Another Hike In The Weiser State Forest. This Time The New Penrose Swamp Barrens Tract.

I returned to the Weiser State Forest in Carbon County last Sunday.  This time I visited the  Penrose Swamp Barrens, the newest addition to this  State Forest. This 2700 acre pristine wilderness  was purchased by the Wildlands Conservancy   from the Pasco Schavio Estate, a  Luzerne County attorney and  philanthropist  in November of 2021.  I had been hiking here for over a decade now and was delighted when this land was added to  Weiser State Forest.  I had written a few blogs on the Penrose Swamp Barrens and this is a link to one of those post with some more information  on the Barrens and the purchase. https://keepyoureyespeeled.net/my-first-hike-in-the-new-penrose-swamp-barrens-state-forest/

At this time there are  still no easy ways to hike into the Penrose Barrens. One way to access  the tract would be on the Spring Mountain Road. This would require crossing the Beaver Creek. There are no bridges over the creek. Another route would be walking along the active railroad tracks from the town of Weatherly.  I don’t believe this route  is private but many people use it. The third way, and the one I hiked  on Saturday,  is  a  1/2 mile right of way beginning along  the Buck Mountain Road. There is no parking lot here and I had to park along the road. It was partly cloudy and  seasonably warm with temperatures in rhe 70’s when I began my hike.

The access  trail was clearcut through the woodlands and it looked like some more of the scrub oak and  young trees and shrubs that sprouted  were cut since the clearcut and  my last visit. There is only a narrow path  on the right of way.

It was  overgrown with Japanese stilt grass  since my  hike last year. This invasive  species  quickly spreads and is destroying the native wildflowers, plants and trees in the Commonwealth.

It was higher than my knees on Saturday and it was wet from a heavy dew.    My  shoes and legs were quickly soaked. I didn’t mind this as much as the wet stilt grass washing  the insect repellent on my legs. This was not good  since the tall grass was also infested with ticks. I pulled a dozen off of my legs on this access trail. 

There was not much bird activity at the beginning of the  access trail. On my previous hikes I saw many indigo buntings. sparrow, and other birds in the scrub oaks and trees. As I continued on the overgrown path the Japanese stilt grass thinned out and there were now hay- scented ferns,some blackberry brambles

and milkweed flowers in bloom.

And where there is milkweed there are usually butterflies. I saw  a  few great spangled fritillary

and  spicebush swallowtail  butterflies near the milkweed flowers.

Further along the trail there were more patches of blackberries and some small pine and maple trees still growing. Here I saw a few male  indigo buntings singing in the trees ,

and a few common yellowthroats, this is a female,

and this the masked male.

Here I also saw the first  of many  white tail deer, I would see on my five mile hike.  There were three bucks feeding on the clear cut path, these two ,

and this  one. with some nice antlers still in velvet. . 

The trail got wet and swampy, so  I walked up to the long abandoned  Buck Mountain Railroad right of way.  It is posted and private  closer to the highway but I believe it is part of the Penrose Swamp Barrens  after about a 1/2 mile. There was more Japanese stilt grass growing on the right of way but it was easier then walking on the clear cut access. 

In the hemlock and mature oaks along the right of way I saw this black throated green warbler.

After  about  3/4 mile  I reached a utility pole line that crossed the Penrose tract.

The  abandoned Buck Mountain railroad continues on the other side of the utility line.  I first walked a shirt distance  on the utility line.  I love walking on utility lines and I hiked many gas and electric right of ways  in my childhood and younger years.

I walked up the utility pole line for about a 1/4 mile. There was a wetlands along the path with a lot of cattails. and there were elderberries

and high bush blueberries too. I picked many high bush blueberries. we called them “swampers” as a child and  most of my adult life. It’s been a few years since now, since I got my camera and spend more time looking for birds and other wildlife in  the woods.

Invasive alder or European buckthorn berries were also ripening.   These are not edible and poisonous to humans and even wildlife.  

There were not many wildflowers blooming now, only a few Deptford  pink or pink grass flowers, also an invasive species,

and this native species was just beginning to bloom, the wild rhododendrons. They will soon cover  the mountains and hillsides with their beautiful flowers.

There were some more butterflies visiting the milkweed flowers also blooming along the trail, I believe these are  a meadow fritillary butterfly

and I believe this red spotted purple admiral butterfly.

There were some birds active here along the utility line, a few  common, year round resident, black-capped chickadees

this migratory black and white warbler,

and singing near the woodlands along three utility line this hermit thrush.

I walked back to the Buck Mountain right of way and followed it into a beautiful swamp or wetlands with large oak and hemlock trees.

I came to a small pond where I have seen great blue herons and  Canada geese.  Across from the pond was a wetland where I have wood ducks. There was no birds active on the trail on this hike.

