Staff members and volunteers of the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor will lead two guided “Preview the Trail” bicycle rides on new portions of the D&L Trail in Lehigh and Carbon counties on National Trails Day, June 4. read more here…
Archive for the ‘Biking’ Category
Recreation during Hunting Season
Recreation during Hunting Season
by Tom Loughery
Tour Operator
the Jim Thorpe eXperience
www.theJTX.com
With its mountainous setting, Jim Thorpe is famous for having adventures all around the town – on the river and lakes, on the trails and out in the woods. We’re lucky to have different levels of adventures, too, so people of all abilities can find something they’ll enjoy when they visit. Whether your chosen activity is hiking, biking or kayaking, you can find a spot to do it that will match your ability. People have been coming to the Jim Thorpe area for years just for this reason.
Something that all visitors (and local adventurers, too) need to keep in mind is that we share the land with the original adventurers – the hunters who have been getting out in the woods and on the mountains for hundreds of years. In this area, October 2 to December 11 is the major part of hunting season, which should impact your plans if you’re coming to the area to partake in any outdoor activity. Even though we all need to share the land for most of the year, and there is an attitude in many adventurers that we have just as much right to use public lands whenever we want, it is my opinion that hunting season is a time when we (as non-hunting adventurers) need to concede that the local woods are primarily for the hunters.
As an outdoor lover, it is very hard to say that I am not going to go in the woods between early October and mid-December. And it does not have to be true… there are times I will be out there. However, foremost in my mind is always safety, and it isn’t always safe to be out in the woods during hunting season, so I will definitely think about my adventures a lot more right now. For example, it is just not smart or considerate to plan a long hike or a bike ride through hunting lands on any Saturday for the next 2 months. Saturdays are when 90% of the hunters are out there… why would we want to risk our safety and disturb their activity? It causes disputes between hunters and bikers/hikers, and a few times it ends up in tragedy. None of us wants to be a statistic on hunting safety!
So what do you do in order to get your nature fix? There are several options, and here are some hints to stay safe:
1. Find no-hunting lands that are open to the public, and explore them for a while. Many smaller parks in populated areas do not allow hunting because of the proximity of homes/people, so these parks are available year-round.
2. If you’re coming to Jim Thorpe to do something outside, plan the major activity for a Sunday, when there is no hunting. That’s a pretty easy one.
3. If you are coming for a multi-day adventure, plan some other things on hunting days… for example, on a Saturday you can kayak on the lake/river or bike/walk the Switchback or Lehigh Gorge Trails. (FYI, you may still see some hunters from these trails, as they gain access to remote lands)
4. Remember that ‘Private Property’ does not necessarily mean there won’t be hunters out there. If you see a section of woods that is ‘posted’ or you think is owned privately, that does not mean it won’t be hunted. Often, landowners give special permission to certain hunters to be on their land – best to ask the property owner if any hunters are allowed there.
5. If you have to be out on a hunting day, avoid the times when the hunters are most likely to be out – early mornings are a given, and late afternoons are sometimes popular for people getting out of work. This applies more to weekdays; Saturday is a whole day when it’s just not smart to be out in hunting areas.
6. Another thing to think about is being visible, no matter when/where you are out in the woods over the next couple months. There are signs on public lands saying: “Hunters wear Orange, you should too.” This is good advice. Bright, non-natural colors will stand out and let everyone know you are not a wild animal. Neons, blaze orange, etc…fashion takes a back seat during hunting season!
These hints are just some of my ideas to help visitors enjoy their time in the outdoors in a safe and courteous manner. I know it will stir up resentment among some adventurers who think we all have every right to be wherever we want, whenever we want.
It’s not an argument I wish to make…
I just want people to be safe, and I really don’t want bikers or hikers causing problems with hunters around Jim Thorpe. Hunting is big here… huge, even. It is part of the culture for far longer than mountain biking or anything else…
Getting shot because you’re pedaling through the woods on a popular hunting day, (and maybe dressed in a brown shirt and wearing a white bicycling helmet !@#$*) is definitely not an enjoyable outing…. We’d all like people to remember their time in Jim Thorpe in a positive way, so avoiding conflict or tragedy is an important part of that.
Basically, regardless of your opinion on public lands or user access, hunting as a sport, private property, or sharing the land, we all need to have a realistic attitude about hunting season and implement practices that will help keep us safe while feeding our outdoor passion.
Celebrate the Great Outdoors!
This September is a great time to come visit this area and do something cool outside. Across all of Carbon County, there is a month-long celebration of the outdoors that showcases the fact that there is so much to see and do here. This area is blessed with mountains, lakes, rivers, trails, wilderness, parks, nature centers, golf courses, outfitters, guides (like JTX!) and then all the other stuff that you need AFTER the adventure, like restaurants, B&B/hotel/guesthouses/motel, shopping, historic attractions, etc. Carbon County truly has everything you need to have a great time outside.
