As both of my avid readers well know, on my time off for good behavior I always head for the coast usually in a South Easterly direction. Well this time I headed in a North Westerly direction up to Northern Pennsylvania. The Northern Pennsylvania Counties are not exactly Dueling Banjos/Deliverance territory they are somewhat ...... how can I put this politely....."rustic". Very sparcely populated with lots of ramshackle "Hunting Camps" along the roadside. These hunting camps are often not much bigger than my garden shed and are where the nature loving 'huntin and fishin' community get away from the Mr's for a weekend with their buddies to shoot the shit, shoot the shit out of the wildlife and drink beer not necessarily in that order. Each to his own I suppose.
Anyway, although it was a bit late in the season for the fall foliage it wasn't bad at all but the main reason for heading up that way was to try and photograph the Elk. I drove up Tuesday afternoon and visited the main viewing areas and connected briefly with 3 distant Elk . I ended up at a viewing area called Hicks Run which would have been awesome if there were Elk which there wasn't. I took a few scenic shots there as it was really nice. It was getting pretty dark when I left to head for a town called St Marys where I intended to get a hotel for the night. These days I tend to rely very much on Apple Car Play and just ask Siri to guide me where I want to go. There I hit a snag, Siri needs an internet connection and the cell phone coverage is diabolical up there in the valleys. I knew roughly where I was but when it's pitch black, driving along unfamiliar narrow twisty roads with miles between human habitation it can be a little bit intimidating. Luckily I came across a road sign saying St Marys and 20 minutes or so later I was driving down the main drag and came across a Holiday Inn Express so I called them with my restored phone connection and booked a room.
I was out the door at 5:45AM and after a quick stop for a bagel and a coffee I headed for Winslow Hill which I had been told was usually pretty good at first light. It was still dark when I arrived and Sirius, Orion and Jupiter were in front of me in the car park overlooking the mist filled valley. A short walk as it got lighter revealed a meadow with 23 Bull Elk chomping on their breakfast. I took lots of photos and had great views with my binoculars. As it got lighter they started moving over the hill and I moved off to the visitor center but saw nothing there, I then retraced my steps back to Winslow Hill but they had all gone, I moved on to Dents Run and finally back to Hicks Run Viewing Area but saw no more Elk. I decided to head home the long way taking scenic shots which in the mist were pretty nice.
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| Hicks Run Viewing Area |
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| Hicks Run Viewing Area |
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| Oak at Hicks Run Viewing Area |
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| American Sycamore at Hicks Run Viewing Area |
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| Winslow Hill Viewing Area |
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| Winslow Hill Viewing Area |
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| Elk fighting over who gets first go at the scratching post |
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| Elk |
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| Elk |
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| Elk |
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| Path to Misty River |
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| Misty River |
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| Further along river |
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| Further along river |
