Hands down, the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon was our best stop during our delay. Early in the year, pre-covid, even pre-our first solid RV plan, we thought about taking a trip through New England and Canada first. We scrapped this idea as we were looking forward to visiting Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks and the total drive time for that first idea was inconceivable. During that stage of planning, I came across an amazing place in Pennsylvania, but was a bit put off by the picture of the overlook (which looked like a rickety wooden walkway hanging over open air). I don’t have a fear of heights per say, but an overzealous fear of falling. I quickly moved on during my research.
When John told me that part of my birthday surprise was a trip to the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon, I had both a momentary rush of pleasure (the views in the pictures were spectacular) and panic (that rickety overlook). We never saw the overlook, just a sign for it several miles away from the entrance to the park, so I cannot say for sure how sturdy the overlook is, but it was not needed to enjoy the views.
The Pine Creek Gorge, also known as known as the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania, is nestled in the Tioga State Forest near the town of Wellsboro and fateful Route 6 where we broke down. The Gorge itself is 47 miles long. During a typical season, there are many who white water raft in the river, although we only saw one family kayaking during our visit. Many campgrounds surround this beautiful area. Typically, there are wagon rides down through the canyon and even a trail that somehow circles the view, although this is not visible from the main park.
As soon as you enter the park, there are views of lush forests and a beautiful river that extend for miles. After our initial viewing, we embarked on an “easy hike” to an overlook and some “waterfalls.” The path to the bottom was closed due to recent rain and erosion of the path. It was a good thing this path was closed because the “easy” path was tortuous enough during the descent. It’s definitely kid and dog friendly, so maybe I’m just more used to flat hiking. The kids and Ginny enjoyed a small building that was used as an incenerator for the conversation group who built and cared for the park (among other things in the area).
We took a snack break/stop when we made it to Otter Overlook so we could enjoy the breathtaking view between the other park visitors. While the park was not overly crowded, the trails were not super wide, so we always “pulled over” by climbing up a hill to the side of the path to let others pass.
We approached the “waterfall path,” which is not marked on the trail. Fortunately, we saw other visitors climbing towards us from an area off the path and decided to venture down. They made some mention of going up when there was a choice, but didn’t think anything of it. The climb down was so steep that John had to help both Riley and I make it down. When he came back up, not only did he have to help Riley, but had to go separately for the bookbag because it was too hard to balance the dog and the bookbag simultaneously. At the bottom, we found a creek and some very small waterfalls. The kids played at the bottom for a little while. There were more descending from our point, but we decided that it would be too difficult for us all to make it back up.
As we started our ascent to the main path, Riley was climbing in front of John and slipped. He caught her and helped her to the top. Upon later recall of this story, she said she was falling off a cliff and just barely hung on to a root and some dirt to “save her life.” She’s going to be quite the storyteller as she gets older.
We also enjoyed a nice picnic in the woods near the parking lot (there are picnic tables available). As we were leaving, we noticed a group of folks on their motorcycles and what looked like a BMW club (literally a dozen BMW convertibles in a row). It also appeared that there was camping at this state park although I did not see any showers, only restroom facilities.
Overall, two thumbs up for the great adventures and incredible views!