From the east side of the Susquehanna gap, I got on 22 and drove across the river. The traffic was heavy crossing the bridge and there didn't look to be any areas for pedestrians to hoof it over. Maybe I missed something. From what I saw though it was not a hiker friendly crossing. I crossed another bridge and went through a small town heading toward the mountain. It was simple enough, cross a couple rivers and follow the Susquehanna down until I see where the AT picks up again. I ended up at Tubby's Nightclub, the last stop on a dead end road. I didn't see any signs for the AT, so I turned around and went back into the town. I asked a gentleman crossing the road if he knew where I could find the access and he directed me back to Tubby's. I parked across the dead end road from the club and soon found the unmarked access to the trail. Penny and I were off again heading up another portion of the mountain.
Looking back across the Susquehanna on the portion of mountain we hiked earlier in the day. It doesn't look as high as it is from a distance.
With this being the third hike of the day, this stone bench begged me to take a rest as I passed. With the sun on a downward path I had to pass up the offer and just keep on going.
What an impressive set of stairs.
On the way up the mountain I met Sean O'Shell. He helps to maintain this section of AT and asked me if I was on my way up to Hawk Rock. I told him I was just going to the top and I knew nothing about the area. He said if I made it to the outlook he would tell me a little bit about the surrounding area. When I got to the top he was there and did just that.
Mr. O'Shell informed me of the work that has been done to keep graffiti off of Hawk Rock and to keep the outlook as natural as possible. The area has been tagged several times and some of the cleanings he did on his own. Mr. O'Shell, also pointed out some of the features that can be seen from the lookout and told me about a loop trail that can be taken back down the mountain. Below are some links he provided for the area. The first link Trail Vistas would be extremely helpful if you are looking for nice hiking trails in this part of PA.
My backpack was full by the end of this last hike of the day and the sun was going down. I would like to once again thank Mr. O'Shell for the information he provided to me and the work that he has done to keep Hawk Rock graffiti free!
Total for the day was close to a full bag. This included the stop in Halifax and the hikes to the top of both the east and west side of the Susquehanna gap.
You too can help with taking out the trash! If you get out hiking take a grocery bag with you, give it a second use and fill it with trash while you are out! Every bit helps. You can also help contributing to this project at: gofundme.com/takingoutthetrash
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