Black Moshannon State Park, PA SEPT, 2007

. In September, Bill and I took the "Ti" out for a week's vacation in central Pennsylvania. Our first stop was Black Moshannon State Park, near State College. It was quite a ride into the park, over 10 miles of narrow, winding roads. The GMC did a great job of pulling and we arrived safe and sound.


Black Moshannon State Park covers 3,394 acres of forests and wetlands that provide recreational for thousands of visitors. More than 34,000 acres of the Moshannon State Forest surround the park and help create a remote and wild setting. According to local tradition, American Indians called this watershed "Moss-Hanne", meaning "moose stream, thus the origin of the park's name. Appropriately, the "black" in the park name describes the tea-colored waters. The 250 acre Black Moshannon Lake is fed by clear spring and small streams that flow through the bogs that stretch in most directions from its shores.

.As the clear water flows through sphagnum moss and other wetland plants, it becomes colored by plants tannins. In a sense, the bog vegetation acts like a giant teabag to color the water.
This is a picture of the bog area.



. That's Bill, starting the campfire so he can grill supper. This is the view from my "dining room window."

GEOCACHING
After crossing the Bridge overlooking Black Moshannon Lake, our hike took us up the Ski Slope Trail to the top of Rattlesnake Mountain. Luckily we didn't see any rattlesnakes! .


Bill found the Geocache hidden in a hollow log just off the
trail at the top of the mountain. .
Our second Geocaching hike took us to the Viaduct Railroad Bridge over Red Moshannon Creek. The red color comes from the coal mines in the area. This ended up to be about a 4-5 mile hike after all was said and done. Ceilidh ( our mini schnauzer) was a real trouper, but was tired when we got back to camp.
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View looking up Red Moshannon creek. Barb & Ceilidh on the bridge.

. This old railroad bridge may be the highest in Pennsylvania since the demise of the Kinzuza Bridge near Warren in Northwest Pennsylvania. This impressive span is 779 feet long, 119 feet high, with 15 spans supported by 8 towers. Construction on the bridge probably began in early 1884. The "Great Moshannon Viaduct", built entirely of iron with the exception of the ties was opened on November 11, 1884. It was rebuilt in 1902-03 and used until 1994..

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.Bill and I found this cache hidden under a large flat rock, just before the bridge. There was a warning on the cache instructions to "tap the cache site before entering" as rattlesnakes have been seen in the area. As you can see, I let Bill pull this one out!!

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