Hike #601; Upper Swatara Valley

 Hike #601; Upper Swatara Valley

12/11/11 Upper Swatara Valley with Jason Kumpas, Tim Kovich, Jim "Mr. Buckett" Mathews, Jason Itell, Megan ?, Jason ?, and Eric Pace

Swatara Rail Trail just west of Pine Grove PA

My next hike would be a point to point beginning in the small village of Rock PA, intending to connect my previous hikes. We had left off many months before in Rock PA when we hiked down Wert's Path from the Appalachian Trail, and then tried to follow a branch of the Reading Railroad east, which ended up being mostly obliterated.

In the morning, I was having some car trouble, and I got a late start so I ran behind a bit. Fortunately, the rest of the group was able to come together and do the car shuttling from Swatara Gap to Rock PA prior to my arrival, and we could arrive at Rock PA at the same time.

Memorial thing in Rock PA

I wandered around a bit, but didn't have long to wait. I checked out the Newswanger Covered Bridge again, and noticed that further up the road there was an interesting little memorial with a mowed trail going off behind it. It appeared to just follow the perimeter of the property along a branch of the Swatara Creek.

We parked our cars at a small service station in the village (if you even want to call it that). I saw a guy filling up his truck, and he told me I shouldn't have much trouble parking there, that they are good people. We had no problems.

Some of the railroad fill here has been plowed away. Rock PA

The hike began by taking us parallel with the former Reading Railroad. There was a fill in place behind the service station, but it was soon very much plowed away where Hunters Lane and Loop Road went to the south. We walked along the right side of the right of way through a truck yard, and then around to a nice little foot bridge over a stream where the railroad fill had completely been plowed away.

Foot bridge in Rock PA

Foot bridge, Rock PA

Reading Railroad bed, Rock PA

Rail bed in Rock PA

Village of Rock PA

Cow along Nature's Road, Rock PA

Former site of a small railroad bridge on the Reading line near Rock PA

Stream near Rock PA

Woods east of Pine Grove PA

Woods east of Pine Grove PA

The foot bridge took us onto a lawn and then onto Loop Road which followed along the left edge of where the railroad would have gone. Now homes and such had obliterated any sign that it was once there on a fill.

Loop Road led back out to Rt 895, Rock Road, but just before a driveway went to the left and paralleled that road. We turned left here, except for Eric who opted to follow the main road because it might not have been a public through way. The driveway stayed right there on the edge of the railroad bed until it came to the intersection with Covered Bridge Road. I don't think there is actually a covered bridge on this road, but I could be wrong. Either way, we turned right out to Rt 895.

We soon crossed a stream, but to the left there was not much of a sign of where the trestle would have been across it. We could see some of the rail grade, but that was it. We continued ahead on the highway and then turned left onto a road called Nature's Road, a very pleasant and aptly named back road.

Nature's Road was closely parallel with the rail bed enough to see it behind the houses along the left side, but we could not get out on it. We followed this road to the end, and then turned left, which I think was another part of Covered Bridge Road. We followed that a short distance to a right turn onto Fawn Drive.

Fawn Drive was closely parallel with the railroad bed, which was badly overgrown. It first was at grade with the line, but then went up hill as the railroad bed entered a deep cut. Just before the cut, we crossed over a small creek. Just the abutments remained of where the rail line would have crossed as well.

We went up hill and passed a house, and then Fawn Drive turned sharply left while the rail bed continued ahead, shortly to State Game Lands 160. I had wanted to dash across, but there was someone home at the house and we didn't want to cause a scene. We headed back out Fawn Drive and then headed right, then right again at a fork onto Camp Road. At one point we wandered into woods thinking we'd get through to the rail bed, but an older guy pulled up with his wife. I explained to him what we were doing, and he was very friendly and fine with it, but it was his property, so we weren't going to try to bushwhack through, especially now.

We continued on Camp Road, but where my Google Maps application on my phone was showing State Game Lands, there were no signs of this along the edge of the road. We continued walking, and after seeing nothing for some time, we just decided to bushwhack into the woods along a small tributary. Eric didn't want to go through, so Mr. Buckett went with him to walk the road around to the next crossing site.

We followed the stream for a bit, but I soon realized that it was going to the east too much, and so we continued up out of the stream valley onto higher ground.

Abandoned trailer east of Pine Grove PA

As we headed up hill slightly, we came to an old roadway. We turned right and followed it a short distance revealing a long abandoned trailer home. It didn't even look like anyone was walking out here in quite a long time. I would guess it hasn't been lived in since the 80s. I went inside to have a look around.

