Hike #581; Kittatinny Ridge and Valley, Mohican Center to White Lake
8/27/11 Ridge and Valley; Mohican Outdoors Center to White Lake with Rich Pace, Joe Tag, Jack Lowry, Ron Phelps, Susie Duncan, Eric Pace, and Bob Canase
Crossing Blair Creek on Ridge and Valley Trail, Camp Mason
My next hike would be a point to point ending by my home at White Lake again.
The hike would not turn out to be what I had originally conceived, but somehow it worked out the best it could considering the situation.
The original plan was to have a party at the house again, the end of the hike I had envisioned on the full future route of the Ridge and Valley Trail from Ricks Rocks on the Appalachian Trail to White Lake and Paulins Kill Valley Trail. Unfortunately, there was a hurricane coming in that night, Irene. This hurricane was being billed as the largest that had hit the area in forty years, and so hardly anyone was interested in coming out. Still, a few intrepid hikers were ready to join as always.
Water diversion along Rattlesnake Swamp Trail
After meeting at the White Lake parking area, we shuttled cars around. Rich, Ron, Joe, and Eric joined me from the beginning. We spotted Rich's car and then headed to the Mohican Outdoors Center in Eric's. All National and State parks had officially been closed for the day due to the imminent storm, but we paid it no mind.
We parked at the gate at the Mohican Center, and then followed the camp road through to the end and headed onto the Rattlesnake Swamp Trail. We would use this to ascend to the top of Kittatinny Ridge. The trail had been vastly improved since my last time on it. Water diversion devices were installed all along the way, and large rocks placed to avoid wet areas. In the past during floods, we'd have to skirt the edge of the trail tightly.
Not much of a view from here... Oh well.
When we reached the top after a steep but short climb, there was no view to be seen. Everything was completely clouded over. In fact, we couldn't see far in front of us. It made me think we should have just stayed on the Rattlesnake Swamp Trail all the way through rather than waste time with the ridge. Oh well.
The rocks on the ridge were somewhat slippery, and so it took a bit longer than anticipated to continue along the trail.
Along Appalachian Trail near Catfish Pond Gap, Pre hurricane.
Wild grapes along Rattlesnake Swamp Trail
Bob, Jack, and Susie were to meet us at Millbrook Gap, but we ran a bit behind. We continued on past the Catfish Fire Tower, and then began to descent to Millbrook Gap. I opted to take the Appalachian Trail down, while Ron decided to take the fire tower road so we could test which one was faster. The AT went left off the road, and then rejoined. Ron got to the place where they rejoined just slightly ahead of me, and neither of us raced to try to have an accurate measurement. I then continued to the right on the AT while Ron stayed on the road. I came out quite a bit ahead of him on the AT this time, but when I did emerge where it rejoined the fire tower road, Ron was in sight, so there wasn't a huge distance. The AT did appear to be slightly faster though.
We continued on the coaligned AT and fire tower road out through Rattlesnake Swamp, and before we reached Millbrook Road we spotted some wild grapes growing to the right of the trail. They tasted pretty good, but they had large pits in them. Definitely not the best of grapes, but interesting.
Wild grapes we found along Rattlesnake Swamp Trail
We then reached Millbrook Road. I went ahead to the left and found Jack and Susie at the upper parking lot. Together, we all turned right and headed down Millbrook Road to the right. A short distance away we met up with Bob Canase.
Bob is founder and President of the Ridge and Valley Conservancy, and the Ridge and Valley Trail was his brain child years ago. An application to Warren County's Municipal and Charitable Conservancy Trust Fund (for which I am a voting member) was recently put in for the acquisition of easements over a piece of property called "Lightning Bug Hollow" which would fill in the most significant gap missing to complete the Ridge and Valley Trail from the Paulins Kill Valley Trail in Marksboro on to Ricks Rocks. Ridge and Valley Conservancy holds many preserved properties in the area and picks up some of the slack for the endangered lands that did not fall under the Highlands Water Protection Act.
We all headed down Millbrook Road, and Bob gave us a great talk on the vision of the trail, and some of the history of the project. He would narrate the trip very well for the rest of the day, telling us everything from geology to botany, to local history.
