Hiking Appalachian Trail: Windsor Furnace To Port Clinton Amongst Weiser Earth Woods Loop

ABOUT THE PARK:
The BMECC Section of The Appalachian Trail - Blue Mountain Eagle Climbing Club
Weiser State Forest Port Clinton Tract - Pennsylvania DCNR

DIRECTIONS:
GPS Coordinates 40.58298, -75.94218

Parking at the destination of Reservoir Road. This is also parking for the insanely pop Pulpit Rock together with the Pinnacle hike hence this lot fills upwardly quickly.

TRAIL MAP:
PA Appalachian Trail Map Sec. 1-6 - Keystone Trails Association
Weiser State Forest Port Clinton Tract - Pennsylvania DCNR

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HIKE DISTANCE: 14.9 miles

THE HIKE:

Reservoir Road continues equally a blue-blazed trail beyond the gate.

At the Windsor Furnace site, the Appalachian Trail crosses over. Right goes to Pulpit Rock together with the Pinnacle where Shawnee together with I hiked inwards Nov 2012.

Brodie together with I turned left to the left of the gated route on the AT southbound towards Port Clinton to connect alongside some other department Shawnee together with I had hiked years ago.

Heading S on the Appalachian Trail.

Blow down/bench combo.

It's uphill early which was practiced for warming upwardly on a xix score morning.


It wouldn't last the Pennsylvania AT without some rocky sections thrown inwards but all inwards all, it was a pretty smoothen section.

Minnehaha Spring

Pocahontas Spring

Nice wintertime views upwardly high.

The AT follows a narrow ridge at the top.

A final climb to ...

... what used to last an overlook but would at nowadays alone last visible inwards the winter.

Coming upwardly on the switchbacks downwards to Port Clinton visible below.

The AT crosses over Mountain Road. We were almost plowed over past times a pickup truck flight around the curvature from the left. You can't require heed what is coming for all the traffic vibrations from Route 61 together with you lot can't reckon around the bend.

Having crossed without getting squished, heading towards Route 61.

The AT goes nether Route 61.

Then the trail follows along the Schuylkill River.

The Port Clinton Train Station on the other side of the Schuylkill River.

The AT continues beyond the gate on Penn Street

Where the AT turns left is where nosotros met upwardly alongside where Shawnee together with I had left off in Nov 2011 when nosotros hiked the Auburn to Port Clinton section.

It is non every twenty-four hours you lot reckon an operational soda machine on the side of the road. No uncertainty this is for thru-hikers equally Penn Street becomes a blue-blazed side trail to a pavilion for thru-hikers that nosotros would locomote past times later.

But start a correct turn on Clinton Street i block to the Port Clinton Peanut Shop where Shawnee together with I had also stopped years ago.

When I tied Shawnee to this bench I had no qualms well-nigh it whatsoever. She would convey waited patiently forever until I got back. Brodie, silent .... I had noticed cats running everywhere, dogs barking inwards almost every yard, simply also many distractions for him together with I had visions of him dragging that bench through town inwards pursuit of something (although the bench was rattling heavy - I checked). So anticipating this, I brought along a much bigger distraction. H5N1 moo-cow ear, his most favorite affair ever.

Totally engrossed inwards his moo-cow ear together with belike non fifty-fifty aware I was going into the store.

Well, this motion painting turned out lousy but this is i of those old-timey confection stores where at that spot is every type of candy you lot tin mayhap imagine. (An article alongside much ameliorate pictures.) They fifty-fifty convey the candy necklaces together with candy cigarettes that were pop inwards the 60's. But candy actually isn't my affair ...

I headed at i time for the cashews.

Returning to Brodie, he was silent totally engrossed inwards his moo-cow ear together with completely unaware of my absence or anything else going on around him.

Having our interruption together with snacks on the bench inwards forepart of the Port Clinton Peanut Shop. Thank goodness this was a long hike because those cashews pack some calories.

Continuing on the blue-blazed Penn Street. That sign says hikers may locomote the H2O spigot. It's a rattling hiker friendly town!

The houses locomote to a greater extent than lean heading out of town.

Where the blue-blazed trail turns right...

... is the pavilion for thru-hikers.

We continued on to the destination of Penn Street where simply beyond the billboards ...

... Penn Street meets upwardly alongside Route 61 where nosotros turned correct a brusk distance. Although this is a rattling busy route alongside speeding traffic, at that spot was plenty of a interruption for us to larn across to the other side.

Opposite the final billboard, a gated route upwardly into Weiser State Forest.

It's uphill for quite a agency on a woods route that switchbacks up.

That ridge on the correct is where nosotros were before on the AT.

At this T intersection nosotros turned left.

The trail on the Gaia app (orange) did non be hither but it was no large bargain to larn dorsum on track.

The route is at nowadays gravel.

It becomes an orange-blazed snowmobile trail.

When the gravel route reaches a parking expanse together with turns right, it becomes the woods route where cars are allowed equally good equally snowmobiles.

There are 4 camping ground spots available past times permit but nosotros simply stopped for a interruption at the picnic table.

Turning correct on a give notice route which is the Pinnacle Trail.

It goes on forever it seems.

Leaving Weiser State Forest together with entering State Game Lands 106.

It does turn over off forever.

A send was here.

We were almost at the blue-blazed trail downwards to the Hamburg Reservoir but decided to larn off the give notice route together with endeavour a trail I could reckon on the Gaia app which would position us on that blue-blazed trail a flake further down.

It looked rattling broad together with slow plenty to follow.

But where nosotros should convey been able to turn left at that spot was nix equally the trail continued to the right. I decided to bushwhack a flake to reckon if I could discovery the trail.

It was a rattling brusk distance of bushwhacking before I saw something upwardly ahead together with zoomed in. Headed over at that spot to discovery ...

... a trail register.

People had been hither simply a few weeks ago.

You tin reckon on my app where I could non discovery the trail together with where I bushwhacked to the indicate where I institute the trail register.

We continued on ...

... to a army camp spot ...

... together with institute the balance of the trail to last blazed red.

Crossing Rattling Run.

A few tyke blow downs but the trail was good blazed together with defined the balance of the way. It was simply missing the connection where nosotros had bushwhacked.