Hike #588; Lancaster
10/2/11 Conestoga Trail/Oregon Pike to Lancaster and vicinity with Jillane Becker
Conestoga Trail along the river in Lancaster
My next hike would be a point to point trip in the vicinity of Lancaster PA. Jillane and I would cover the next section of the Conestoga Trail from where we'd left off on our Summer backpack. We had found out that Chadwick Stokes, the front man for the bands Dispatch and State Radio would be doing a solo performance at the Chameleon Club in the city of Lancaster, and planned it early that we would do the next section of the trail and come out to see the concert.
We spent two nights at the Country Hearth Inn in northern Lancaster at the corner of Lilitz Pike and Keller Ave, and had a very nice time walking around the city on Friday, thrift shopping on Saturday, and the concert Saturday night which was outstanding. Stokes did a full set of just about his entire new solo album, as well as numerous acoustic songs. His backup band, the Pintos, were a tight and multitalented group who switched around on the instruments a lot. Opening for Stokes was a man who went by the stage name "White Buffalo", who performed an entire acoustic set that was very impressive. It was one of the best shows I've seen, and I've seen quite a few. An all around great feeling was conveyed by Stokes and the band, on this the last night of his tour. Even his parents were in the audience. There were all ages at this show, and unlike the previous two times we'd seen him live, there was no pushing and shoving, or moshing going on. It was a very small venue, and so the sound was excellent.
The next morning, we called a taxi to come and pick us up from the hotel and take us to where we left off, the corner of Becker Road and Oregon Road, at the Hess Station.
At the Hess Station on Oregon Road, Lancaster Co
I went in to get a drink at the Hess mini mart, and we sat for a few moments along the edge of the parking lot before heading on. We crossed Oregon Pike from Oregon Road, which all intersect right near the Becker Road intersection, and continued shortly on to Bushong Road.
Crossing Rt 222 on the Conestoga Trail, Bushong Road
Pinetown Road section of the Conestoga Trail
Pinetown Road Covered Bridge
Pinetown Covered Bridge
We walked south on Bushong Road away from the busy highway. The sound of the highway messed up what would have otherwise been a nice pleasant walk along fields. The first section had a nice field on the right, with the cultivation reaching right to the edge of the pavement, while the opposite side had some newer houses. We continued on to Pinetown Road and made a right. This was a nice road that soon made it's way high above the first view we got of the Conestoga River. Northwest of here, the Cocalico Creek joined with the Conestoga River, but the trail route does not go near the confluence unfortunately. The homes were at times very old and were of attractive construction. Others were either trailer like or prefab homes sitting on the banks. We continued down the road to the next intersection at the bottom of a hill, Bridge Road.
An old road looking off to the south of Bridge Road at Pinetown
Pinetown Covered bridge
Conestoga River from the Pinetown covered bridge
Pinetown covered bridge
Here, we turned left to the Pinetown/Bushong's Mill Covered Bridge. Off to the right was the site of probably an older former road with a nice stone arch bridge out in someone's yard, but no longer accessible.
The Pinetown Covered Bridge was built in 1867 I believe the paperwork said, by someone named McMellan. It was washed off it's abutments during Hurricane Agnes in 1972, and rebuilt by the Amish. Since it still bears the historic dates, I assume the bridge was recovered at least to some extent and repaired rather than being completely rebuilt. A citizen petition apparently was responsible for it's repairs.
Pinetown covered bridge
Unfortunately, it had been damaged again, probably due to the flooding from recent Tropical Storm Lee, and it appeared to be bowed out with a sag facing the downstream Conestoga River. The bridge had signs reading "no trespassing" and "Bridge closed", but we walked on through anyway because it would have been a long way around to try to take a detour route.
Along Bridge Road section of Conestoga Trail
Along Bridge Road section of Conestoga Trail
View along Bridge Road across Mondale Road, Conestoga Trail
View across Mondale Road
Farm view along Mondale Road section of Conestoga Trail
Farm view along Mondale Road section of Conestoga Trail
Mondale Road section of Conestoga Trail
Mondale Road section of Conestoga Trail
Mondale Road section of Conestoga Trail
Mondale Road section of Conestoga Trail
Mondale Road section of Conestoga Trail
Mondale Road section of Conestoga Trail
We exited the bridge and continued walking along Bridge Road, which soon made a sharp right turn and headed out across a wide field area full of corn. The road crested a small hill and headed down toward an intersection with Mondale Road, which the Conestoga Trail followed to the right. Before reaching the road there were some really nice views of the Pennsylvania Dutch countryside, with big barns and lovely houses and fields. A buggy went by on Mondale as we were making our way to the intersection, always a nice feeling to see.
