Eastern PA day trips?

May 23, 2005 6:35 AM

I'd like to go on a day trip to eastern PA this upcoming weekend. Caves, hikes, waterfalls - what is nice in the area?
posted by skwm to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (8 answers total)

Near Wellsboro, PA, is "the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania." This is more north-central than eastern, but it's beautiful countryside and worth the trip. The canyon (a gorge, really) has your waterfalls and your hikes. There's a rail trail at the bottom, too.
posted by scratch at 6:52 AM on May 23, 2005

I shoud say I spent four college years in Lower Westchester County, NY State, and I never quite made it to eastern PA, but I'll tell you what I wanted to go to:

Delaware Water Gap

Because I'd never seen it, I wanted to see Wilkes-Barre. I can always find something to do for an hour or so in a new town, even if it's just window shop, and any town with such a contrived manner of saying "Wilksbury" has got to have some interest to it.

The Appalachain Trail of course runs somewhere in there as it leaves New Jersey and cuts over towards the Maryland hill square miles.

I'm imagining you're coming from NYC or some other Corridor burg. I'd get a mental image of where the Susquehanna or Schuykill river is coming from and meander the roads across and upstream until I found something or someone likely and ask them what's good to see today.

That's the way weekend road trips work in Georgia and North Carolina (the necks of my woods).
Even after spending 4 years in college there I can't figure out the middle colonies, but if there's one that I wouldn't worry about taking this recreation strategy, it's Penn's Woods.

Good luck, hope this gave you some ideas.

DG
posted by Dr. Grue at 6:56 AM on May 23, 2005

Bushkill Falls is kind of touristy, but is actually rather nice, and you can easily spend the whole day there. Beautiful waterfalls , lots of places to explore, many ways to get off the beaten path. You could also always pick up a part of the Appalachian Trail, too - a great day hike, especially if you start around the Delaware Water Gap.

On preview: What Dr. Grue said.
posted by iconomy at 7:10 AM on May 23, 2005

Bushkill Falls is hard to beat for waterfall action.
posted by de void at 7:12 AM on May 23, 2005 [1 favorite]

You might want to check out the list of Pennsylvania state parks from the DCNR. There are lots of really nice parks throughout PA.

My personal favorite has always been Hickory Run where you can take a hike through a boulder field that was created during the last ice age.
posted by Joe Schlabotnik at 7:58 AM on May 23, 2005

Check out Ricketts Glen State Park. It has your waterfalls (22 to be exact) and involves at least a 5 mile trip through the gorges to see them all. There are plenty of other trails to hike in the park should you tire of the waterfalls. The area is a bit remote but I gather that is what you want since you asked for caves, waterfalls, and hiking.

The Delaware Water Gap also comes highly recommended although you'll have to do your own searching for activities there.
posted by mordecaibrown at 8:03 AM on May 23, 2005

Somewhat more civilized than camping and hiking: Longwood Gardens, located near Kennett Square, a nice little boro outside Philly. Also nearby is the Brandywine Museum, home to a lot of paintings by the Wyeths (N.C., Andrew, and Jamie).
posted by booth at 8:24 AM on May 23, 2005

I second Joe Schlabotnik's suggestion of Boulder Field in Hickory Run State Park is a beautiful place to climb around - I would heavily suggest nice sturdy boots, though, the rocks can get slippery or rugged.

And if you ever get bored, it's always a jump skip hop away from Jersey, where you can go searching for weird things.
posted by itchie at 10:52 AM on May 23, 2005