Route 501 to Route 183

November 24
9.3 Miles
Tom, Shannon, Wyatt and Mike

A brisk morning on the ridge of Blue Mountain.  Temperatures hovering in the low 20s, wind gusts up to 20 mph, and the sun attempting to break through as we started out from Route 183 and walked south towards Route 501.   This was another leap-frog hike, as we did not go the full 11.3 miles that would have taken us to where we left off last time.  So, we have two segments to make up on future dates.

The elevation along this section ranges from from approximately 1250 feet to 1650 feet, but with no steep inclines.  Even so, the hike was strenuous.  The four of us felt this section was the “rockiest” of the hikes we have made in Pennsylvania thus far.   It seems that each section has more rocks than the previous one, and in addition to the rocks along the trail, there were several boulder fields along the way.  More on that later.

 Shortly after starting the hike, we came to the historical plaque that marks the site of Fort Dietrich Snyder, which was one of the Indian lookouts placed along the Blue Mountain during the period of the French and Indian War.   Atop these ridges, early settlers kept an eye out for approaching Indians and would warn the farmers and families who lived in the valley below.  It was dangerous, and often deadly, for these inhabitants, and some interesting history of this Fort and the others in the region can be found in this interesting blogpost: http://schuylkillcountymilitaryhistory.blogspot.com/2007/11/french-and-indian-war.html

Indeed, the vistas are incredible—and one can see for miles in any direction.  With the passage of 350 years since those early settlers kept an eye out for Indians, there is now only serenity to be found in enjoying the view from atop the large rocks along the way.

 Bear hunting is in season, and we walked on State Game Games, but being it was a Sunday we had no worry either for present-day hunters and did not wear orange blazen on our clothing.   In fact, the only wildlife we saw was a turkey vulture who refused to fly away while we approached an overlook.  The vulture noted our presence, but Tom believed he may have been a juvenile given his indifference (see him in pic at left).  We did pass a number of Boy Scouts who were on an overnight hike, but few others were enjoying the Trail on this day.

Now, back to the boulder fields.  The question that was raised more than once along the hike,  “How did these boulder fields form?”.  From an article in the Reading Eagle, this is the explanation:

 Imagine, millions of years ago, a tundralike atmosphere cloaking Berks County. The Blue Mountains, which framed the northern border of Berks, rose above the landscape.

While the glaciers of the Ice Age never reached into Berks, the frigid conditions impacted areas this far south, said Noel Potter, a retired geologist who taught at Dickinson College in Carlisle.

The extreme cold and subsequent thawing caused cracks in the rocks atop the mountain, breaking pieces off and sending them downhill, Potter said. At the time, the mountain surface was a soupy, muddy mess, but the ground beneath was frozen.

That allowed the rocks to slide downhill, said Potter, who has studied the Blue Rocks formation.

As the boulders tumbled down the mountainside, water washed out the soil, preventing vegetation from taking hold. To this day, no trees or grass can be found among the rocks.

So, we can thank the Ice Age of a few million years ago for providing the sore feet we felt on this brisk November day.   As it is Thanksgiving week though, we are reminded of how thankful we are to be spending time together in Penn’s Woods.