This is a named hike in Tom Thwaites’ book. The Blue and White weekend (4/25-26) was going to be one of my last in State College, and I wanted to go out and do something substantial. I can just say that all my expectations were fulfilled !

The trailhead at the end of Naval Run road

The trailhead at the end of Naval Run road

Big feather on the Big Pine trail: I saw a male pheasant later on the Big Trail Road..

Big feather on the Pine trail: I saw a male pheasant later on the Big Trail Road..

The trail starts off at the end of Naval Run road, near the village of Slate Run on PA 414. It consists of an initial cliff-side walk crossing Naval Run and Callahan Run, followed by a steep ascent of the Riffle Run valley. This is the toughest part of the hike. Thwaites and the Black ForestTrail (BFT) guide warn readers not to attempt this portion of the hike under slippery conditions. I did this on 4/26, and the combination of heat (~86 F), the steepness and the flies made me reconsider my initial plans to hike the full 9.6 mi. Numerous stops for swatting flies off my face or to grab a drink of water meant that I was doing pretty bad on time. I took ~1.7 h to hike the 2.53 miles.

Note the narrow walkway on the trail: Pine trail

Note the narrow walkway on the trail: Pine trail

View of Pine Creek from the "climbing route" to Half Dome. I did not do that :-)

View of Pine Creek from the "climbing route" to Half Dome. I did not do that :-)

This is a sustained ascent of the Riffle Run valley..

This is a sustained ascent of the Riffle Run valley..

Vista overlooking Riffle Run valley: Big Trail Road

Vista overlooking Riffle Run valley: Big Trail Road

However, at 2.53 miles on the Big Trail road, the hiking became a lot easier with vistas on either sides and the gentle grade. An added advantage of ridgeline hiking is that there are little to no flies/bugs to bother you. [I forgot my insect repellant]. After a short lunch break on the a vista on the Big Trail road which lifted my spirits and dried my shirt :-) , I saw a pheasant, but it scrambled before I could snap a picture.

Big Trail Road: I liked the gentle ridgewalk and the crosswinds.

Big Trail Road: I liked the gentle ridgewalk and the crosswinds.

Views of Hemlock Mtn., Big Trail Road, 4.6 mi.

Views of Hemlock Mtn., Big Trail Road, 4.6 mi.

The Big Trail road eventually meets the Old Cutoff Trail which is one of the bail-out trails for the BFT. It is blazed in blue, but only on the direction leading from the BFT to the road, which makes sense. Nevertheless, it is easy to follow it anyway. Teaberries, which contain the naturally occuring precursor to wintergreen were in season along this trail. Teaberries are my favorite trail snack (remember to wash them before eating) because they are easy to locate: just look down on the trail!

Vista on BFT, from Hemlock Mtn., towards south Pine Creek

Vista on BFT, from Hemlock Mtn., towards south Pine Creek

Wildflowers at the beginning of the last ascent on Hemlock Mtn., Black Forest Trail

Wildflowers at the beginning of the last ascent on Hemlock Mtn., Black Forest Trail

I continued hiking on the BFT (@ ~6.06 mi., 3h hiking time) along the ridge of Hemlock Mountain and saw a fawn/deer in the distance. After a short ascent, a view of Pine Creek gorge to the south opens up (7.38 mi., 4h). This is the best view of Pine Creek gorge I have encountered till now. The grandeur of the vista simply cannot be explained in words. The BFT on Hemlock Mountain also offers another view of the northern Pine Creek gorge.

Vista to the north, Pine Creek valley : from the BFT, Hemlock Mtn.

Vista to the north, Pine Creek valley : from the BFT, Hemlock Mtn.

Naval Run waterfall

Naval Run waterfall

The BFT eventually descends via switchbacks into Naval Run road @ 8.7 mi (~5h). This portion of the trail is not very steep, but I could readily see why the early loggers called this the “Black Forest”. At 4:00 pm, with the sun somewhat at 135 degrees to me (image me standing on a level plane as 90 degrees), sunlight was very well attenuated by the young, but thickening forest cover. The remaining highlight of the hike is the nice waterfall along Naval Run.

Myself @ the Naval Run waterfall..

Myself @ the Naval Run waterfall..

In all, I took 5.3 h to complete the ~9.6 mi. hike, which is somewhat low for a day-hike, but I was not trying to set any records or was in any physical condition to do so :-) . I was just happy to put the tiring ascent behind me and complete this lengthy, but rewarding hike. I cooled off by gorging on French fries and a hearty sandwich at the Hotel Manor. The lady at the Wolfe’s Store kindly pointed me to this place and was helpful in general. Given below is my list of dos and donts for this hike:

DOs:

  • Carry sufficient amount of water: I ran out of water in my 2.5 L Camelbak and had a 1 L waterbottle in my daypack.
  • Carry insect repellant-spray, if you plan on doing the ascent along Riffle Run (or any hike along a stream in the summer)
  • Take your time to get through the tough ascent, and enjoy the views on the trail.
  • Carry a map of the Black Forest Trail; I like the detail and descriptions.

DON’Ts:

  • Attempt the steep ascent along Riffle Run, or the walk alongside cliffs just preceeding this if conditions are slippery. The footway is best ~2 ft in most places.
  • Carry insect repellant-spray, if you plan on doing the ascent along Riffle Run (or any hike along a stream in the summer)
  • Continue ahead if you feel that you cannot do this (or any other) hikes, I always put my safety ahead of any other claims-to-non-existent-fame.

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