November 18 (Boiling Springs to Old Stone House Road)

Tom, Molly, Shannon, Wyatt, Rich, Mike, Scott, Zane, Isabelle and Monty

6 miles

 An incredible day of hiking, and bird watching---with some new additions to our group---including my brother Scott, his children Zane and Isabelle, and Monty--my 7 year old Border Collie/Lab.

Our day began early, with the Philadelphia crew meeting us at 8am (Pittsburgh crew came in night before), for a hike time of 9am.   We started on Old Schoolhouse Road and headed south to Boiling Springs, a mostly flat walk of about 6 miles through fields and woods. 

The air was chilly—about 28 degrees at 9am---and frost was covering the fields as we hiked alongside cornfields and through fenced pastures.  As most of the the trail along this stretch of the Cumberland Valley winds through privately owned land, hikers are the grateful guests of family farmers who have allowed for passage through agreements made with the National Park Service and the Appalachian Trail Conservancy.   We are thankful to them for allowing us to pass on their land—and the scenery is spectacular.  As most of our hikes thus far have been in isolated woodlands, it was a welcome change to walk among the picturesque homesteads and beautiful barns that dot the landscape.

With the exception of one whitetail deer, the only other animals on the trail were a few dogs that Monty was happy to greet as they passed by with their owners.   This was his first hike with us, and his natural instincts to herd us provided Monty with a healthy workout—as he would go from the front of the group, and back, to keep us all together.

As usual, Wyatt was a trooper on the hike, and Zane and Isabelle did great as first-timers on the trail.  Our trek was kept to six miles because we scheduled a side-trip to watch migrating birds with some friends.  How this came to be, is the rest of the story.

Earlier in the year, Tom had recommended I read a book about the Appalachian Trail, written by the highly regarded naturalist Scott Weidensaul  (http://www.scottweidensaul.com).  Often, Tom and I refer books to each other, and I was looking forward to picking up a copy of this book.   Interestingly, only a few days after he suggested the book, I was meeting with several people to learn more about the work of the Pennsylvania Audubon Society and their efforts to engage students in outdoor learning experiences.   At this meeting, I mentioned to them about our hike along the trail, and the book I was looking forward to reading.   Much to my surprise, it turns out that one of the people I was meeting with was Audubon staff member Amy Weidensaul---the wife of the author!  So, on that day, we hatched our plan to organize a hawk watching side-trip to coincide with one of our hikes.  And, we agreed to not tell Tom that the author would be joining us.

So, back to our visit with them today.  We met at the Cliff Jones Field Station at Waggoners Gap (http://pa.audubon.org/waggoners-gap)  outside of Carlisle.  The 20 acre site is owned by Pennsylvania Audubon, and is a wonderful place to see the seasonal migration of hawks and golden eagles—among many other types of birds.  Daily bird counts are kept by a dedicated group of volunteers who spend hours each day atop the rocky ridge, and you can visit online websites to see the reports they compile.

The ridge is a short hike up from the parking lot, and once there we peered through binoculars and saw a few turkey vultures and hawks.  Some in pairs--and some solo--gliding in the light breeze, using the air uplifts to sail along for miles, or “Living on the Wind”, to use the title of one of Scott’s well known books.  The scenery was incredible as the lookout straddles Perry and Cumberland Counties, and as it was a clear day—we could see for miles in each direction.

It goes without saying---if you are going to bird watch---it helps to be joined by someone who can easily identify what you have spotted.   In our case, we went with two of the best.  Amy and Scott were the perfect hosts---sharing their vast knowledge and answering all of the questions that we first-timers had.  Zane, Isabelle and Wyatt can safely say that their first birding experience was a unique and memorable one.

The entire group was delighted to meet Scott and Amy, but none was more surprised than Tom—so it was worth the many months of waiting for this plan to unfold.   Our thanks to Amy and Scott for taking the time to be with us—and we hope to see them again along the trail.

In all, a wonderful day on the AT, and atop Waggoner’s Gap.   About 164 miles to go!