No Whip-Poor-Wills But A Nice Hike On Some Trails In The Penn Forest Tract Of The Weiser State Forest.

I was on the isolated Hell Hollow Road near the Penn Forest Reservoir in Carbon County before dawn last Saturday morning. I wasn’t looking for cicadas , mountain laurel or rattlesnakes this time . This time I was looking for whip-poor- wills, and the good memories they invoke when I hear their unmistakable morning and evening songs. As a young child, I would listen to them with my dad in the evening twilight many a Spring and Summer night. Good times they were. Eastern whip-poor-wills are nocturnal birds and members of the nightjar family. They sing after sunset and before dawn. It’s been a years since I heard their song and wanted again. I learned they have been heard on this road near the Penn Forest Reservoir.
The first light of dawn was already appearing in the eastern skies at 4 a.m when I left my home in Hazle Township Luzerne County. I enjoyed my drive in the morning twilight. The waning crescent moon and the planet Venus shined bright in the morning sky. I arrived on the Hell Hollows road around five a.m . I was surprised by the many birds singing in the still dark woodlands along the road.
I heard hooded warblers, pine warblers, wood thrush, hermit thrush , scarlet tanagers, and great crested flycatchers to name a few. This is a screen shot of my Merlin app. and some of the birds it identified. It was a magical place to be.
However I was disappointed I didn’t hear a whip-poor- will. I did some research and learned that although they do sing in the morning, it is more common to hear them in the evening. I had heard them in the morning when I was camping in my younger days but not this time. I hope to get back there some night this Summer and hear their beautiful song. I drove slowly on the road for a half hour listening to the other birds singing . I was going to hike on the trails in the lands of the Bethlehem Water Authority above the Penn Forest reservoir. However I decided to try a new trail in the nearby Weiser State Forest.
It was a two mile drive to the Penn Forest tract of the Weiser State Forest. I have hiked in two other tracts of this State Forest before . The Roaring Creek tract in Schuykill County and the recently acquired Penrose tract in Carbon County.
The Powerline Trail trail began on a utility line where I arrived just around sunrise. I spent many days hiking the two utility or tower lines near my home in my younger years. The trail followed the right of way of the utility line along the border of the Weiser State Forest. It was nice to watch the sunrise through the woodlands in the State Forest.
The familiar scrub oak trees, ferns and heath shrubs grew under the utility lines and along trail.
I soon heard and some bird activity in the trees. The most common bird here were prairie warblers. I heard them all along the trail under the utility lines. This one was enjoying an early caterpillar meal.
There were also a few familiar eastern towhees along the trail, this is the male,
and I was able to get a photo of the two of them together. I am sure they have a nest nearby.
I also saw a black and white warbler,
and this common yellowthroat also catching an early meal.
This trail along the utility line brought back so many wonderful memories. I spent countless hours on the tower lines near my home both on hikes with my childhood friends and many hikes by myself as I got older. I stooped hiking on these trails when the land along the power lines was developed for residential and industrial purposes.
Like the tower lines near my home their were areas of wetlands along the trail.
Below the scrub oak trees, sensitive ferns,
and hay-scented ferns grew along the trail.
It was nice to see large patched of sweet ferns along the trails. These aromatic plants are not ferns but are actually shrubs related to bayberries that grow along the coast. My dad called them “mushroom bushes” since we often found “red top” mushrooms (aspen saber bolete) growing under them.
and ripening blue berries were everywhere. I picked many low bush blueberries on the tower lines near my home as a child.
There were also black huckleberry shrubs growing along the trail. We were told not to pick them because they contain a lot more seeds then the blueberries.
Another plant I was familiar with from my childhood blueberry and mushroom picking days was fly poison. It is poisonous and early colonist mixed the ground build with sugar and used it to attract and kill flies.
I also saw some late blooming mountain laurel along the trail. It is always good to see our State Flower in the woods on my hikes.
I loved the pitch pine and oak trees growing along the trail. Oak trees and itch pines were the most common trees in the woodlands where I grew up. I became familiar with many and used them as landmarks on my many hikes along the trails near my home. Many a Summer day my friends and I I would live early in the morning and return late in the day. We picked blueberries, mushrooms or just enjoyed exploring the woods. Good days they were. I continued these hikes myself as I got older.
The sun continued to climb higher in the eastern sky . I was enjoying my hike on the trail. . There was one problem with the trail. It was only about a 1/4 mile from the Turnpike. The sound of the heavy traffic was constant.
I was seeing still some of the same birds I had seen earlier and then I saw this colorful and elusive bird, a Blackburnian warbler.
It was feeding on the same caterpillars as the other warblers in the scrub oaks along the trail.
I had walked on the trail for about 1 3/4 miles until I came to the Firebreak Trail, which I followed into the woodlands of the Penn Forest tract .
Once again the narrow trail took me through larger oaks and pitch pines trees that reminded me of the woodlands near my home when I was young.
Here I heard, and saw a lot of ovenbirds,
As I walked on the trail into the forest the sound of the traffic diminished. After about a 1/2 mile I came to the Penn Forest Trail and you could no longer hear the traffic from the highway. The Penn Forest Trail was peaceful and scenic. It was a wide dirt trail through, at first a mixed oak and maple woodland with some pitch pine, birch and a few hemlock trees.
It then took me through a grove of Norwegian spruce trees.
The trail continued in the mature forest. There were some picnic tables along the trail and it looked like a great place to spend some time enjoying a meal outdoors.
There were some birds in these deeper woods, including a lot of red eyed vireos,
a hermit thrush, I loved hearing it melodic and haunting song,
I walked on the Penn Forest Trail for about 3/4 mile and came to the Sawmill Trail.
I followed it to the border of the Penn Forest tract and to the lands of the Bethlehem Water Authority. The land was open to the public and I hope to return and hike here again.
I had hiked about 3 1/2 miles so I decided to end my hike. It was now late morning and the bird activity quieted down as my made my way back on the Penn Forest Trail.
I did see some wildflowers blooming along the trail including native daisy fleabane flowers, and
Invasive oxeye daisies also bloomed along the trail.
There were are a lot of milkweed plants which should be blooming soon and attracting butterflies, bees, wasps and other insects.
There was, I believe , a white admiral butterfly , fluttering along the trail.
I saw this yellow throated vireo feeding on what looked like a worm.
and also saw some furry critters this eastern chipmunk,
and this white tail deer and her fawn.
It was a beautiful morning to be hiking in this beautiful woodland.
I walked to the Rebold Trail and followed it back to the Power Line Trail.
The strong June sun had heated the cooler morning air. It was getting hot with temperatures in the 80’s. as I walked back along the power lines. There weren’t as many birds active in the warmer air but I did see a few more common yellowthroats,
and some eastern bluebirds. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog web page with some more photos of the birds I saw on my seven mile hike. Penn Forest Tract Weiser State Forest birds June 21 2025.
I also saw this white tail buck watching me as I walked along the trail.
I was glad when I came to the parking lot. I had walked over 7 miles. It was now near noon and I was on the trails for over 6 hours. I was thirsty, tire and hungry but like my all day hikes in my youth I enjoyed every minute of being in the woods and keeping my eyes peeled to observe the beauty of Nature. I am glad I can share some of this beauty here on my blog and on social media. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog web page with some more photos from my seven mile hike. Penn Forest Tract Weiser State Forest June 21 2025.
Woods are filled with the music of birds, and all nature is laughing under the glorious influence of Summer. ~Charles Lanman
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