Kinzua State Park & Sky Walk

I had planned a trip to north-central Pennsylvania for a while and finally had a chance to seek out a few attractions. Two of the major things I had wanted to see for some time were the Austin Dam and Kinzua Bridge. With a great weather forecast ahead, my brother, a friend, and I started our trip to Kinzua Bridge. The drive lead us through one of the most wooded parts of Pennsylvania with towering trees and a lot of wild life. The drive in itself was easy and scenic and time pasted quickly as we approached the Kinzua State Park.

Marketed as the “Eight Wonder of the World” at one point, the Kinzua Bridge was a historic architectural marvel. The railroad bridge was built over the Kinzua Creek in Meckean County just outside the small town of Mt. Jewett. At one time it was the tallest railroad bridge in the world standing over 300 feet. Originally built in 1882 of wrought iron, it was later rebuilt with steel. It remained working until 1959 and then became part of the Kinzua State Park. Restoration efforts for the bridge to attract more visitors started in 2002, but in 2003 a huge storm ripped through northern Ohio and Pennsylvania and proceeded to build a tornado that knocked down most of the bridge. After the destruction, plans changed to make the bridge a sky walk to show the power of mother nature.

Visitor Center

As we arrived to the parking lot for the sky walk, we were surprised to see a large visitor center. We decided to go straight to the sky walk which was directly behind the visitor center and check back there afterwards. For a Sunday, the park was busy but not overly crowded. Along the sky walk, we quickly progressed high above the tree tops and valley below. At the end of the bridge a large observation platform was built with a glass floor in the middle. We stood 250 feet above the valley with superb view of the valley. We then decided to walk the trail leading to the valley below. The trail itself was steep and one could easily become fatigued if not used to hiking, so I would recommend using caution before attempting. The views from the valley floor were almost as amazing as from above and worth the trip down.

Upon returning from the trail, we decided to stop by the visitor center and were glad we did. The center had many exhibits, some were hands on and great of grade school children. The visitor center also had an information desk and small gift shop. Overall I was very pleased with the trip and would recommend a visit to anyone to see this engineering marvel.

James Cleveland Memorial

Some places I want to visit are not as easily accessible as others when it comes to finding Pennsylvania's vast historical sites. One such places is the James Cleveland Memorial. Most people has never heard of it and the few who have are probably avid hikers in central PA.

There are two ways to reach the trail head to the James Cleveland Trail. The first and most popular way is off of PA 144 between Pleasant Gap and Centre Hall by following Greens Valley Road. The second and older way is off of PA 192 along what is now private property. The trail was made by local boy scout groups and maintained by them. The part of the trail that goes towards Rt 192 from the summit is older and not routinely traveled.

On a cool May afternoon, a friend of mine and I decided to go for a hike and visit the memorial and took the lesser used route from PA 192. There is a small pull off where the trail head is marked. No posted signs or anything was to be seen so we obeyed the “no motor vehicle” sign and left the car and started our hike.

The first part was back an old farm lane. After a few hundred yards we came to a crossing over a small stream. Not until our way back did we realize that is where the trail ended/started. We continued up the lane until we came to the mountain and started our hike up the steep climb up Mt. Nittany. My GPS eventually took us to the right direction and we met the well blue blazed trail. The trek up the mountain was strenuous and we were glad to have a cool day to hike.

Towards the summit the trail became more rocky and we came to a small boulder field were people had stacked some rocks to form small towers. The vista from this point was pretty impressive. James was an early air mail pilot and on May 24^th1934, he wreck into the side of Mt. Nittany. There was a small fire pit and logs around to sit. Unfortunately our climb was cut short by the sudden fall of hail. We continued our climb a few hundred feet and came across the James Cleveland Memorial obelisk and rock tower with plan wreckage. The memorial is in a small pine grove and very peaceful.

We proceeded to hike back down the mountain trying not to fall forward. The trail is only 2 miles one way and I would like to visit the other side of the mountain sometime.

Minersville Coke Ovens

In the southern part of Huntington county between the small towns of Coalmont and Dudley, there is a set of coke ovens and remnants of a mining operation. Minersville was founded in 1875 and quickly burnt out like so many others of it's era. Only part of this historic area is accessible via State Game Lands, the other part is noticeably posted as private land.

We parked our car and set out to explore the area. The Michell and Beehive ovens were easily seen even with mother nature reclaiming them. Some of the ovens were fallen in, but most were still in decent shape. At one time over 150 ovens were in operation. Upon closer observation we found a few foundations to buildings. From the road we could see the remains of a tipple and concrete structures; however, the land they are on is posted.

Heading east from Coalmont along Route 913 about one mile the road leading to the State Game Lands and Minersville is not marked and is simply a right turn onto a dirt road that leads to a bridge over Shoup Run. Please be mindful of the private property.

The Quehanna Wild Area

Bunker Door

This past summer I finally had a chance to explore one of the most unique pieces of North-central Pennsylvania, the Quehanna Wild Area. The wildlife area is a huge 40 thousand acres in parts of Cameron, Clearfield and Elk counties. It also has two natural areas with the Marion Brooks Natural area being the larger and home to the largest White birch forest in the east coast. We picked a great warm day to go hiking and explore some of the most notable parts of the wild area and it’s history.

The Quehanna Wild area was founded like so many other state parks and forests. The land which was predomitaly occupied by native Americans, was settled by early American pioneers and then logged and stripped of it’s growth. In the 1930’s CCC camps were incorporated to help American get out of the Great Depression and give youth jobs and skills for life. The camps would transform the barren land into many of the state forests, recreation areas and state game lands we have now.

Former Reactor Site

After the CCC camps improved what would be later called the Quehanna Wild area, the Curtiss-Wright Corporation bought a small area for testing. The testing was to be done for the new Atoms for Peace policy that President Dwight D. Esinhower endorsed. The policy would allow companies to experiment with nuclear technology in hopes of finding alternative uses for nuclear technology besides war. The Curtiss-Wright Company would use the land they bought to build a nuclear reactor and testing facilities. Remnants of the nuclear testing can still be found. The reactor it’s self was dismantled and for a long time it was questionable if the area was safe from radiation. A large-scale cleanup took place and the reactor site is still a barren field. Two nuclear jet engine test bunkers exist. The one was partly buried and used as a bat sanctuary the other is over growing with foliage; however, you can still explore.

Besides the nuclear aspect of Quehanna Wild area, it is a great place to visit in the autumn not only for the beautiful birch trees, but also for the chance to see elk. A few different blinds are set up for people to get a chance to see theses creatures.

Kunes Camp

Quehanna Wild Area is also an exceptional hiking and backpacking area. The trails are well blazed and diversity in terrain allows for a great experience. We decided to hit some of the highlights on my first trip to Quehanna and took the Kunes Camp trail. This trail peaked my interest due to being named after an old hunting cabin that is along the trail. The hike to Kunes Camp was enjoyable and flat. The cabin was built between 2 large boulders of rock. The front and back walls still stand but the roof had rotted away many years ago. The remnants of an old outhouse were not to far from the cabin.

All in all the Quehanna Wild Area is much more than just a day trip. One could easily spend a few days or week exploring all it has to offer. I will be planning a trip back very soon.

Abandon Road