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Trip Report: Bikepacking in Pine Creek Pennsylvania
By Lizard Seeker Mike Patten:
Last year, while training for the Tour Divide Bikepacking race, I completed a multi-day trip attempting to reach the vistas overlooking PA’s Pine Creek Gorge above Waterville (read the blog: Bikepacking Tiadaghton State Forest). I was able to hit all of the views north of Little Pine Creek, but due to the weather (serious rain) and time constraints I had to cut the trip short.For this year’s summer solstice ride, I decided to load up my bike and fill in the gaps of my last trip. Read my trip report below as I find the vistas and Lizard Spots that I missed last year!
I arrived at the Waterville parking area on the Pine Creek Rail Trail just after noon. It was a beautiful day and the parking lot was nearly full. A lot of people were out enjoying the beauty of Pennsylvania’s Grand Canyon. I pedaled up Little Pine Creek Road and turned onto Limbaugh Road just before the dam at Little Pine State Park. The road wound through the campground then turned to gravel as it led up the 4-mile grind to the top. As I pedaled, I wondered what all those happy campers were thinking about that guy on the weird looking bike?
At the top I hung a left onto McKees Road for the first two Lizard Spots, which were vistas. These views don’t look down on to Pine Creek, but rather show the beauty of Pennsylvania’s “Endless Mountains”.
Next up, the two Purple Lizard Spots on Ramsey Road. Did you ever wonder why so much interesting stuff is on dead end roads? The first Lizard Spot was a beautiful view of Pine Creek including the village of Waterville. Unfortunately, Ramsey Road ends at a gas well pad. I looked around and saw a couple of places where the vista may have been, but the trees had grown high enough that the views were blocked. Oh well, progress, I guess.
While planning the ride I noticed a Purple Lizard Spot at the end of Houselander Mountain above Tombs Run. Why not I thought, that’s only a short bit of trail to get there. How hard could that be on a bike? Well, it was relatively short. However, I’m still trying to convince myself that a mile or so of hike-a-bike is a character-building activity.
Was it worth it you ask? Well, you be the judge. The view is to the south where the Pine Creek Gorge starts to open out and it was spectacular!
I took a different trail on the way back. Most of my route was rideable as it wove through glades of laurel. I met up with a momma bear and three cubs, but they took off before I could get a picture. As I was going along my GPS track kept diverging more and more from where I thought the trail would go based on the Purple Lizard map. I was pretty sure it would meet up with the road I wanted to take down the mountain (according to the map) so I kept moving on. Amazingly it did! I hit Lone Walnut Club Road almost exactly where I hoped to! You can trust them Lizard maps!
Overall, it was another great day seeking Purple Lizard Spots on bicycle throughout Tiadaghton State Forest!
Mike Patten is an experienced bikepacking athlete who makes his own adventures at home in Pennsylvania and throughout North America. Learn more about Mike and his endeavors here!
