Ryan Alford – Guitarist

This past weekend took me through one of my favorite local hiking destinations – Detweiler Run. I figured this may be my last chance this year getting out in reasonable hammock weather, so I saddled up for a night at Penn Roosevelt State Park.

I waited for the rain to quit on Saturday then made my way toward the parking area at Bear Meadows. On the way were clear signs that the woods weren’t done draining from the storm. I parked, and wandered down John Wert Path. A few hundred feet down the trail, a flooded valley formed a temporary pond, and the trail lead into the middle of it. It was towards 4:00pm, so I looked at my map for an alternate route.

I drove just over the ridge (with many downed bushy tree branches leading the way), and parked at the gate entrance to Detweiler Run Road. No sooner did I get out of the car and I could hear raging water. I knew today’s hike would be up the service road, but I had to check out the creek.

I reached the MST’s intersection at Greenwood Spur, and saw quite a bit of water running down the MST. Just two hundred feet up the MST and I saw the primitive campsite completely flooded by running water. The swift water rushing through the mountain laurel was gorgeous indeed! I made my way another few hundred yards up the MST, and found the trail submersed in swift water. I worked my away around through some thick mountain laurel and found more of the trail submersed. After reconsidering the time, my safety, and the goal of reaching Penn Roosevelt by nightfall, I made my way back up the hillside, and followed Detweiler Run Road up the valley. I changed my course at Shingle Path, and paused where it intersected the MST and crossed Detweiler Run. An unusual amount of water this far upstream made for an entertaining crossing, and I crested over the ridge, making my way down into Penn Roosevelt for the night.

On my way back out of the woods yesterday morning, reaching the MST at Detweiler Run was visible proof I could follow the orange blazes downstream (instead of taking the service road, as I did on my way in). The lack of roaring as I descended the ridge lead me to suspect this reasonable water level. As I made my way down the MST, clumps of fallen leaves and branches showed every turn the water had carved out. I entered the region thick with mountain laurel and found myself hopping from rock to fallen branch, using downed trees as bridges to keep me out of water but on the trail. Finally downstream, I reached the camping area that was flooded the previous day. The stone fire ring was now out of the water, and the area looked a lot closer as it had during my other hikes.

Hiking along Detweiler Run after the rainstorm proved to be an exhilarating experience. I highly recommend taking a look at the area after a large rainstorm to see some local geography in action. Though take caution to dangerous situations. If you are interested in other pictures from my hike, you can find them in my Picasa photo album.

I recently read Jacob Haqq-Misra’s Planetary Messenger, and highly recommend it to anyone interested in the philosophies behind our existence.   Here’s a review I wrote for Jacob‘s book:

Planetary Messenger, by Jacob Haqq-Misra

Planetary Messenger reminds us that it is inaccurate to view Homo Sapiens as the single most important species in the universe, and that just because we as humans walk upright in what we consider to be a technologically advanced society, that not all forms of life behave the same. Modern cultures assume that for non-human life to exist as a civilized colony, it must first appear and operate similarly to ourselves.

During Shane’s travels to The Planet Finder convention in Washington D.C., Haqq-Misra unravels the flaws behind this unlogical means of comparison, and introduces unique theories to challenge the conflicts between science and religion. Shane learns that the success of human kind is largely attributed to chance, and that the facts behind our existence – whether acquired through historical records, scientific fact, religious scripture or personal belief – will continue to evolve. Though it may not be easy, we must allow culture and religion to incorporate new and understood viewpoints if we want to comprehend the bounds of life.