Hike #488; Lackawanna State Forest (Bear Lake) to Panther Creek

 Hike #488 5/30/10

5/30/10 Lackawanna State Forest (Bear Lake) to Panther Creek with Jillane Becker, Amanda Rosenblatt, Chris "Cupcake" Kroschinski, Jason Kumpas, Rich and Eric Pace, "Major Tom" Conroy, Carol and Rob Creamer, "Amish Paul" Hassler, and Allison Lapatka.

Group shot along the WB&E

My next hike would cover the next sections of both the Pinchot Trail system in Lackawanna State Forest as well as the former Wilkes Barre and Eastern Railroad. This was probably the most secluded of all of the hikes in that series, which is saying a lot compared to the previous one. We met at our end point, along Panther Creek near Watres Resevoir off I think Aston Mt. Road, near Rt 502. We then shuttle cars south to Lackawanna State Forest on Bear Lake Road where we'd started the previous hike on the Pinchot Trail system.

We started where the trail followed Bear Lake Road for a bit. After leaving the parking lot everyone was a bit annoyed that we could have parked right where the trail entered the woods, but we'd be missing an "official" piece of trail that way. I seemed to be the only one that cared. We turned left onto the first woods section, the McClintocks Gate section of the Pinchot Trail. It was at first in some woods, but then opend up into some pretty meadows, which was not at all what I was expecting to see based on what I'd seen on the northern end.

Hiking the Pinchot Trail, McClintock's Gate Trail section, Lackawanna State Forest

Jillane went way ahead of the group while I waited behind for everyone. The trail went into some woods, and then eventually went up hill on the Stone Lookout Trail section. The Stone Tower referred to in trail descriptions was really not much of anything at all. I have no clue what the thing was intended to be, but it was certainly a shambles when we saw it.

The Stone Tower on Stone Lookout section of Pinchot Trail

We continued on the Sunday Trail section of Pinchot Trail out to Tannery Road, which I believe was a dirt road. I remember chatting with some people here, then heading north on Fireline Road, another dirt road. This took us out to where the straight route went onto private property with a house. We turned right and kept with the road. Just past here we bushwhacked into the woods to the left as I recall, then had to cross a creek to reach another part of Bear Creek Road much further south from where we were before.

We made it across and then turned left on the road, our only paved road of the day. We walked up the road for a short distance, and were soon parallel with Thornhurst Country Club. It had an old looking purged dam in the front of it they must have been repairing. Just across from the golf course we cut into the woods to the right on a path. There was a small developement there already, but a series of roads existed on the north side laid out by the developement, but never built on. We followed the northernmost one as far west as we could.

Abandoned developement road near Lackawanna State Forest.

Once we were to the north end road, we followed it looking for a way to bushwhack into the woods. Once I found a good break we headed in. From here, we would use my gps on my phone to take us out to a woods road that just dead ended in the middle of nowhere. What I didn't expect was that this section of woods was so incredibly dense, it ended up being by far the most difficult part of the hike, even though it was only a short distance. We all fanned out trying to get through.

We took a break once we got on the woods road, and then headed north to Sassafras Hill Road. We turned left on that, then immediately right onto the road soon bordering State Game Lands 135 that we followed on the previous hike. This took us over a couple creeks and then one last one before reaching the Wilkes Barre and Eastern Railroad bed.

Resting on the bridge where we got onto the WB&E Railroad bed.

We turned left on the railroad bed north. What we had up ahead was the most unobstructed section of this line we'd encounter of all of the trips we'd done on it.

Abandoned Wilkes Barre and Eastern Railroad north of Clifton PA

It remained nice and clear most the entire way. I was surprised to see a hunters cabin above us to the right at one point, somehow I'd missed it on the area images. I went and checked it out as I recall, but didn't try to get in or anything.

Along former WB&E Rail bed in the upper Poconos

The rail bed continued around many sweeping curves through deep woods. It was really great, and the entire thing could be pretty much opened as a rail trail right away if the landowners would allow it.

Awww how sweet. Major Tom and Amish Paul in State Game Lands.

Hiking break in Poconos, WBE rail bed

The right of way remained mostly plain cinder dirt through beautiful thick woodlands. The entire long section seemed to fly by so fast. Things didn't really change until we got to a point where a cross road was in place to bring contractors equipment in. There were a couple pieces parked to the left of the rail bed, and a lot of the grade was done over with a messy loose stone.

Abandoned Wilkes Barre and Eastern Railroad

From here, the further we got from that site the less disturbed it was. We were soon high above the waters of the Watres Resevoir to the right so we knew we were close to getting done.

Along the Wilkes Barre and Eastern Railroad bed near Lackawanna State Forest

Soon, the rail bed simply disappeared and all that was ahead was woods and a steep slope. This was the former site of the Panther Creek Viaduct. A large steel bridge once carried the WB&E across this valley but all that remains of it are the footings that once held the steel piers. We bushwhacked down hill seeing stone bases here and there, and then we reached the Panther Creek, which was completely dry at the time. We walked in the dry bed of it downstream until we came to it's confluence with a larger stream, and then turned left along the creek downstream. Pretty soon, we found an awesome rock where we could stop for a swim break, something I'd been waiting for all day. A lot of us took a dip in the freezing cold water, but others went ahead to get done quicker.

In part, the woods road that led us back to the road where we were parked was another early railroad line I don't really have any information on, but we knew we'd have to come back to hike more of it.

After this great secluded hike we were only about two hikes away from completing the Wilkes Barre and Eastern line.