Adventure: Turkey Run Falls

Rainy days. For many, they're the epitome of a lazy day, an excuse to stay inside. Those that know me well may expect that to be true for me since I loathe getting wet-- water is like my Kryptonite. But au contraire mon ami: lots of rain means that rivers and streams pick up. And if I don't pick up a paddle, I run out to some waterfalls.

To wit: Turkey Run Falls. After one initial attempt to locate this plunge near the Lower Clarion River on the outskirts of the Pa Wilds, I decided to save it for a rainy day... quite literally. The normal shallow depths of the stream didn't lend itself to picturesque water features (see the really dry creek bed in the summer to the right.) Glad I did. Several hours of a downpour allowed this riffle to swell into a some fine scenery.

Surprisingly, I even managed to coax Lavaricky, Soco, and Nelly all to don their rain coats and slosh along with me. Starting at the bridge over Turkey Run, Nelly and myself made our way down the Eastern bank while the ladies rebelled against us on the opposing side. Neither took pictures so all I have is my view. It's not much but a nice showing for a spontaneous trip on a rainy day.

So the lesson is: don't shy away from a rainy day! Instead, just use it as your advantage... an adventurer can benefit from the rain for some wicked paddling, deeper swimming holes, and-- obviously-- better looking waterfalls. Turkey Run Falls isn't much... but it's even less if the water drops to its normal levels. Good adventure to me!

Tally-ho!
-Captain Crash

Adventure: Whittimore Hill

If you're adventuring into good ol' Cameron County or Potter County, you don't have a lot of options for resupplying yourself. The heart of the Pa Wilds is pretty desolate, with entire lumber towns deserted and long stretches of nothingness. So when Lavaricky and I spent a few days exploring what the locals call God's Country with Soco at her cabin, we were forced to make use of one of the only actual town's around, Emporium, mostly because we wanted somewhere to catch the Pens game.

But without much outside of the town itself, there were even some adventures to be had nearby. Proof of this: Whittimore Hill. Just up the plateau from this quaint village was a great view that brought the whole settlement into view, along with the surrounding valleys and forests. It was a quick stop at a snowy overlook, a perfect pit stop in my books.

Stunning view of a really friendly town... maybe too friendly as we learned at a nearby restaurant. But the pizza was good and we did talk them into putting the hockey game on TV. Great way to end an adventure within an adventure.

Tally-ho!
-Crash