Inside the abandoned trailer

There was barely anything inside except for a book shelf totally loaded. I went through the books, but they all appeared to be probably awful unknown fiction paperbacks. I checked it all over in case there were any good old history books, but there was nothing.

The trailer was rather sturdy, except for the floor was collapsing in a little bit.

Seasonal view near State Game Lands 160

We continued on from the trailer off of the woods road and up hill. There was ridge in front of us, but a very minor one. I suppose it was probably the eastern end of Swope Ridge, a secondary ridge to the Blue Mountain to the north, more prominent further to the west. There was a small rock outcropping near the top, and a bit of a seasonal view off to the north.

Former Reading Railroad bed, State Game Lands 160

We turned left and followed the ridge a short distance, and then began descending into the valley below us on an angle. The mixed hardwoods began to give way to a conifer forest with a lot of Hemlock.

We continued down hill carefully until we came to the old railroad bed again.

Former Reading Railroad bed, State Game Lands 160

Former Reading Railroad bed, State Game Lands 160

The rail bed was very cool in this area, but literally and figuratively. It was in a dense stand of Hemlocks, and many of the trees had even begun to grow right in the right of way. It was a lower temperature here than where we had just been, and it looked really interesting. The rail bed was very recognizable, but it was also not torn up by heavy ATV use like so many of them we find in remote parts of PA like this. Once everyone had caught up, we turned left onto the rail bed.

Former Reading Railroad bed, State Game Lands 160

The right of way went from following a shelf to a cut and became somewhat wet. We made our way around the puddles pretty easily. This was one of the better portions of the hike, in my opinion, but it wasn't to last for very long. After coming back out onto another small fill, we reached the border of private land, marked as some sort of a hunting club. I was ready to cross over, but then figured we'd better just try to skirt out through the State Game Lands. Jason Kupas spotted some sort of a sign back in the woods a short distance from the right of way to the north.

"The Underword"? Strange trail.

Weird girl scout trail sign

Trail sign at girl scout camp

Nice little swamp at State Game Lands 160

Girl scout trail at Camp Wood Haven

Camp Wood Haven crossing wet areas

Young forests in Camp Wood Haven

Fighting through brush, Camp Wood Haven

Camp Wood Haven entrance, former Reading Railroad bed

Old school or something, Stanhope PA

Cows, Stanhope PA

Swatara Creek in Stanhope PA

Old railroad bridge abutment, probably for a former Union Canal overpass, Pine Grove PA

We walked toward the sign, and were surprised to see it read "The Underworld". There was a large diamond shaped piece of yellow plastic attached to the tree as well.

I looked around, and could see yet another piece of yellow plastic, and beyond another sign. We soon figured out that these were just simply the largest trail blazes we had ever seen. We began to follow them and reached other named spots for swamps and rocky areas as we headed to the north, parallel with the border of State Game Lands 160. It must have been an old game land, because the borders were marked with the old metal markers I rarely see.

I found on my Google Application that there was a girl scout camp in the area, and so we soon assumed this was just a connection to that. We continued following the trail  until it took us out to a more prominent path of an old farm land. We turned left, and then came to a fork where we went left again. There were a few trail signs in the area.

We soon came out to skirt a wetland on the right of us, and I waited at a small trail sign. Jason Itell realized  here that he did not have his cell phone when I asked someone to call Eric up. My phone was running dead and I needed someone else who had his number. Jason had just gotten this phone and was concerned. He decided to go back to look for it, thinking he'd dropped it somewhere near the railroad bed. Tim offered to go with him to search. Megan gave Jason his phone to call with.

The rest of us continued out through an open field, and t hen into some woods with thick undergrowth. There was a huge wetland near to the Swatara Creek that we had to try to traverse. It was a pain. First we had to fight through brush, then we had to try to circumvent more wet areas. Jason K found a large branch to dump down across one of the wet spots. We then went through a nice stand of young hardwood forest, and then had to fight through a wall of brush to get back out to Camp Road. It was so thick we likened it to being born.

We turned left onto the road, and then came to the entrance to the camp, which was the old railroad bed. On the other side of the road it was not really walkable. Mr. Buckett and Eric were nowhere to be found. After what we walked through, Jason asked "who would send their daughter here???".

There was a small intersection with an old schoolhouse on the corner. This was a village known as Stanhope. We We followed a road near the rail bed from here known as Mexico Road heading west, parallel but far off from the rail bed to the south. We finally got a hold of Eric and Mr. Buckett, who had passed the rail bed and reached the highway again. They were now nearly to Pine Grove.

