Appalachian Trail Hike at Black Swatara Spring

Stopping by Woods on Easter Sunday

[Apologies to Robert Frost]

Whose woods these are... mine I sing.

My house is in the village though;

Others will not see me stopping here

To watch these woods fill up with spring.

My spouse must think it queer

To stop without a brewpub near

Between the woods and tiny lake

To enjoy this spring day of the year.

My spouse gives the pack a shake

To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound’s the sweep

Of easy wind and leafy flake.

The woods are lovely dark and deep.

But I have more ideas to think,

And miles to go before I drink,

And miles to go before I drink.

Hi Blog!

On Easter Sunday, April 12, 2020, the high winds and bad weather took a day off, and we hiked another section of the Appalachian Trail. This section of trail to Black Swatara Spring, while not particularly inspiring (no scenic views or historic forts), we felt it would offer us the best chance to have a socially distant outdoor experience.

When we arrived at the State Game Land parking lot off Route 183, there were no other hikers, just two horse riders getting ready to ride the State Game Land Trails. However, just as we were about to start up the forest road to the AT, another hiker came into the parking lot and took off up the forest road ahead of us. Since we had to hike in his slipstream, we put on our masks and followed at a safe distance. As luck would have it, the lone hiker continued on the forest road and we were able to turn onto the AT and proceed without company.

At the start of the hike, the 70 degree weather they promised us had not yet arrived - neither had Spring. With extra layers, hats and gloves, we set out to see what we could see.

At times, the AT reminds you of a road paved with stones. The only problem is, the road is uneven and the stones are pointy. Thru-hikers say that Pennsylvania is where boots go to die. It is affectionately referred to as "Rocksylvania."

The double blaze means a turn ahead. We are about to approach Black Swatara Spring. It was the only thing of note on this section of the AT.

The name Swatara is said to derive from a Susquehannock word, Swahadowry or Schaha-dawa, which means 'where we feed on eels'. We are not sure why they call it Black Swatara Spring, but this area is know to be rich in coal deposits. Not knowing how far it was to the spring, we decided to stick to the AT.

Seeing this hat on a tree reminded Kathy of the time she lost her hat in Madera Canyon, Arizona. There comes a point when you realize there is no going back to retrieve a lost hat. If this hat was lost by a thru-hiker, it will still be here next year, and the year after that, and the year after that.

As we hiked along, trying to solve all the problems of the world, we took a moment to admire some tree art.

How about we just admire this old tree? There are a few red pines along this section of the AT. The fact that they managed to survive in this thin rocky soil is a testament to their fortitude.

Not all trees grow straight and tall, as you can see from the photo below. Sometimes, shit happens. We can only speculate what caused this curve. Most likely, another three fell and caused this tree to grow up and around it. It happened so long ago, no remnants of the culprit can be found.

While most of the trail was high and dry, we did have a few small creeks to cross.

The extra moisture in this area brought forth our first signs of Spring.

What can I say... tree art!

We decided to call the turnaround at 3.5 miles which would give us 7 miles of hiking. Unfortunately, there was no real place to sit and relax at 3.5, so we hiked back about a half mile to a camping spot where we could relax and eat our lunch.

While Kathy finished her sandwich, Dave decided to wander over to a nearby field to see what he could see. This lone tree stood out in what once had been a farmer's field and is now part of the State Game Lands.

Check out this stump art! There is a whole city of fungus growing in that little round circle.

While we ate lunch, one couple passed by on the trail. Since we were off trail by about 20 yards, we didn't feel the need to don our masks. However, on the return trip, we passed a single hiker and we got off trail and put our masks on until he was well out of sight. We actually kept the masks on until we were sure we were well past his slipstream. We did the same when we encountered another couple of hikers.

It is so unnatural for us to step off the trail and not talk to passing hikers. Some of our best friends have been folks we meet and talked to on the trail. It may be a year or more before we can get vaccinated. Just thinking of all the new friends we won't be able to make makes me sad.

For all our old friends and friends we've known a long time, please stay safe.