We went by a nice farm, and a young Amish or Mennenite man was working and came out as we went by. We were already passed so couldn't chat, and we didn't want to intrude or bother him either. We made a corner and were soon along the edge of the Conestoga River for a bit. We continued on through a section of trees and back up a slight hill through more open field. Near the upper area, we realized as we got closer that the road had an obscure underpass for the cows to use, and several were walking through at that very moment. Had they not been using it, it was so obscured we might not have seen it at all.
The road went along a straight route soon with the Conestoga River below us to the right. As we walked, the Hunsecker's Mill Covered Bridge came into view to the right. We would soon be on it, but had a bit of back roads to get to it. The Conestoga Trail in this area followed only these roads rather than it's own path like it did further north in the county.
The trail turned right at the next intersection onto Hunsicker Road. We headed through a small historic district with some nice old houses and then reached the covered bridge.
Hunseckers Mill Covered Bridge
Hunseckers Mill Covered Bridge
Hunseckers Mill Covered Bridge
Conestoga River from inside Hunseckers Mill Covered Bridge
Hunseckers Mill Covered Bridge
Curiously, this bridge, unlike other Lancaster covered bridges, is not on the national historic register. This one was originally built in 1843, and at 180 feet long it is the longest covered bridge in Lancaster County. It too was washed off it's abutments several times from what I'd read, and most recently during Hurricane Agnes in 1972 like the previous Pinetown Covered Bridge, and then had been rebuilt. I wondered how many original components of these bridges were used during the reconstruction.
Unlike the previous covered bridge, this one was now open and we could walk right on through it. The floor boards looked old and worn, and we could see debris caught up inside showing that this bridge was indeed under the water to some extent, as was the Pinetown. There were a couple tourists on the other side taking pictures, so we didn't hang around for too long.
Hunseckers Mill Covered Bridge from the west
Pathway at a club along Butter Road
Conestoga River from Butter Road section of the trail
Conestoga River along Butter Road
Someone named Spleen? Really? Along Landis Valley Road section of Conestoga Trail
A redundant stop at the corner of Landis Valley Road where Conestoga Trail turns right
Nice old buildings on the corner of Landis Valley and Paper Mill Roads
We continued up hill on Hunsicker Road, which I had throught by looking at the maps would be a boring section, but it was actually kind of interesting. It seemed rustic and sort of 18th century historic down by the covered bridge, but as we gained elevation it seemed like giant estate homes, maybe late 19th century, homes of the gentleman farmer types, not the Amish like we saw on the opposite side. Jillane and I brainstormed about what industries could have possibly justified completing these estates so early on. Lancaster was once the world's largest umbrella manufacturer, but that hardly seemed like reason for all these places. A google search for the small community of Hundsecker led to basically nothing.
We continued along the road as the homes became much newer, though still large tracts with overly manicured lawns and gardens. Conestoga Trail then made a left turn onto Butter Road and started descending a bit.
We took a break at a small club place where the road came back out to the edge of the Conestoga River in a much more developed area. The river was quite lovely here, but we could still see all sorts of branches and debris from recent flooding taking over the yards along the low lands.
The trail followed Butter Road along the river, then up hil with a wide grassy median appearing in the middle where it started becoming much more developed with newer uglier homes. The trail then made a left turn onto Landis Valley Road. This was mostly a development save for one section of field on our right. I had a bit of a laugh when I saw a sign reading that someone was running for local government by the name of "Spleen". I thought of my old friend Jon Scofield whom I called Spleen in High School.
We headed down hill where Landis Valley Road turned sharp right at the intersection with the dead end Paper Mill Road. Jillane crossed and tried to get the attention of a cat sitting out in the middle of a field with horses and lovely old stone structures. The intersection curiously had two stop signs, one directly over the other. I can't explain why something like that would be necessary.
