Rt. 225 to Rt. 325

June 30, 2013
9.5 Miles
Tom, Rich, Doug, Wyatt and Mike

 It was a day of cicadas and snakes on the Appalachian Trail, as we hiked along the ridge of Peter’s Mountain.

"Crickets and Cicadas sing a rare and different tune”.  This Grateful Dead lyric from the song “Terrapin Station” came to my mind more than once during our hike along the top of Peter’s Mountain, as the constant hum of the 17 year cicadas---formally known as the Magicicada Brood II--could be heard throughout the day and many could be seen in the brush and the trees along the trail.  We wondered aloud about the mysteries of the cicada—most specifically that they emerge from the ground after 17 years, climb a tree to break from their shell, and live for about two weeks before laying eggs and starting the process all over again for a new generation.

Along this scenic portion of the A.T., we were happy that Doug joined us for his first hike with our group.  Doug is Wyatt’s father, lives in Pittsburgh, and made the early morning trip with Tom, Mona, Rich and Wyatt.   Once again, Mona served as our vital transportation support person—and spent some of the day shopping at the nearby “Old Sled Works”, a wonderful antique mall near downtown Duncannon.  Despite the heat and humidity, we kept a good pace—about 2 miles per hour. 

The views along this section are incredible, and we took several breaks to look at the valley below and Second Mountain in the distance.  We also enjoyed a break at the Peter’s Mountain shelter.  It’s a well-constructed building and one will notice the strings hanging from the ceiling—each attached to a plastic water bottle cut in half. For those hikers spending the night, the plastic keeps mice from getting into backpacks.  Of course, mice are still known to climb over hikers as they sleep on the floor the shelter---something none of us were eager to experience.  


While at the shelter, we met a thru-hiker from Georgia who uses the trail name “Bubba Gump”.  A young guy in college, “Bubba” had started in Georgia in early April and was hoping to reach Maine before starting school again in the Fall.  He had avoided a number of spring snow storms, and was making good progress—sometimes covering 20-30 miles per day.

As we hiked near the Shikellimy Rocks (Named for Chief Shikellamy of the Iroquios) we met a hiker named Steve who was enjoying the view and was happy to show us the snakes that were resting under ledges and in between the rock crevices.   Thus far in Pennsylvania, we had only seen one snake—a black rat---and despite the signs about timber rattlesnakes, we hadn’t encountered any.   That would all change on this hike.  Steve brought us to the top of a ledge and showed us where a copperhead was resting beneath.  A short walk from there, we found a rattlesnake in the crevice of a rock, and when we tossed a small twig near him, he demonstrated the use of his rattle—which was a real treat as we were out of his strike range!   We also saw a black rat snake resting near another pile of rocks, so it was a “three-snake-day” for us on the trail.   We hope that any future encounters with snakes will be from the same safe distance!

Our hike ended with a brief rain shower as we made the 800 foot descent down to Clarks Valley and Rt. 325.   Doug and Wyatt enjoyed some time in the cool waters of Clarks Creek before Mona picked us up and we headed back.  

As Tom reminded us at one of the overlooks, we are privileged to enjoy the beauty of the Appalachian Trail, and we were, indeed, privileged to spend a great day amongst friends.

129 miles to go!