The trail, although not marked as Ridge and Valley Trail yet, turned left onto vacated Sand Pond Road. There was some of a galvanized rail over the entrance to the road where it intersects with Millbrook Road. We were only on this shortly to where the trail broke off to the right. It was blazed with crude paint marks; the trail was cleared in the 1950s by a camp to access the National Park property which we were still on. The reason this couldn't be marked as the Ridge and Valley Trail yet was because it was not part of the National Park's trails plan. Hopefully this can be amended.
The trail descended for a while through nice woods, and then came to a very wet area. We went back and forth a bit not able to figure out exactly where it went. Bob and I came out once a few months before trying to find the route and ended up closer to someone's back yard. We soon found the correct way and were able to cross a wet area using multiple tree roots and rocks. It wasn't nearly as bad as it looked like it would be.
The trail then turned right over a knoll to the edge of a power line. This marked the border of the National land, and beginning of the Camp Mason, of YMCA property.
Beaver pond along Ridge and Valley Trail, Camp Mason
We descended to and across the power line. Bob pointed out where another power line further to the north was planned to be widened, a controversial topic. The trail turned left on a sort of woods road over an earthen dam or causeway. There was a pretty pond to the left of us retained by the water. This was one of the branches of the Blair Creek. I had guessed it would be a wet crossing, but we actually got over it quite easily with no wet feet.
Beaver Po d from Ridge and Valley Trail
The trail then followed the power line shortly and turned right into the woods.
Cardinal Flowers along Blair Creek
The trail made it's way up for a bit, and past a sort of camp site for Camp Mason. It weaved around a bit and then descended over a nice little stream next to a vernal pool, and to an old quarried out area with stone. When I was here with Bob before, he commented that a sign there on a post said it was a limestone quarry, but he said we were between lime stone ridges and it really probably couldn't have been that. The camp people must have realized this too as the text on the sign was missing.
We continued as the trail became more prominent. It was obviously used quite often. This section used to have Ridge and Valley Trail markers but someone had torn them down. We soon reached the awesome little suspension bridge over the Blair Creek, built by Bob and a group of dedicated volunteers. They secured it to trees so that they wouldn't have to go through DEP for the wetlands permits. Genius.
Susie had to carry Zip Line across the Blair Creek bridge
We crossed the bridge, and the water wasn't yet too high. Flip Flop, Susie's dog, would not walk across the bridge so she had to carry him across.
Once on the other side, we continued up to cross Shannon Road. The Ridge and Valley Trail blazes started at the suspension bridge. Once across Shannon Road, we turned slightly right and soon reached Birch Ridge Road. The trail continued across, but the problem was that it dead ended on the property ahead. It was also a mess because it wasn't really maintained. This was intended to be the through route for the Ridge and Valley Trail, through Princeton-Blairstown Camp, but Bob said it would be terrible trying to cut through the invasive species growing on the property, that the trail would be a maintenance nightmare. Also, the camp was not so open to public coming through.
Instead, the proposed route would follow Birch Ridge Road a short distance to the left. It was a pleasant pretty road walk, and barely any cars passed us while on it.
Beginning of Lightning Bug Hollow Road
We followed the road to Lightning Bug Hollow Road, a legal township road to the right, with a busted up sign in front of it. The trail would follow this road down hill to Lightning Bug Hollow itself where it would get on the Carrazone properties, the ones Ridge and Valley Conservancy was pursuing an easement on.
The road started off paved, and then became a dirt road descending to the right into the deep hollow. There was a pretty view to the left and other old logging roads turning off. At the bottom of the slope the road crossed over a scenic little bridge and another branch of the Blair Creek. Bob told me this didn't have another name, but that it should have had one rather than just referring to all of them as Blair Creek.
Bridge in Lightning Bug Hollow
A branch of the Blair Creek in Lightning Bug Hollow
Colorful mushrooms above Lightning Bug Hollow
The creek was very pretty as it passed below the road. We continued over the bridge and on to a split in the road. Ahead, Lightning Bug Hollow Road was private. A lady who was willing to allow for the Ridge and Valley Trail to go through her property had lived here, but she had passed away before the deal was sealed, and her husband was not open to it. That property ahead was gated.