We followed Landis Valley Road past a sort of retro looking old mechanic's place on the left, then came out to Rt 23, New Holland Pike and turned left. We followed the road down hill and crossed the Conestoga River again on a rather new bridge. The trail route then turned right and headed up hill on Willow Road.
Old mill on Millcross Road along Conestoga Trail route
Lovely pond along the Millcross Rd section of Conestoga Trail
I believe the trail went a short distance and then turned right onto Pine Drive through more development, and then came out on Millcross Road. Another bridge over the Conestoga River came into view to the right, but the trail route took us to the left. We could see more damage on this stretch as well, where there was an old mill fortunately in good shape, but a bar and restaurant called "The Waterfront" doing some serious repairs. I think this place used to be called "East of Eden" as per the guide to the trail.
We continued along Millcross and Jillane spotted a large metal dumpster that had been washed down from the parking lot of the pub presumably, almost into the Conestoga River. The road took a sweeping turn away from the river at another large manicured estate, and continued up hill for a bit. We stayed near to the Conestoga River only shortly, and then Millcross Road made a turn away to the south. We continued walking through a residential area, which was rather boring, but had one nice section with a pond on the right.
Millcross eventually took us out at Pitney Road where the trail route turned right. I did not realize it at the time, but this intersection was the one time intended route of a new Rt 23, a limited access large highway that was never completed. It was apparently NEARLY completed but never opened for some reason, probably limited funds and/or public outcry. It is now locally known as the "Goat Path Expressway". I was surprised to read later following this hike that I had hiked some of this abandoned highway further along, with Jason Itell and company nearer to Philadelphia years before, only that section was paved.
Conestoga Trail near Pitney Road
We turned right on Pitney and continued for a short distance when I saw a blaze turn off to the right. Some of the trail had been rerouted since the writing of my guide, and now it went off along the edge of a field rather than follow Pitney Road. I turned right, but Jillane didn't want to follow me because the road still had some blazes along it. This trail took me out to the edge of the cultivated fields, and I didn't realize until later that the trail followed the incomplete former Goat Path Expressway! Now looking at the pictures I can almost see what it might have been like.
Conestoga Trail looking northeast near Pitney Road
Conestoga Trail near Pitney Road
I continued on as the trail became invisible from the road because of new town houses that had been built. The trail continued, with marked posts with blazes on them near the field's edge. After a bit, the field edge started to turn to the left a bit. The trail too would follow it and was soon on the berm of a retention pond for the new community. I continued down around the edge of the pond and toward some houses that had been there a bit longer, and then a turn blaze pointed me back sort of in the direction I'd come from. The trail easement must have hugged the side of the development only. I continued and could see Jillane motioning at me to come toward her out on the road. The trail led onto the end of a dead end street and then back out to the road. Sure, the road was a shorter route, but it wasn't as nice.
We walked up hill next to the back of a store for a little break, and then headed back onto Pitney Road following the blazes. The trail route took us under Rt 30 where a cop was sitting for a while. It was drizzling a bit, and he probably thought we were nuts. As we continued up hill on the other side he sped by us with his lights going.
Abandoned on Pitney Road
Abandoned on Pitney Road
We soon came to a large industry on the left side of the road. There were chain link fences surrounding it, and abandoned homes behind some sections of them. One of them in particular looked really cool. There was no way to really get through to have a closer look at them, plus they were all boarded up anyway. We continued on and passed the entrance to Conestoga Pines Park. I would have liked to go down and have a look around there, but the park was just a somewhat narrow swath heading down to the river. We found out later there was an abandoned swimming pool in there, but that's about it.
Abandoned on Pitney Road
Conestoga Trail north of Pitney Road
Conestoga Trail north of Pitney Road
We soon crossed over the railroad tracks and then saw turn blazes taking the trail off of the road to the right. I was happy to see this, but hadn't been looking at my guide sheet lately. This had been another reroute since it was first written. The section took us beyond a guard rail, turned, and then back over to the edge of the railroad tracks. We would have been able to get there if we'd just have stepped over the rail. Oh well.
