Quehanna Wild Area: First Backpack of Spring!

It was our first backpack of springtime, a much-looked-forward-to event! The weather cooperated and my husband and I hiked into the Quehanna Wild Area on a Saturday morning that looked quite a bit like winter. We hiked out the next day on what felt very much like a summer afternoon!

The snow on the ground when we got there was quite a surprise. Yes, we'd had snow showers mixed with rain at our house on Friday, but where we were, none of it "stuck," as we like to say. But in Quehanna, they must have gotten more than we did. For the ground was covered in a blanket of white!

We walked into our campsite on a path that was lined with snow in some places (like this one - yes, that's my husband in the photo above) and in others, replete with puddles, some of which were still covered in ice, and many of which were chock full of amphibian eggs. The temperature when we left home was hovering right around freezing, and it was expected to get quite a bit warmer later in the day.

Maybe it did where we live, but in the back-country, the high for the day was a mere 48 degrees F. It was breezy and sunny, but quite chilly, and before long, I found myself putting on almost every single layer I had with me. What a surprise: a winter backpack in mid-April!

One of my favorite places in the whole world is the big rock overlooking the Valley of the Elk, and that is where I spent a fair amount of time on this trip. I like to sit there with my camera, watching for creatures to cross the valley in front of me. It's also a lovely place to sit and read a book in the sun.

My husband insisted that he take some pictures of me there, in what seems to be my native habitat, which is to say, the woods and wilds of our beautiful central Pennsylvania. And so he did that, walking around me and taking photos from many angles, trying to capture both myself and the true glamor of back-country camping. ;-)

Thanks to his efforts, you may see a picture of me in the extra photo pointing to the valley below. "Look!" I seem to be saying, "NATURE! Go get some!" Also, you can't see him very clearly, but there's a tiny smidge of orange in my hands. Guess who went along. YES, the Tiny Tiger!

I also took the opportunity walk way down into the valley to have a look around. Here's a link to a prior blip from down along the stream looking up, as well as one looking back up the valley from way down below - you can just barely spot the rock I was sitting on along the left hillside in each shot.

We have sometimes seen and heard elk in the valley below our campsite. Thus our name for this place: the Valley of the Elk. But alas, we did not hear, smell, or see any proof of them on this visit. No antlers, no hoof prints, no bugling, no sign at all.

Eventually, as the temperatures rose, the snow melted, and our campsite in the pines dried out enough to set up our tents. So we did. (We've camped here before on full snowpack, and it has its rewards and challenges, but camping without snowpack is definitely easier.)

My husband strung his hammock from tree to tree and that's where he hung out. (Hung out, get it?) I myself found a sun spot nearby, where I set up my little fold-up chair. You might be surprised at the number of creature comforts a girl can fit into her backpack. And weren't we delighted to watch the nearly full moon rise through the trees over the Valley of the Elk.

We had our tiny tunes box with us, of course, and we were rocking out, having a marvelous time, free at last, and right at home in the back-country wilds of Pennsylvania. Sometimes I wonder if any animals can hear our music, and what they might think. (I am reminded of that scene in Out of Africa with the record player, for instance.)

My husband reported that a few years back when he was camping there alone, a bear strolled by, and it seemed to enjoy the Bruce Springsteen very much indeed! Imagine that: a bear with good taste in music!

On this particular afternoon, I was doing my best Doors impression (yes, I can be like that), singing loud and probably off-key, but having a grand time. I don't know if bears would like that or not.

The song for the day is the one I jammed out to during some of the happiest moments of this day. You may have a listen at the link. The soundtrack is: The Doors, with L.A. Woman.