Beautiful Fall Foliage, And A Rare Trumpeter Swan Sighting, On A Hike To Bruce Lake In Pike County.

I returned to hike in the Bruce Lake Recreational Area last Saturday. It is located in the Delaware State Forest in Pike County, adjacent to the Promised Land State Park. Bruce Lake is now my favorite lake in Pennsylvania. I have loved lakes since I first visited Lake Irene in the Community Park located near my home in Hazleton Township in Luzerne County when I was 5 years old.

Over the years I enjoyed visiting, and hiking around , the lakes at Hickory Run, Tuscarora, Beltzville and Locust Lake State Parks located near my home.  That is Lake Tuscarora pictured below. However , all of these lakes are man-made. Two  years ago  I first visited Bruce Lake and learned it was not mand-made but was  created by the glaciers that once covered the Pocono Mountains 15,000 to 20, 000 years ago. There is more information on Bruce Lake and other glacier lakes in my previous blog post which can be found using the search tool.

The trail head to Bruce Lake is about about about 78 miles from my home, an hour and 15 minute drive, and I arrived around 7:30 a.m. the skies were clear but it was a cool 43 degrees . I should have dressed warmer.

It was pretty dark for the first part,of my hike, the rising sun was obscured by the large oak , maple and hemlock trees along the trail.

It was quiet too. I heard no bird song in the trees. On my last hike , in June, I heard many red-eyed vireos, oven birds and other warblers, including Blackburnian warblers in the trees.

The tree also took me through thick groves of mountain laurel and rhododendron.

There was a lot more Fall colors up here in the Pocono Mountains. I noticed them on the drive up and even more so when the sun finally peaked through the trees.

The yellow leaves of the witch hazel and birch trees glowed in the morning sunlight.

It was about a mile to the Egypt Meadow Lake, a small man made lake built by the CCC in the 1930’s.

I often see water fowl herd and a large flock of wood ducks flew off as I approached, there whistling cries echoing over the lake. I usually see some great blue heron on the lake but none on Saturday.

I was surprised to see what I believed to be a tundra swan swimming on the lake. It was early, I thought for these birds that breed in the Arctic regions to be this far south already. I would later learn it was a trumpeter swan.

I left the lake and began my hike on the wide, grass covered trail to Bruce Lake.

The sun now lit up the woodlands making for a pleasant walk in the colorful woodlands.

The many hay- scented ferns along the trail had turned brown and yellow and there sweet fragrance wafted through the cool morning air.

The bracken ferns were mostly withered and brown,

the cinnamon ferns were also a bright orange yellow color,

but a few Christmas ferns remained green and would remain so throughout most of the Winter.

The woodlands remained quiet. There was still no bird song or activity. I did hear and see a lot of eastern chipmunks scurrying along the trail,

and this marbled orb weaving spider spinning its web.

As I followed to trail up the slight incline I could hear some of the traffic from the nearby Interstate 84 highway. This didn’t take away from the beauty of the walk beneath the Fall foliage along the trail.

The trail, as it neared the lake had more hemlock and white pine trees. There were some wetlands here on my last few hike but they were dried up on. this hike. We have had little rain here in Northeastern Pennsylvania the last few months and the forest was very dry.

I came to the trail that would loop around the western shore of Bruce Lake I hiked it once before and I found it overgrown and flooded. It looks like it had been cleared since then.I followed the main trail up to lake,

and walked to the clearing along the lake under large red maple tree. There was a fire pit here and I again envied the folks who say around this campfire and enjoyed the beauty of Bruce Lake. I believe there is primitive camping here by permit.

I took in the view of the pristine lake. Its waters reflected the clear blue skies. I again thought of the Native Americans, the first European explorers and first settlers who took in this view.

I also imagined prehistoric mammoths, saber toothed tigers and giant sloths roaming along its shores and swimming in it’s waters 10, 000 years ago. It is a beautiful place to relax, reflect and imagine.

I saw some native goldenrod,

and invasive spotted knapweed flowers here.

I left the clearing and followed the trail through a grove of rhododendrons and some wetlands that were still a little muddy even in those dry conditions.

There were some large eastern white pine trees here and a lot of their cones strewn on the ground

I also saw those golden pholita mushrooms

and these, I believe, waxy laccaria mushrooms.

I finally saw some bird activity here, a flock of eastern towhees were migrating through the forest. This is the best photo I could get of one of the females

I came to another clearing and admired the beauty of the lake before continuing on the trail around the eastern side of the lake.

The trail became narrower as it took me through the colorful woodlands in the bright sunshine.

I soon came to a path where I found an old hand water pump.

The path took me to a rocky ledge with another view of Bruce Lake.

I walked back to the main trail and followed it a short distance, until it started getting rocky and covered with roots. I’m still recovering from some shoulder injuries so didn’t want to chance walking on the trail. The trail would get more difficult as it would come to the marsh at the southern end of Bruce Lake.

I was out about 3 miles so walked back under the colorful woodlands. It was an uneventful but peaceful hike. I saw no birds or bears,

until I returned to the Egypt Meadows Lake.

The trumpeter swan was still on the lake, perched along the shore, until it saw me,

and swam out on the clear blue waters.

I also saw a flock of swamp sparrows,

foraging along the lake.

As I was watching the swamp sparrows a man, his son and their dog came walking on the trail. They scared the trumpeter swan and it flow off the lake right in over my head, allowing me to get some close up photos.

When editing the photos at home I saw that the swan had an injured beak.  I discussed this with my brother, nephew and some friends and we think it may have  been attacked by a snapping turtle. I posted the photo on Facebook and was advised to  the local wildlife rescue . I id, and left a message. I didn’t receive a return call but a lot of folks knew that their were 3 trumpeter swans around the Promised Land State Park. I think they may be aware of the injured swan. It was able to fly and was feeding on vegetation so there may not be anything they could do for the injured swan.  Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos of the trumpeter swan and other birds I saw on my 7 mile hike. Egypt Meadows and Bruce Lake birds September 20 2025.

There were some wildflowers near the lakes including these white panicled  asters,

white wood asters, and

 silverrod  flowers.

I continued my hike seeing  over a dozen folks walking on the trail, including a couple of young ladies with their dogs, a few young families and more couples. It was a great day to be out in the Pocono woodlands.

As I near the end of my hike I found a small hen of the woods, we call them ramsheads in coal country, growing under an oak tree. I have found dozens so I left this one hoping another mushroom hunter would find it. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos of the plants and flowers  I saw on my 7 mile hike. Egypt Meadows and Bruce Lake plants and flowers September 20 2025.

It was near noon when I finished my 7 mile hike. I didn’t see much wildlife, only a few birds and no bears,  but it was a pleasant walk and It was a great sighting of the trumpeter swan which is rarely seen in our area. I hope to visit Bruce Lake many more times in the coming years, and plan to return in the Winter. Here is a link to a gallery with some more photos from my 7 mile hike. Egypt Meadows and Bruce Lake  September 20 2025.