The trail led along the tracks on a berm next to a large industry. There was steam coming out of the side of the building, and we'd soon have to walk through some of it. We wondered what the place could have been because there were no signs anywhere advertising the nature of it's business. We also realized in this section that this track was probably one of the ones Jillane rode on when she was travelling to Utah for her time as a Wilderness Ranger.
The trail continued beyond the building, and soon followed a power line down hill in a cleared area to the edge of the Conestoga River.
Conestoga Creek Viaduct, Lancaster
Conestoga Creek Viaduct, Lancaster. Note the protruding stones, leading me to believe this bridge was intended to be widened, but never was.
Conestoga Creek Viaduct, Lancaster
Conestoga Creek Viaduct, Lancaster
Washed out fence at the sewage treatment plant, Lancaster
When we reached the river, we were not expecting to see a truly awesome stone viaduct carrying the railroad line high above the Conestoga. The bridge was an incredible construction, and looked to be very strange from the first appearance. I couldn't find much information on the bridge, other than the fact that it is indeed called The Conestoga Creek Viaduct. The upstream side of the bridge was well cut and flush masonry work, while the downstream side had many protruding blocks and such. My best guess is that the bridge was intended to be widened but that it was never needed, and so the bridge remains awkward with protruding stones. Online resources say the bridge was constructed in 1887-1888. It was truly an amazing structure. We walked under it to have a closer look and found even more curiosities beyond.
Debris in the fence of the sewage treatment plant, Lancaster
Busted fence from Tropical Storm Lee, Lancaster
The sewage treatment plant was just opposite the viaduct along the same side of the river. Jillane walked right up to the fence, which had been broken open under the weight of the water during Tropical Storm Lee. There was all sorts of debris still hung up in the fence line, some of which looked like toilet paper which was quite disturbing. We later determinined that it was probably not toilet paper, but rather pieces of plastic that held together the giant hay bail rolls that had washed up.
It was incredible to see the force the water must have had, and the height that it must have reached in order to get debris stuck up in the fences and even into some higher trees.
Conestoga Creek Viaduct, Lancaster
Conestoga Trail north of Bridgeport, Lancaster
Eww. Glove in a tree, Lancaster.
We got back on the trail and followed it downstream away from the viaduct and into a section of woods. This section had obviously been kept mowed, but was damaged quite a bit following the storms and flooding. It reminded me very much of our time we spent on the upper section of the Conestoga Trail along the Hammer Creek further north. There was all sorts of garbage stuck up in trees, and giant wrapped hay bails sitting where it was obvious they had been washed down from some farm and then got hung up on the trees, and remained when the water receded.
Big tree along Conestoga Trail, Lancaster
Incredible cracked mud along Conestoga Trail, Lancaster
Conestoga Trail north of Bridgeport, Lancaster
Conestoga Trail, Bridgeport, Lancaster
Somewhat buried snapping turtle along Conestoga Trail
Conestoga Trail near Bridgeport, Lancaster
Field near Conestoga Trail
Conestoga Trail near Bridgeport, Lancaster
Conestoga Trail near Bridgeport, Lancaster
There were some nice giant trees in the area, and most of the trail was pretty easy to follow except it got a bit muddy at times, and we came to areas where a lot of debris had thickly backed up to block the trail. We simply stepped over and continued.
The ground was still drying, and interesting cracked mud was everywhere. When we stepped in it, it would stick to our shoes and make our feet so much heavier until it shook off. In one of these sections of mud, Jillane spotted a buried snapping turtle. She had thought it was dead, and it may very well have been, but I know how snappers bury themselves toward the end of the warm season in the muddy ground, so this one could very well have been alive, with only his shell exposed. It was a huge one.
We came to one spot where we couldn't see any more blazes. Due to the water rushing over the trees higher than where the blazes were painted, much of them had washed away, and so we had to watch for the faint markings. One section where the trail continued we couldn't find blazes, and so we headed up hill to an adjacent field and walked that until it looked dryer down below, and then cut back down hill to the trail route.
We continued along the river a bit more, and then the trail began to turn away. It came to the edge of an old woods road of some kind which had exited the field a bit earlier on. There was a restaurant, I think Riverdale Manor off to the right here which had ownership of the river frontage, and so the trail had to turn away.