The rest of us walked Mexico Road out to Rt 501, Bethel Road, and turned right. We continued to where the railroad used to cross, through someone's yard and then fields on the right, and someone's driveway to the left. We followed 501 north to a small alley road parallel with 895 to the left after crossing a pretty branch of the Swatara Creek.

At the end of the alley, we turned right and then followed 896 into Pine Grove. Along the way, we could see the rail bed we had been following disappear off into the fields to the left. I figure it must have been up on a high fill. Logically, it makes sense that the remainder of the fill to the former bridge site was removed because it would be an impediment to the stream during times of flooding, and then flood the town.

We crossed the main Swatara Creek, and on the other side we could see an old railroad abutment off to the left. The rail line we had been following had a junction with another branch of the Reading Railroad, the Lebanon and Tremont Branch, in Pine Grove, on the south side.

Army tank and old Union Canal, Pine Grove PA

On the opposite side of the road, I couldn't see really any railroad remnants, but behind an army tank that was set as a memorial, there was the remaining section of the Union Canal. This was the near northern terminus of the branch of the Union Canal.

The Union Canal is a pretty amazing one, being one of the earliest proposed, and work was begun on it during the George Washington Administration in the late 1700s. It was not completed until 1828, however. The section we were looking at was completed in 1832, and it was a sort of "spur canal". Pine Grove was very near to the coal mines of the region, and it served the dual purpose of hauling coal and acting as a feeder to the main canal, which ran from the Schuykill River to the Susquehanna River, connecting near it's summit.

A major flood hit the region in June of 1862 and destroyed the canal along the Swatara Creek. It was deemed not worthy of repair, and so it was abandoned. By that time, the rail line was already in existence anyway.

I would assume that the railroad abutment we saw on the left of the road was probably from the railroad's bridge over the former Union Canal.

We continued up into the town of Pine Grove. When we called Eric and Mr. Buckett, we'd found that they'd continued on to the south on Rt 443 because Eric wanted to go to McDonalds. Mr. Buckett later told me their conversations during the walk were dominated by talks of food and using the restroom.

The rest of us opted to walk into town to have a look around and find some food. I got myself four hot dogs at a Turkey Hill store. After a good break we turned around and headed to the south on 443 ourselves.

Probably former Union Canal, Pine Grove PA

We continued and I think it was near Geary Wolf Road on the west side of town that I saw what I believed to be the former canal right along the highway, now overtaken by people's yards and such. It was amazing to me that such a huge piece of history such as this canal was not preserved, like what we were doing at home with the Morris Canal.

Somewhere in this same vicinity was the old railroad bed. I couldn't quite see where it turned away from the highway. This section had been abandoned since 1965, and so it was of course to be in worse shape than the rest of the line.

We soon heard from Jason and Tim. They had opted instead of running to catch up with us, to instead run back to Jason's car to meet up with us near Pine Grove. Jason found a spot to park there, and found that he had left his phone in his car after all.

The only friends in Pine Grove PA

When I got to where I thought we might be able to get to the railroad bed, some lady who liked NASCAR stopped us to ask what we were up to. I told her we were just hiking, and she told us there was some funny business going on around there, and that was why she was asking. We got into silly conversations following this about "malarkey". Although the lady didn't use that word, it seemed like she sort of said it without saying it. I kept going on about how this was a bunch of Malarkey. This was indeed a strange hike so far. We had trouble finding the rail bed, had to go through crazy weeds and water, and had the group split up in three directions. I couldn't wait to get off the road.

We continued along the road, looking longingly into the valley to the left where the Lebanon and Tremont Branch of the Reading Railroad went, but we couldn't follow it because of all of the posted signs and close building proximities.

We soon came to the developed area around Interstate 81, and the McDonalds where Eric and Mr. Buckett were waiting. Eric decided he was going to sit there until we finished the hike, while Mr. Buckett came out to join us.

Hillside climb at a hotel near I-81 in Pine Grove

We passed under 81 and then turned left into a hotel parking lot. We had to climb a really steep hillside using both hands and feet, and then passed by the hotel. We would have to parallel I-81 until we found the old railroad branch.

Swatara Rail Trail, Pine Grove PA

We soon came to an ATV path. It really didn't look like a railroad bed, and my phone was totally dead now so I couldn't check. Still, it seemed to be in the correct place, and it was straight while other ATV paths went in other directions away from the flat area. We tried to walk it to the west, and it became more and more like a railroad bed.

We skirted the backs of residential areas on the rail bed, and soon entered a more wooded area, getting further away from I-81.

Old Union Canal west of Pine Grove PA

As we continued on the rail bed, the former Union Canal would have been parallel with us to the left. Pretty soon, it came close enough that we could see it. The prism and towpath looked to be in really pretty good shape, but it looked also very difficult to follow. No one was making any efforts to keep the towpath clear.

