the Allegheny Plateau

Originally...
the idea was to go to Cherry Springs State Park.
a dark sky park
where we would watch the cosmos...

January 24th through the 26th we...
(Ashley & Steve, Michelle & Jim, Alicen & Nathan)
... went on a winter cabin getaway in Coudersport, Pennsylvania.

the cabin wasn't really a cabin...
more like a house.
and the beds...
I wish I took a picture.
I honestly don't have the words to describe...
Okay, I'll try.
The listing for this cabin states it sleeps ten.
I may be wrong in my assumption of sleeping ten.
but a house with four rooms...

well I thought...
i thought there would be
a full size bed in each of the four rooms.

my mistake.

In actuality...
two twin beds
in all of the rooms
except one...
the master bedroom

the beds still make me giggle when I think about this trip.
basically...
two men towering over six feet tall
sleeping in a space
six feet long and three feet wide.
it is ridiculous.
while the picture in my mind is hilarious
it was brought to my attention
other people's discomfort is not suppose to be funny.
but you should have seen it.
comical

from what I remember...
the kitchen was spacious.
everything you needed to live comfortably was provided.
towels, sheets, dishes...
there were two bathrooms
a foosball table...
with no foosball.

I remember we played games in the evenings.
Cards Against Humanity - the loser of each round got to wear a silly hat...

LIFE 1982 version - It was weird to witness through a once popular board game...
just how much societal views have changed in thirty-three years.

... and maybe Chronology? - I feel like I might have won.

the first night
I remember...
fire dancing
not me
I remember lying in the snow that night.
willing the cloud coverage to go away!
no stars came out that night

the following day
we had a short-cut mishap...
snow drifts made the road impassable...

Susquehannock Trail System (STS).
The STS is a eighty-five mile loop trail.
There are eleven trailheads along the STS.
We made it to the trailhead at Patterson State Park.

Starting on the Kerr Trail
... to the Prouty trail section
we hiked a total distance of 3.5 miles.
with an elevation change of approximately 600 feet.
I believe I would try hiking anywhere on the Susquehannock Trail System.

It was snowy.
I didn't have proper snow hiking shoes.
One of those times where...
I wish I would learn from my mistakes.
I prefer to be light on my feet.
I don't like the bulk or weight behind a "great" hiking boot.
So I wore my regular hiking shoes...
which I often do in snow...
but I didn't wear my gaiters.
so snow got down in my shoes...
and my feet were wet...
the wet was worse
than the cold of it.

It's amusing to me
as I look back at this awesome time with awesome friends
I remember being uncomfortable.
Classic Alicen.

the hike...
it was a continuous descent
to a fairly level path
along a valley floor
the trees stood bare and tall
the sky
clear winter blue

anytime I start a hike with a continuous descent
I know...
I know in the end...
I'm going to have to come back up.

Despite my discomfort I had a great time and it was a good hike.
Only slightly strenuous for me.

the second night
storm warnings began
Winter Storm Juno was approaching...
it would be the first storm of many that followed in the month of February.
no stars came out that night

I am increasingly interested in learning about the Appalachian Mountains.
The massive mountain range runs along the East Coast of the Untied States and up into Canada.
... the oldest mountain range in North America.
In the U.S. the Appalachian Mountains go through Eighteen States!
and the Appalachian Trail runs 2185 miles through fourteen states.

I'm constantly gathering information about the Appalachian Mountains.
i get excited about it!
geology
geography
maps
traveling
hiking
camping
surviving...

The Appalachian Mountains are split into three regions - Northern, Central, Southern.
In these regions there are different provinces.
Thirteen provinces if you include the Adirondacks.
The provinces I study the most are places I've been.
I believe they are all considered to be in the Central Region of the Appalachians.
Appalachian Plateaus - Allegheny Plateau, Catskill Mountains, the Poconos.
the Great Valley - Mohawk Valley & Hudson Valley
New England - the Berkshires, Green Mountains, Taconic Mountains, White Mountains.

On the western side of the Appalachians...
the Appalachian Plateau stretches through nine states.
in Pennsylvania it's called...
the Allegheny Plateau.
It is referred to as a dissected plateau.
Erosion and time created the peaks that exist today.
This means although there can be steep climbs...
there are no "real" mountains.

It is interesting to ponder...
the age of the Appalachian Mountain Range.

The tallest point of the Appalachian Mountains currently is 6684 feet.
I have found writings saying they once were as tall as the Rockies.
... some say the Alps.
... others say the Himalayas.

Jeep stuck in the snow drifts. Our short-cut mishap.

View during our short-cut misadventure.

View during our short-cut misadventure.

View at Patterson State Park.

Heading down the trail. The steepness of the trail is lost in this photo.

Almost down to a valley floor.

Failing to capture the depth of the terrain.

The valley floor.

I love this photo.

Fungus on a fallen tree. This tree was our turn around point.

Nathan down by the creek at the cabin.

View of the cabin from the creek.

Iko and Maynard playing in the snow down by the creek.
The creek's name was South Woods Branch.

Winter Cabin 2015 unusable photos brought to you by Disaronno & Yuengling Lager.