Conestoga Trail crossing a drainage area near Bridgeport, Lancaster
It went into a narrow strip of woods between the restaurant area and an industrial area to the left and started heading up hill gradually. It crossed one rocky spot where a drainage came out of a large pipe.
Conestoga Trail, Lancater
The trail continued up hill gradually and soon came out onto the edge of a parking lot with a single metal post with an orangeish blaze on it. We headed along the edge of the parking lot and soon came back out to Pitney Road. Jillane was the first to notice that the trail had looped right back to the road only a few hundred feet from where we'd turned off of it! This was just a giant loop basically! Fortunately, we were both in high spirits and were fine with having taken the interesting trip, but she said she would have been pissed had we been backpacking.
We turned right and followed the trail route along Pitney down hill.
Weis Market in Bridgeport, Lancaster
At the bottom, there was a lot of businesses to pick from to take a break. We chose to go into the Weis Market because it was the closes. We wandered around inside and found some snacks and such. I had a ham and cheese wrap that had nearly nothing in it. Weis sucks in my opinion. I had to wait in line for what seemed like an eternity as the cashier had to keep voiding items she accidently scanned, then frank a document, open up new rolls of coins, and do basically everything I could think of to make checkout slow.
Conestoga River at Bridgeport
Conestoga River at Bridgeport Bridge
Jillane had needed a band aid for a blister, but she didn't want me to go back in for one because they took so damn long. We had a nice break, and then continued along the trail route to the right onto King Street. It was at this intersection where came in the Old Philadelphia Pike. King Street, Route 462 was the first U.S. turnpike. Built in 1792, it ran from Lancaster to Philadelphia. The first tollgate was located at Witmer's Bridge in Bridgeport where the present bridge stands now. We crossed and saw some of the devastation from the recent flooding. All of the area buildings were condemned with condemnation notices hanging from the doors. I stopped at the center of the bridge and talked to a middle aged black man who told me that the stuff we saw in the trees and in fences was debris from when the water was coming down, and that it had actually been much higher than that. Jillane found pictures when we got home that showed just how high it was. Incredible.
Bridgeport Bridge, this was the original bridge's plaque.
At the center of the bridge, to my amazement, was a plaque that had originally been a part of the Witmer's Bridge that stood at this sight. It even had a mile marker built into it which gave distance to Philadelphia. I was impressed to see it incorperated in a newer bridge.
The Conestoga River continued south to make a big exaggerated bend and turn back to the north from here, but the trail route turned left onto Conestoga Drive and cut this big corner. We walked through a residential neighborhood and soon came back to the edge of the river again.
The trail continued along the road for a short distance more, and then headed off to the left on a new paved pathway parallel with the road. This had originally been foot path, but recently was upgraded to become a multi-use paved path. The path paralleled the road around a sharp bend in the river.
Possible old bridge site along Conestoga Trail in Lancaster
Soon, the road headed up hill to the right while the trail continued ahead along the river in some nice woods. We passed what appeared to be an old bridge site across the river to the left, but not much was left of it.
Conestoga Greenway Trail, Lancaster
Bridge over Conestoga River
Conestoga River under a bridge from the trail
We came out of the woods and were soon parallel with some town houses or something like apartments. One of them had doors open on both ends, probably to let it air out following the flooding. Even though this was high above the slope next to the river, even these were apparently under the high water and most of them, if not all, were no longer occupied. We continued south and passed beneath a concrete bridge, which also seemed to have been upgraded because some of the piers were lower with obvious new concrete on top.
Conestoga Greenway Trail under a bridge
At the bridge underpass, we could see the blazes for the former foot path Conestoga Trail still on the trees. New blazes had not yet been painted along the paved new trail. The trail went up and back down at the bridge to make a new access point off of South Broad Street. This paved section was referred to independently as the "Conestoga Greenway Trail", even though it was part of the larger Conestoga Trail system.
Conestoga Greenway Trail, Lancaster
Weird tree along Conestoga Greenway Trail
Old foundation along Conestoga Greenway Trail
The trail began to descend closer to the river again, and passed by a few more apartments, then entered a very nice section of woods. There were others using the path on this date, and we could never tell who the Mennonite or Pennsylvania Dutch were at times. Many of the women wore transparent hair pieces that covered where they were wearing hair ties or buns or whatever, but many of the men looked no different than any really.
