Last September, I took a 130-mile stroll through the wilderness of North Central Pennsylvania, following the Black Forest and Susquehannock trails. This wasn’t a photography trip like my jaunts in India. I was hiking 15-20 miles a day, carrying water, shelter, and ten days worth of food on my back, so I didn’t bring my proper camera. Still, I took the occasional snap with my budget Samsung phone. The results are mushier than what I usually post, but they suffice to get a feel for the place.
A view out over the Black Forest Trail on my first day of hiking, having climbed up from the parking area next to Pine Creek (that is famous for carving the “Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania,” which is beautiful, but nothing like the Grand Canyon of the Colorado Plateau, and rather suffers from an unnecessary comparison if you ask me…but I digress). Even though it was still summer back home, autumn was just beginning to arrive in Pennsylvania. I believe this is looking roughly west along the canyon of Slate Run.
Young milk snake. These are a very common species, but where I live in Delaware is right on the eastern fringe of their territory, so I rarely see them. Funnily enough, I located this fellow under a stone that I had flipped over on a previous expedition and found another milk snake of about the same size. I guess it’s the perfect milk snake rock.
Small waterfall on Slate Run at about mile 8 of the Black Forest Trail. This photo doesn’t do it justice; waterfalls are a subject where a tripod and serious camera really do get substantially better results. Here, I had my last bit of “civilized” food that I bought on the drive up: a sandwich from Sheetz. Then, for the next 122 miles, it was all dehydrated backpacking meals and Cliff Bars.
Patrick Rogers 