tours of the constel-
lations. Crowds of several
hundred people are
common on clear nights
in July and August when
the Milky Way is almost
directly overhead.4 p175
The Drive » Take PA-44 south
to PA-144 north to Galeton. Both
roads twist and turn down the
mountain until 144 levels out
near Rte 6.6 Galeton
Looking out from any vista
in the area, it’s difficult to
imagine that Galeton was
once almost completely
denuded of tress, logged
until hardly any were left
standing. Until the early
1800s only the Seneca and
other Native Americans
encountered these dense
woods, but at the turn
of the last century, the
lumber industry arrived,
scraping the land bare but
also bringing prosperity
and employment. The men
who worked in the camps
were called ‘wood hicks’.
Springtime melt meant
water was plentiful to
float log rafts, white pine
and hemlock primarily,
to lumber mills along the
Susquehana River.
The Pennsylvania
Lumber Museum
(%814-435-2652; http://www.
lumbermuseum.org; 5660
US Rte 6 West; h9am-5pm
Wed-Sun, call for winter hrs)
includes a re-created
lumber camp typical of
the late 1800s, two large
locomotives housedin a saw mill and a
modernized new visitor
center due to open
in 2014 with exhibits
on the history of our
relationship with forests.
Logging companies
are still active in the
northern tier but are
subject to regulations
to keep deforestation
at bay. Wildlife such as
deer, beaver, elk and
river otters were slowly
reintroduced throughout
the 1900s. Consider a
visit during the annual
Bark Peeler’s Convention
(July 6–7), an Olympics
for lumberjacks with
events like grease
pole fighting, sawing,
burling (running on
a log in a pond) and
the more tongue-in-
cheek tobacco spitting
and frog jumping.
Coming immediately
after Galeton’s large
4th of July celebration,
accommodation is
extremely tight.The Drive » Head east on
Rte 6 and hang a right onto
Forest/Colton Rd just before
the Ansonia cemetery; a sign
for Colton Point State Park
marks the turn. It’s another 5
miles up a narrow and winding
paved road until you reach the
overlook.7 PA Grand Canyon
Two state parks on either
side of the 47-mile-long
Pine Creek Gorge make
up what’s commonly
referred to as the ‘PA
Grand Canyon’. Accessto the west rim of the
canyon is from Colton
Point State Park which
has a several view points,
camping grounds and
trails into the forest
of maple, oak, poplar,
aspen and beech trees.
The more visited and
developed Leonard
Harrison State Park
(%570-724-3061; http://www.visit
PAparks.com) on the east
rim has possibly better,
fuller views of the 800ft
canyon (it’s 1450 ft at
its deepest) and Tioga
State Forest beyond. It’s
a trade-off, however,
since it has a paved plaza
with steps down to an
observation area and
there’s a gift shop next to
the park office.
The way out here is
via a turnoff on Rte 6
not far past the one for
the Colton Point side.
Eventually, you take
Rte 660 west past some
suburban style homes
and pretty farmland.
Both parks have a trail
called the Turkey Path
that descends to the
canyon floor – it’s a tough
3-mile round-trip on the
Colton Point Side but you
can catch your breath
with a stop at a 70-ft
waterfall.
If you want to
explore the east rim
of the canyon one day
and the west rim the
next, consider staying
overnight in nearby
Wellsboro (p175) – it’s
just 10 miles east from
the canyon on Rte 660.TRIP HIGHLIGHTNEW.JERSEY.&.PENNSYLVANIA.TRIPS14
(^) THROUGH THE WILDS ALONG ROUTE 6