Sunday, November 4, 2007
The Park
Ricketts Glen State Park is 13,050 acres (52.81 km²) and is in northeastern Pennsylvania about a 2 hour drive from my hometown of Harrisburg. The park is near the town of Benton and closest to the city of Williamsport (home of the little league World Series) and offers hiking, camping (one of the two camping areas is on a peninsula extending into the lake), horseback riding (horses not provided in the park), hunting, swimming, fishing, canoeing and kayaking on 245 acre (0.99 km²) Lake Jean, as well as cross-country skiing and ice fishing in the Winter.
The major attraction in the park is the Glens Natural Area, a National Natural Landmark; the Falls Trail passes 24 named waterfalls, the highest being 94 feet (28.7 m) Ganoga Falls! Ricketts Glen State Park is one of the most famous Pennsylvania natural landscapes and was acknowledged by the Bureau of Parks as being one of the "Twenty Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks".
The Glens Natural Area, a registered National Natural Landmark since October 12, 1969, is at the bottom of the park. Among giant pines, hemlocks, and oaks, two branches of Kitchen Creek cut through the deep gorges of Ganoga Glen and Glen Leigh and unite at "Waters Meet"; then flow through Ricketts Glen. Many of the magnificent trees in this area are over 500 years old, and ring counts on fallen trees have revealed ages as high as 900 years. Diameters of almost 4 feet (1.2 m) are common, and many trees tower to 100 feet (30 m) in height. The area is the meeting ground of the southern and northern hardwood types, creating an extensive variety of trees. In 1993, the Glens Natural Area became a State Park Natural Area and will be protected and maintained in a natural state.
A series of trails, covering a total of 5 miles (8 km) parallels the streams as they course down the Glens. Glen Leigh features eight waterfalls. Ganoga Glen has ten named falls, including 94 feet (29 m) Ganoga Fall, plus another good-sized unnamed waterfall on a side tributary. Ricketts Glen has three waterfalls just below Waters Meet, and two more 2 miles (3 km) farther downstream at PA route 118. One of these two is directly below the highway bridge, which obscures much of the view. The farthest downstream, Adams Fall, is one of the most scenic falls in the park, and is just 0.1 miles (0.2 km) south of Pennsylvania Route 118, via an easy stroll along a trail from the parking lot.
The Glen hikes described here also include the 1 mile (1.6 km) Highland Trail, which connects the top ends of Glens Ganoga and Leigh to form a triangle; this trail features the "Midway Crevasse," a formation of large rocks. This makes a great place to stop for lunch and there is some really fun rock scrambles and climbs in this area. A very cool compliment to all the falling water available on the way up and down.
Hiking the entire Glens area beginning and ending at PA 118 yields a 7 miles (11 km) hike that includes the Highland Trail. For a shorter hike, one may park at Lake Rose, near the junction of Ganoga Glen and the Highland Trail. It is possible to see all of the waterfalls except the two near the highway by hiking around the triangular area: Highland Trail / Glen Leigh / Ganoga Glen. The distance around the triangle is 3 miles (5 km). An optional side trip from Waters Meet along the three falls in the top of Ricketts Glen, then back to Waters Meet, adds 0.5 miles (0.8 km).
In addition to the above, for those wishing an easy walk to the largest fall, there is a longer but more gradual side trail that leads from the bridge at the top of Ganoga Glen on a winding path through the woods to a point near 94-foot Ganoga fall. There are other hiking trails along the lake and nearby in the forest, and several more trails pass through more isolated areas of the park.
The major attraction in the park is the Glens Natural Area, a National Natural Landmark; the Falls Trail passes 24 named waterfalls, the highest being 94 feet (28.7 m) Ganoga Falls! Ricketts Glen State Park is one of the most famous Pennsylvania natural landscapes and was acknowledged by the Bureau of Parks as being one of the "Twenty Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks".
The Glens Natural Area, a registered National Natural Landmark since October 12, 1969, is at the bottom of the park. Among giant pines, hemlocks, and oaks, two branches of Kitchen Creek cut through the deep gorges of Ganoga Glen and Glen Leigh and unite at "Waters Meet"; then flow through Ricketts Glen. Many of the magnificent trees in this area are over 500 years old, and ring counts on fallen trees have revealed ages as high as 900 years. Diameters of almost 4 feet (1.2 m) are common, and many trees tower to 100 feet (30 m) in height. The area is the meeting ground of the southern and northern hardwood types, creating an extensive variety of trees. In 1993, the Glens Natural Area became a State Park Natural Area and will be protected and maintained in a natural state.
A series of trails, covering a total of 5 miles (8 km) parallels the streams as they course down the Glens. Glen Leigh features eight waterfalls. Ganoga Glen has ten named falls, including 94 feet (29 m) Ganoga Fall, plus another good-sized unnamed waterfall on a side tributary. Ricketts Glen has three waterfalls just below Waters Meet, and two more 2 miles (3 km) farther downstream at PA route 118. One of these two is directly below the highway bridge, which obscures much of the view. The farthest downstream, Adams Fall, is one of the most scenic falls in the park, and is just 0.1 miles (0.2 km) south of Pennsylvania Route 118, via an easy stroll along a trail from the parking lot.
The Glen hikes described here also include the 1 mile (1.6 km) Highland Trail, which connects the top ends of Glens Ganoga and Leigh to form a triangle; this trail features the "Midway Crevasse," a formation of large rocks. This makes a great place to stop for lunch and there is some really fun rock scrambles and climbs in this area. A very cool compliment to all the falling water available on the way up and down.
Hiking the entire Glens area beginning and ending at PA 118 yields a 7 miles (11 km) hike that includes the Highland Trail. For a shorter hike, one may park at Lake Rose, near the junction of Ganoga Glen and the Highland Trail. It is possible to see all of the waterfalls except the two near the highway by hiking around the triangular area: Highland Trail / Glen Leigh / Ganoga Glen. The distance around the triangle is 3 miles (5 km). An optional side trip from Waters Meet along the three falls in the top of Ricketts Glen, then back to Waters Meet, adds 0.5 miles (0.8 km).
In addition to the above, for those wishing an easy walk to the largest fall, there is a longer but more gradual side trail that leads from the bridge at the top of Ganoga Glen on a winding path through the woods to a point near 94-foot Ganoga fall. There are other hiking trails along the lake and nearby in the forest, and several more trails pass through more isolated areas of the park.
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