It was still nice walking through the hemlock and oak trees. I soon entered a thick  area of rhododendrons. I have seen a few bears  here on previous hikes and was hoping to see one again. Unfortunately I saw no bears or any wildlife.

A few mushrooms grew along the  trail, this a species of bolete mushroom,

and this a species of russula.  I have ate some mushrooms of both species but I was unfamiliar with these.

The trail became washed out  as I neared an active railroad right of way.

This is the historic  Hazle Junction.  Here the Beaver Meadows railroad , the Buck Mountian railroad and the old Hazleton Railroad intersected. It was very active over 150 years ago.  The Beaver Meadows Railroad was one of the first railroads in the Nation. I had written blogs about the history which can be found using the search tool.

The  Hazleton railroad was taken over  by the Lehgih Valley Railroad and transported coal and passengers to Hazleton. My grandparents and great grandparent, and most of the immigrants who lived  in the Hazleton area and who worked in the coal mines and supporting business would have traveled from  Ellis Island on this railroad.  There is a lot of history in this area in addition to the natural beauty. The railroad crosses the fast flowing Hazle or Black Creek here. It was once polluted from the runoff from the  anthracite coal mines but is being cleaned up and native trout introduced.

I followed the  railroad right of way through a woodland of mature hemlock trees. I didn’t see many birds but I heard the raspy calls of more black throated green warblers as I walked

I also heard and saw  few oven birds

  and red eyed vireos.

I walked on the railroad tracks hoping to see a black or rat snake. I would always see them when I walked the tracks as a child but, like all wildlife, there aren’t many around anymore and I didn’t see any in this hike.

There were some oxeye daisies blooming along the tracks,

and large patches of common mullein, both invasive species.

It was about a 1/2 mile walk to the Penrose Reservoir. This reservoir is over 100 years old and once supplied the town of Weatherly with its water supply.

I loved sitting along this reservoir and have seen muskrats, beavers, otters and minks here in addition to many birds. The reservoir was much lower now being lowered by a recently dug drainage ditch, I’m sure with the approval of the Forestry Department. I hope they don’t drain it completely.

I walked past the reservoir and into the mostly pinch pine and oak woodlands along the Penrose Creek.

This is the area the largest concentration of climbing or Hartford fern was discovered about 30 years ago by a local environmentalist and outdoorsman Mike Gondell. This species was once endangered in Pennsylvania but was removed from the endangered list because of the discovery of the ferns in this area. Its discovery probably saved the Penrose Swamp Barrens.These ferns were used for  Christmas wreaths and are endangered in most states. They are everywhere under the pine trees in this part of the Penrose Barrens.

There were also large patches of cranberries near the  reservoir. They have just began flowering now and will ripen late in the Fall. Here is a link to a  gallery with some more photos of the plants and mushrooms  I saw on my hike in the Penrose Swamp Barrens. Penrose Tract Weiser State Forest  plants June 29 2025. 

I walked under the large pitch pines

and here I also saw a few pine warblers and

this pretty blue headed vireo.

I was out about 2 1/2 miles and decided to end my hike and head back to the  my Jeep. It was now late morning and the strong late June sun warmed it up. I was still hoping to see a snake,  I didn’t,

but when I was hiking under the thick hemlock and rhododendrons on the abandoned Buck Mountain railroad right of way I did see this red breasted nuthatch, These birds are  less common then their cousins the white breast nuthatches. Here is a link to a  gallery with some more photos of the birds I saw on my hike in the Penrose Swamp Barrens. Penrose Tract Weiser State Forest June 29 2025.

I walked back to the utility line, and  seeing some of the birds I saw earlier.

I also saw this butterfly which I believe, but not positive is another species of fritillary butterfly and Aphrodite  fritillary I think .

I wasn’t looking forward to walking through the  Japanese stilt grass and the ticks I knew would  hike there but I was lucky and only had about half a dozen cling to me. I removed them before they attached. I did a thorough tick search when I got home.

I enjoyed my hike in this newest addition  to the Weiser State Forest. and was thankful to  the late Pasco Schaivo for preserving it.  His generosity will allow many more people for many generations to enjoy it’s beauty. I hope to hike it again.  I was going to say I hope there was a better  access road into the tract, but maybe not.  Removing a few ticks is certainly worth the price of experiencing the beauty of this pristine forest. Here is a link to a  gallery with some more photos from on my hike in the Penrose Swamp Barrens. Penrose Tract Weiser State Forest   June 29 2025.

If you are going to hike in the Penrose Swamp Barrens and decide  to park on the Buck Mountain Road, be careful driving up from Weatherly. The road is steep and winding, so much in fact they have a competition here every Spring, the Weatherly Hill climb. 

“I think having land and not ruining it is the most beautiful art that anybody could ever want.” –Andy Warhol