PA in October Is a Backpacker's Paradise!

We backpackers spent a mild night under the nearly full moon in the back-country of the Quehanna Wild Area. The wildlife - chiefly elk and coyotes - made a little noise, but none of it was so loud or so violent or so close that it was scary, unlike on our LAST trip. Thank heaven for small favors!

In the morning, there was no dew on our gear. Camping under the trees will help with that, as out in the open, it was damper. We decided to start getting our gear ready to go early because we had heard of the possibility of rain. Will we get any rain? I wondered, as I took my tent down well before 9 a.m., which is not my typical style. I like to lollygag inside, play house. But not on this day.

My question was answered by 10 a.m., when I felt the first bit of mist. "Hey, that feels like mist!" I said, looking up. My husband walked out under the open sky. "It IS mist," he said; "It's getting ready to rain. Let's get out of here. Pack it up!"

So before 11 a.m., we were packed up and walking out. The mist had turned into a steady drizzle by then. I didn't think it would really amount to much, but I did have an umbrella in the side pocket of my backpack. I never ended up pulling it out, as the rain never got that much worse.

The only thing I was concerned about getting wet at all was my new camera, and in its bag, it stayed pretty dry. But I could not help pulling it out now and again for photos, as the foliage show looked practically phantasmagorical in the rain! A few of my rainy foliage shots feature actual raindrops on the lens - how's that for authenticity?  ;-)

Since there had been so many trees down over the path, we voted on which way we wanted to try to go around: above all of the blow-down, or below it? Above features bushwhacking through the woods. Below features slogging through the bog. Hmm, which is better? In the end, we picked the low road.

As it turns out, there was a well worn deer trail right exactly where we needed to go. If you are ever wondering how to get across or through something, look for the animal trails. They could not get through the blow-down either, and so we all walked the narrow path just above the swampy areas, above the natural springs that sprung out from the rocks.

We discovered that the beavers had been quite active in the one area we walked through. They have built a lodge, and the water is much higher and wider there than it had been. While we did not see any beavers, we saw beaver sign, which is to say sharp little chewed-off trees all over the place. What an active crew!

Above is a picture of my husband backpacking out of the back-country. Look at those colors! Wow! And then we were out, and back at the car, and taking off our gear, stuffing it into the back seat. Oh, glory, how wonderful it feels to finally SIT DOWN in a car and ride once you get that heavy backpack off. You feel like you could float, or maybe even fly!

We had talked about one last hike but we were both tired enough that we nixed that idea. Instead, we drove around the Quehanna Wild Area for a little while before heading out, and it was shocking to see how much better the foliage colors had become even in JUST ONE DAY. Time for the tree ladies to put on their fancy dress gowns for the best party of the year!

"Was it like this yesterday?" one of us asked the other, looking around, stunned, like kids in a candy store. It was gorgeous! It was better than anything we've seen yet! Pennsylvania in October is a backpacker's paradise. You just won't believe how beautiful it is here. If you come to Pennsylvania in October, you will never want to leave; you've been warned!

There is a red tree at the corner of Reactor Road and the Quehanna Highway that I have always coveted. You may see it in the extras, at peak red state (no filters were used for this photo; this IS the color it was!). It can turn bright red anytime from about mid-September to mid-October. Sometimes the colors go early, sometimes late. It's tough to be here at just the right time but SOMEHOW THIS YEAR WE DID IT!!!!!

I have joked that I could stay under this tree forever, and build a religion around it. The Druids did it; who could blame them if they enjoyed the October foliage too? Oh, how happy we would be: just my red tree and me! But when the leaves fall, oh no, the heartache! For nothing gold - or red - can stay!

Hungry backpackers need sustenance, so we stopped in Karthaus at Benton's for chili. I got one quart hot, to eat now, and one quart cold, for the cooler, for later. And then we drove down to the boating access by the West Branch of the Susquehanna River and snarfed down as much chili and crackers as we could eat. It was amazingly good. From there, we headed home, with our third backpack of the season under our belts!

Now, I've got two soundtrack songs. One is for the picture above: Mike Reno and Ann Wilson, with Almost Paradise. The other is for one of my all-time favorite red trees that is in the extras: Chris DeBurgh, with Lady in Red.