Exploring A New Trail In A New Year, A Hike On The D & L Trail From The Cementon Trail-head In Lehigh County

Before last Saturday I never heard of the tiny town of Cementon in Whitehall Township,  Lehigh County. I learned a lot about this small town along the Lehigh River, and the surrounding area,  since then.   I hiked five miles in the cold and wind on the D & L trail in Cementon on Saturday morning. So, how did I wind up there?

It was windy and cold at my home atop a ridge in Hazle Township in Luzerne County Pennsylvania. I decided to hike somewhere south of the Blue Mountain where I thought it may be warmer and less windy.  I often hike on the D & L Trail  along the Lehigh River on these cold and windy days, at Weissport, Bowmanston, the Lehigh Gap or Walnutport. On Saturday I looked at Google maps and saw a trail head on the D & L Trail  a few miles further south at Cementon.  So, around  8  a.m.  I was driving the 40 miles to the town of Cementon in Whitehall Township.

As soon as I entered the small town  I realized how it got it’s name. Large cement plants dominated the center of the town. I have since learned that the first Portland cement factory in the United States were opened here in the 1890’s.  Cementon and the nearby  town of Coplay produced 70% of the Portland cement sold  in the country in the early 1900’s. . The town is still known for it’s production of cement. Doing some research I also learned a little about  the   history of Whitehall Township where Cementon is located.

 Whitehall Township was part of land acquired from the Lenni  Lenape Native Americans by the sons of William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania. It was  settled by German immigrants in 1728. They  established farms and grist mills.  Whitehall Township, and Cementon, became commercially important when the Lehigh Canal was built in the 1830’s to transport coal from the anthracite mines to markets on the East Coast. The importance continued with the railroads that followed the canal along the Lehigh River. And then came the Portland cement industry in the 1890’s. I love our local history and  provided some links on the highlighted words  if you want to learn more. But now to my five mile hike and some photos and thoughts of what I saw on my first hike on this section of the D & L trail.

I arrived  at the trail head parking lot  around 9 a.m.  It was 8 degrees warmer than at my home but it was cloudy and still very windy.  I decided hike north on the trail, into to brisk northwesterly wind.  The trail begins along the Lehigh River behind some  residences in Cementon. I was greeted  a couple of the local dogs in their backyards.

The trail soon took me to a small park along the Lehigh River.

 As I walked to the river I saw large flocks of Canada geese flying over head. I most have see over `100 of the noisy honking geese.

Only two were swimming on the cold waters of the Lehigh River. A few snow geese also flew overhead.  

In the trees near the park I saw a lot of birds including a downy woodpecker,

and a large flock of white throated sparrows. I also saw song sparrows and house finches but I was windy and cold and I wasn’t sing to get good photos under the overcast skies so I continued on the trail.

The trail took me into a woodland with many large  sycamore and ash trees . There were a lot of other species of trees including tulip , sweet birch,  beech , black locust and a few oak trees. 

A lot of garlic mustard,

and Dames’ rocket plants   were growing along the trail. Both of these invasive plants are edible and I enjoy foraging for  them  on even the coldest days of the year.

Intermediate ferns

and greater celandine also added some green color to the otherwise dreary brown and gray winter landscape along the trail.

The trail continued to follow the Lehigh River. I watched for water fowl on the fast flowing river but didn’t see any. I did get a glimpse of a bald eagle flying up the river. I would this eagle twice again , or two other eagles, on my five mile hike.

The trail also followed a highway, Route 145, and so it wasn’t a quiet walk with the constant sound of  traffic on the highway. I still enjoyed the trail and the view of the Lehigh River.

The trail got quieter as  it approached a ridge that was  excavated for the abandoned railroad right of way.

I am not an expert on geology,

but I am pretty sure these rocks were slate.

Icicles formed on the rocks above  the trail.

There was not much bird activity on this section of the trail. However , as  the trail approached a   large clearing along a utility power line,

I saw a another large flock of white throated sparrows, some more song sparrows and

a  flock of dark eyed juncos.

A pair of Carolina wrens were singing in the cold winds along the  trail.

There were a few paths along  the trail that lead down to the Lehigh River.

I was out about two miles when the woodlands along the trail changed. There were now some pine and red cedar trees as well as a lot more larger oak trees.

Here I saw a few more birds, a large red-tailed hawk flew over the trails and I saw a mockingbirds and a couple golden crowned kinglets. I also saw this robin along the trail,

and a tufted titmouse.

After I had hiked 2 1/2 miles I came to a few houses along the river,

and the River Drive Trailhead.

I decided to end my hike here. As I was starting to hike back on the trail, I saw a pair of beautiful pileated woodpeckers on a tree near the river,

this is the male, with the red patch on it’s check,

and this the female.

I enjoyed watching these colorful birds on this cold and dreary day. After watching the woodpeckers I began my hike back on the trail. It felt a lot warmer now with the wind on my back. On the return hike I saw a lot of people on the trail. I didn’t see one person on my hike out but now I saw over a dozen runners and walkers on the trail.

I also saw a lot more birds including a another pair of golden crowned kinglet,

fluttering in the trees.

These red-bellied woodpecker appeared to be feeding on some sort of berry it must have hidden in this tree.

A few eastern bluebirds were also seen in  the trees along the trail.

I was surprised to see, I believe, a turkey vulture fly over. These birds usually migrate south in the fall.

It was a more pleasant, but still cold, hike back to the Cementon trail head. As I neared the parking lot I walked down to the river one last time and saw this male common merganser swimming in the cold waters. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos of the birds I saw on the trail.   Cementon D & L Trail birds January 4 2025.

It was the last bird I would see. It was windy and cold but I enjoyed walking along the historic and scenic Lehigh River. And, the many species of trees and other plants had me suspecting this will be a great place to see migrating birds in the Spring. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos from my five mile frigid hike  on the trail.   Cementon D & L Trail birds January 4 2025.

Trails have multiple values and their benefits reach far beyond recreation. Trails can enrich the quality of life for individuals, make communities more livable, and protect, nurture, and showcase America’s grandeur by traversing areas of natural beauty, distinctive geography, historic significance, and ecological diversity. Trails are important for the nation’s health, economy, resource protection and education. –AMERICAN TRAILS, Trails for All Americans report, 1990

fskokoski@gmail.com

This is my first post