To the left, a vacated road headed up hill. This was the former northern terminus if Butler Road, which is still used at the other end from where it breaks off of Sunset Lake Road. There were some really colorful, pretty mushrooms right by the intersection. In fact, this hike had some of the most amazing looking mushrooms I'd ever seen on one trip.
We followed Butler Road's route up hill through more dense second growth woods
Lightning Bug Hollow
The woods road made a gradual ascend, and then near the crest there was an old logger's road going off to the right. The Carrizone family wanted to keep one lot free on the edge of old Butler Road for building, and also keep people clear of a pretty little pond up there which they privately used, so Bob proposed the trail would follow this side road. This took us out to a small outcropping, the height of the land on that ridge. Unfortunately, it started raining rather hard in this area. We all got out our umbrellas and rain ponchos and continued on. We descended off the ridge area and then turned to the left to regain old Butler Road slightly down hill. We then followed this out to where the road became open to vehicles again.
We descended again, and Bob gave us a little talk on geology, and showed us where a stream once was recently, but moved completely underground, which was the nature of how it worked.
We followed Butler Road out to Sunset Lake Road where the trail would turn right and enter White Lake Wildlife Management Area. Rich, Eric, Ron, and Joe would cut out here, but Jack, Susie, Bob, and I continued on. Instead of taking that path where the others were parked, we opted instead to turn left on Sunset Lake Road and follow it to the longer section through the limestone forest.
Farm view on Sunset Lake Rd
We headed into the woods, and we saw that Bob had just replaced many trail markers the previous week. We were pretty easily able to follow the trail to where it was supposed to split. At this point, I had always brought the group to the left, because the middle part of the loop Bob had originally put in was missing so many trail markers. However, the previous week Bob had re-marked much of it, and I was able to see for the first time where this section of the trail went. It was great to do something I'd never done before so close to my home.
Nice cleft between limestone outcroppings along Ridge and Valley Trail section north of White Lake
Bob told us stories about making the trail blazes in his basement, and how he would cut the slate himself and how they had a paint stamper before they had someone in Pen Argyl PA make them.
The section of trail was great, with interesting outcroppings and rock clefts. Bob pointed out an interesting fern species that sucked into mosses and continued to grow from there. He also pointed out all sorts of other kinds of ferns. A wealth of information.
A section of Ridge and Valley Trail
Limestone outcroppings on Ridge and Valley Trail, White Lake WMA
I was surprised to see where this particular trail rejoined with the one I had been on before. I would never have noticed it. Bob brought some yellow flagging tape to show where the turnoff was for it so we could mark it again in the future. We then continued on to the other junction atop an outcropping, with the other main trail branch that went on to Sunset Lake Road. We talked as we continued through about where the trail might have to be rerouted around a field section.
We ascended one of the last to limestone ridges, and came to where all of the blow downs were. Bob suggested we scout out an alternative route around the blow downs. We found a good one which he flagged off. We then made our way back to the trail which I had spent an afternoon clearing off at the beginning of the Summer. We were able to get through to the parking area here and then head out across it, along the woods road, then over Stillwater Road onto the White Lake county property.
This was a very interesting and informative trip, and even though my party concept and huge event idea had not worked out, we still pulled off the hike and had a nice time.
Hurricane Irene blew in that night, and although it was downgraded to a tropical storm, it caused a great deal of flooding and trapped Jillane and I in our house for quite some time. The Paulins Kill flooded over it's banks, as well as the Blair Creek making travel into Blairstown impossible. Trees to the north also made northbound travel impossible. I ended up helping people get through water on Rt 521, but couldn't get to anyplace with food for a bit.
Jillane and I went to Amanda Rosenblatt's house the night of the hurricane, and the drive home was intense, with everything from insane heavy rain, green lightning, and heavy wind. Trees were already blocking some of our routes home. We didn't lose power until after 1 in the afternoon the next day, and we were out until Wednesday night.
My driveway has water in it where the was never water before
Giant wave of water coming underneath the bridge at marksboro
Flooded Paulins Kill at Marksboro
Cory with the flooding Paulins Kill at Marksboro
Spring valley road
Snapped pole on Spring Valley Road
Flood blairstown
Blairstown flood
Route 521 and 94 in blairstown flooded!
Flooded parking lot in blairstown
Flood in blairstown
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