Along this nice wooded section we passed by some nice large or weird looking trees, as well as a few foundations of bygone industries. One was just off to the left of the trail, while another was sort of a wall far to the right.
Duke Street Bridge, Conestoga Trail route under construction
We soon came out to Duke Street, where we would be forced to turn off of the Conestoga Trail. The Duke Street bridge was under construction and so no one was allowed to pass over it. It didn't matter much to us, because we had done some extra mileage anywy further back. Although this next section might be the nicest in all of Lancaster, we were happy to turn back toward Jillane's car in the northern part of the city.
Duke Street Bridge, Conestoga Trail route under construction
Duke Street, Lancaster
Riverview Cemetery, Lancaster
We would have to come back to do the next section of the Conestoga Trail another day. We turned right and headed up hill on Duke Street. I saw a kiosk with a mail box and opened it up to find that it was paperwork for construction. I had thought it might be a trail register like we see on many long distance trails.
We continued up hill and came to Riverview Cemetery. I took a side trip and walked through this on the way up to get off of the road for a bit.
The people of Lancaster must want to make things obvious...Duke St.
Riverview Cemetery, Lancaster
whoooaaa maaaaan... Riverview Cemetery, Lancaster
I turned out of the cemetery back onto Duke Ave as we left residential and were now heading into commercial areas. Riverview Cemetery still continued on the left, but the first section I walked was sort of separate from the rest of it, a small swath separated by way of a section of woods. The next section was marked as a "memorial park" and I think all the stones there were flush with the ground to make for easier mowing.
There was a crazy sign along the road notifying that the road ahead was closed; it made every effort to be obvious, going as far as to attaching a road cone to the sign, as well as an arrow pointing to the text. Very strange.
Jillane and I both headed back into the cemetery to walk around when we saw more standing stones.
Riverview Cemetery, Lancaster
There was a large section of only crosses in the middle which looked odd. They turned out to be all veterans graves, from what we could see mostly from World War I. This was a strange sprawling cemetery which had different sections with different looks, but there was the occasional weird thing, like one solitary monument with a globe thing on it.
Riverview Cemetery, Lancaster
As we continued back out toward Duke Street we passed by some plywood laying over presumably an open grave. I tried lifting it at Jillane's request, but it was rather heavy. After getting home she looked up stuff on the area and found that there had been a grave robbery, although it was not at all likely that this was the spot we'd seen.
Small linear park called Duke Street Mall, Lancaster
Lancaster
Lancaster PA
Lancaster PA
Once we were back on the street, we continued to the northwest. Along the right side of the road there was a small linear park with two paths through it separating the street with the apartments above. The park was referred to as the "Duke Street Mall". We walked along this and then passed by recreation fields and an elementary school. We took a break under a pavilion at the recreation fields before continuing on.
When we reached Church Street, Duke Street took an odd turn. The character of it completely change; it went from being wide with wide sidewalks to being a one way street with taller buildings and trees in the sidewalks. It was much narrower than before and quite pretty. We followed Duke Street for a bit further into the center of the city of Lancaster and to what I believe must have been the city hall.
Center of Lancaster
I had a bit more trouble getting my bearings here. It didn't matter, because I didn't care as much about where we went from here. Jillane had a good sense of where we were going, and so she got us out to the center of the city where there was a bit statue. It apparently was once a traffic circle with multiple directions, but was simplified to two directions. We walked from here along what I think must have been Queen Street to the north.
Center of Lancaster
We walked on through the town. I we considered getting Burritos like we'd done the night before, but then decided against it. We were going to stop for food but couldn't find anything that both of us wanted. We just continued north to Liberty Street, then turned right over to Lilitz Ave/Lilitz Pike. The streets didn't looks as gloomy or dangerous on the way back as they did our first night staying in Lancaster.
Crossing the railroad tracks on Lilitz Pike, Lancaster
End of the hike at the Country Hearth Inn, Lancaster
We crossed over the bridge, a through style girder with high walls hiding the walkway from the street, and then descended across a car sales lot to the parking lot for the Country Hearth Inn to finish up our hike.
We ended up stopping at Cracker Barrel on the way home for a good large meal.
Our total mileage turned out to be a little over 16.
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