We continued ahead on the railroad bed.

Swatara Rail Trail west of Pine Grove

The rail bed became much more pleasant as the highway continued to move away, and the homes that had been skirting the route on our right began to disappear. The trail was still obviously used by ATVs, but if they hadn't been using it there is no way we'd have ever been able to get through.

Swatara Rail Trail west of Pine Grove

The canal that had been on the left of us must have lost elevation by way of a lock or something, but we did not see it. The Swatara Creek off to the left had grown in size to a giant lake, but not the way it once was certainly. I had read there was once a large reservoir in the area that is now Swatara State Park, which was part of the Union Canal system. We could see a couple of lines of trees, or berms out on the water, any of which could have once been the towpath of the old canal. It had been so damaged from flooding over the years that much of that history is now gone. Still, it was interesting to see the remnants there.

Former Union Canal reservoir in Swatara State Park

I wondered what the dam must be like. In order to be retaining that much water, at least some of a dam must still remain in the area. We couldn't see anything from the rail trail, as it moved a bit further away from the creek ahead. Mr. Buckett and I walked together and chatted about plans for the upcoming Buckettfest in February, one of the greatest parties of the year.

Swatara Rail Trail just east of Suedberg

We were now nearing the village of Suedberg, where we had left off on our last Swatara area hike. By reaching this little forgotten hamlet, I had now connected this hike with the one we had done over the previous Summer, which involved hiking the Swatara Rail Trail from the AT to the northeast.

Abandoned building in Suedberg PA

Abandoned

Abandoned

Abandoned

Abandoned

Abandoned

Abandoned

Abandoned

Abandoned

Abandoned

Abandoned

When we reached Suedberg, the abandoned houses were still standing that were there on the previous trip. The one of them that was the coolest still stood right along the former railroad. This spot was the eastern terminus of the former Lebanon and Tremont Branch after the 1965 abandonment of the section to Pine Grove. The section to Suedberg remained in operation until between 1979 and 1981. I really don't know much about the history of Suedberg at all, and can't really find anything on line, amazingly.

I took the opportunity to again revisit the abandoned building I did on the previous trip here. Not much had changed, except this time I think there was more plaster and such that had fallen from the walls. Sadly, this old house probably wouldn't last all that much longer.

I had to go in by way of the basement. The steps going from the basement to the first floor were party ruined. The center holding piece was turned sideways, and at least three steps were missing, so I had to pull myself up. I made my way up to the second floor, which was wide open. It looked like it once had walls but was gutted. There were also cabinet/cooler things or something we had seen before on the first floor.

I went to the front window of the second floor to get a picture of the group.

Rather than continue ahead on the rail trail, since I'd already done it, we would turn left onto Swopes Valley Road. We would head back to Swatara Gap on Bear Hole Trail, formerly known as Old State Road, a once major through road to Swatara Gap, now abandoned.

Jason screwing with ice in Suedberg

Very near to the rail there there was a set of bridge abutments of a former road that once crossed a small tributary. A short distance down Swopes Valley Road was the parking area we had used as the end of the hike we had done the previous Summer.

Abandoned

Suedberg PA abandoned house

View toward the old Lebanon and Tremont branch of the Reading Railroad bridge site

Former road bridge site in Suedberg

Bear Hole Trail/Old State Road

Old State Road, Swatara State Park

Old State Road/Bear Hole Trail, Swatara SP

Across from the parking lot where we'd finished the previous time was Old State Road. The very beginning of it was open to vehicular traffic. We crossed Swatara Creek on Swopes Valley Road, and then turned right onto Old State Road. Somewhere in this vicinity it appeared the the former Union Canal crossed over to the south side of the Swatara Creek, but we couldn't really find any remnants of it in this vicinity.

We continued along the road, which soon came out to a parking area and a giant pile of stone. This was supposedly a fossil collecting area. We walked along the edge of the stones slowly to see if we could find any fossils of trilobites, the most commonly found in this area, but we saw nothing at all. We continued on ahead as the old road turned away from Swatara Creek, and was gated off to further vehicle traffic.

At times, the road was still paved, though broken up, and other times it just seemed to be a layer of gravel. Either way, it was overall really relaxing, pleasant walking.

The old road went through some old former fields in the later stages of succession, and then into more deep woods. We ascended gradually quite a bit and were far away from the creek for quite some time. We ended up getting pretty close to interstate 81, but we never really felt like we were too close to it. Mr. Buckett entertained us with talk of Chimpanzees while we walked.