Throughout September, there is something going on almost every day, which helps showcase the natural environment and adventures that are available here. Visit www.carboncountychamber.org and click on the circular logo on the left-middle of the page. This takes you to a big PDF file that has the general info PLUS a calendar of events (takes a moment to load). You have to SCROLL DOWN from the picture to the calendar. It’s not the best calendar, but it’s a sampling of what’s available. (Next year, there will be a better website and calendar.)
This month of activities will show you just how much is here, and even if you can’t get here in September, it will give you ideas for next time you DO visit. If you live in the area, it will let you know of a bunch of things that area available right in your backyard.
Black Bear Triathlon
| The race takes place at Beltzville State Park in Lehighton, PA. This year the race will take place on two days offering an entire weekend of triathlon and festival-style activities with both Sprint and Olympic Distances for 2010. |
Images of Jim Thorpe
Play along with this little game for a minute: clear your mind, and then say out loud the first things that come to your mind when you think of the words ‘Jim Thorpe.’ What did you come up with?
Just thinking about the name Jim Thorpe will conjure up many different images in the minds of many different people.
- For some it brings to mind our town, a beautiful Victorian village set amidst the western Pocono Mountains, while others may think of the town’s namesake – the greatest athlete of the 20th century and one of the most famous Native Americans of all time.
- Many people may have a more specific picture of Jim Thorpe (the place) that comes from a great memory of time spent here, whether it be from an awesome mountain bike ride on some of the area’s famous trails, or the thrills of a family whitewater rafting adventure on the Lehigh River, or the first time they successfully rolled their kayak, or the view from atop Onoko falls as they climbed ‘the Glen’ with that special someone, or just a wonderful time strolling the beautiful downtown enjoying shops, restaurants and unique historic attractions with friends.
- Some older folks may actually think of ‘Mauch Chunk’ – remembering the story of the name change in 1954 when Mauch Chunk and East Mauch Chunk joined together to make the ‘new’ town of Jim Thorpe. Still others will think of trains, as all parts of the town history have their share of locomotive-powered stories, and the trains still remain part of the town’s draw for many people.
- History buffs have an endless supply of images to think about when they consider Jim Thorpe (or Mauch Chunk); they can imagine the old Switchback Railway bringing coal down the side of Mount Pisgah, which helped usher in the age of railroad transportation; they can think of the Lehigh Canal that opened up this area to commerce by taking coal and bringing supplies back to this ‘frontier’ town; they might consider Asa Packer’s influence in railroading and business and politics, all of which helped put Mauch Chunk in the national spotlight; or the statistics about so many millionaires living here, when being one was an amazing accomplishment; or they could remember the extended Great Depression, when the town was really down for decades, which resulted in (among other things) the Nickel-A-Week fund that led to the name change; and this list could go on….
Point is, there is SO MUCH about Jim Thorpe! So many images that come to mind, so much to see and think about and do – it is truly an amazing place. Wherever you are around the area, there is sure to be some special story – old or new –about the spot, which contributes to the unique character of the whole area. In fact, all of Carbon County and much of the Western Pocono region have stories that relate back to Jim Thorpe & Mauch Chunk. It takes but a quick read through some any number of local history books or maybe even a google search to find interesting factoids about an area you’re exploring. Most parks have booklets that tell some history and interesting lore of the area, and the many historic attractions in the area all tell their stories very well.
Back to the little game at the top of this column…. Whatever you thought of about Jim Thorpe, you’re most likely right! There’s so much here to see and do and learn that whether your image was one that was listed here, or a visualization that came from your unique experience, it is surely an important facet of the story of Jim Thorpe.
- If you’re coming to the area, and would like to hear some unique stories about the place while also enjoying an outdoor adventure, look up the Jim Thorpe eXperience www.theJTX.com, a guide service that offers historic interpretation while out on hikes, bike rides, kayak trips, or nature walks.
June 5: National Trails Day!
Mark your calendar. This year’s National Trails Day event promises to be one of the best yet. The D&L is planning a bike ride through Lehigh Gorge State Park that will end with a large trail dedication to celebrate the new section of trail between Glen Onoko and downtown Jim Thorpe. Participants can choose whether to ride the 20+ mile trip through the park, take a shorter ride, or just attend the dedication. We are still working on the specifics, but the ride will probably begin in the morning in White Haven, and the dedication will be in the early afternoon…read more…
Weissport Canal
Our whole crew wanted to see the work that was done at the Weissport Canal. This trail is part of the 165 mile route that the brought the coal in our region to market. The canal still has the remains of the locks that helped move the canal boats, and beautiful walking and biking trails.
The five of us took our bikes, water bottles and a Senape’s Pizza on our 4 1/4 bikes (baby in the back seat). It was a great spring day and people were feeding ducks and geese, many people were fishing along with dog walkers and bikers.
We stopped for lunch at a pinic area at what was one of the old locks that warned to be on the lookout for snakes (my son loved that).
