from here into town. Everyone wanted to just head out, but I needed to take another swim in this perfect inviting space just below the bridge. I ended up swimming by myself and chatting with some locals. Guillermo hung around with me briefly, and then we went to eat, and met up with Mr. Buckett.
Along former Lehigh Valley Railroad in the gap.
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