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Cascades behind the cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Cascades behind the cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Old cabin

Washed out section of Old State Road, Swatara State Park

Old Union Canal lock, Swatara State Park

Swatara State Park, old Union Canal lock

Swatara State Park

Swatara State Park, Union Canal lock

We came to one point where the road was becoming very washed out from a stream crossing, where a pipe had been blocked up with debris. Everyone continued to walk ahead, but as I looked around, there was a drive going off to the left to the most amazing and abandoned log cabin. I almost couldn't believe what I was seeing. The place looked outstanding, but there was no one living there. There was no glass in the windows, an occasional screen, and all of the doors were opened. It had a one car garage and two stories above that.

I made my way up the driveway and into the garage. Not much to see there, and no access to the inside of the house. I left through a side door and made my way to the entrance on the left side. There was an open room in the rear, and another in the front, with a lovely set of steps leading to a half second floor in the middle. The lower floor had framed pictures still on the wall. One of the frame pictures was a picture of a man with his dog in front of a beautiful cascade, next to an east facing window that looked off at that very cascade. There were several other pictures on the walls, which was very odd to me since it was so obviously abandoned with no windows at all.

There was a nice porch on the right side of it, with more of a view of the creek cascading. The second story was sort of a loft style sleeping area. The entire place was composed of log. It did not appear to be very historic, probably 1960s construction. The roof appeared to be in good shape with no leaks. This place could very easily be repaired as some sort of visitor's center.

No one else joined me in the building, amazingly. I continued back down to rejoin the group, some of whom still hadn't noticed there was even a building there. We continued down Bear Hole Trail/Old State Road, as it began to descend a bit. There were a couple of side roads that turned off from it, but the main route was rather obvious. As we descended, I saw something incredible off to the right. We had come to one of the old locks for the Union Canal. This lock was enourmous, with what must have been nearly a twenty foot lift and maybe more. It reminded me of some of the large lift locks that had been on the Lehigh Canal in it's Upper Division. Quite impressive. Unfortunately, it was getting too dark to get good photos.

The masonry work on the upper end was beautifully crafted with finely cut stones. In the center of the lock, it was more simply laid stones that were giving way. The next section had more crafted stones, and then it was layed stones all the way out to the lower end of the lock before being cut and crafted again. The center pieces of the lock walls were collapsing badly, but the central ones were holding in place very well.

We continued along Old State Road for a bit more, and as we got closer to Swatara Creek, another old Union Canal lock site came into view. Most of the canal itself between these locks appeared to be obliterated from flooding and such, but the masonry work was still there for the locks. This lock was much smaller than the previous one we had found.

After another short distance, a third Union Canal lock site came into view. This one was the smallest yet, but it was also nice to see more of the canal somewhat preserved. We did not have far beyond this point before we reached the Appalachian Trail again, at the Waterville Bridge. We had connected once again with a spot we were at previously. We had 1.4 miles remaining to hike.

We crossed the attractive Waterville Bridge (relocated here form it's original home on the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon in Lycoming County, originally built in 1890), and crossed over Rt 72. The trail on the opposite side ascended gradually the edge of the embankment beside the road, then made a hard left turn to switch back slightly. I waited at the top of this ascent for everyone to get across the road, at Jason K's smart recommendation.

Waterville Bridge on the Appalachian Trail, Swatara State Park

After entering the young woods, I made my way ahead on a nicely worn and soft foot path. There were a few blow downs over the trail; it probably wasn't as well cared for because this section had no opportunities for a loop. As I made my way to the top of the ascent, I became very happy with the connections I was making.

Every hike I do is such a great victory for me on so many different levels. It's exploring and discovering, it's exercise, it's fellowship and camaraderie, but for me more so than most I am connecting these places by foot so that they connect in my mind. By picking up where I've once left off I attain a greater understanding of how it fits together. The history and ecology of the places begin to make more sense when seeing the transition from place to place. It also gives me a sense of ownership; having walked a route to where I stood from my own home allows me to feel pride for an area in a much deeper sense than what I can express in words.

I continued along the trail as it changed from foot path to wider old roadway. I began to descend, and could hear the traffic from nearby Rts 72 and 443. Ahead of me I could see the gate for the Appalachian Trail on Rt 443 and the parking lot. I had now connected the St. Anthony's Wilderness backpack I had done with Jillane to this hike, another substantial area. It's a strange sense of relief when I make these connections. I felt further relief when I heard the voices of my friends calling me only a short distance behind.

I'm the luckiest man alive to be able to lead such a fulfilling life, to have moments like this, and to have such great friends to share the joy of the moment with.