Kinzua Bridge State Park

In mid-July 2018 we drove from Shippenville, Pennsylvania to Cuba, New York, located in Allegany County, just north of the Western New York/Pennsylvania border. This was another of our short 4-day stays, long enough to get a taste of the area, do a little touring, regroup, and get back on the road. During our stop we drove back into Pennsylvania to visit the Kinzua Bridge State Park, one of the most fascinating parks I’ve been to during our travels.

This 339-acre park is the home of the now defunct Kinzua Viaduct. Originally built in 1882, with a rebuild in 1900, this bridge was once the longest and tallest railroad structure in the world, standing 301 feet high and stretching 2,503 feet long. In 1977 it was listed as a Historic Civil Engineering landmark, but this impressive structure was eventually brought down by a tornado.

On July 21, 2003, a tornado from the east touched down at the park. The F-1 category storm tore down 11 of the 20 structure spans while nearby trees were snapped and uprooted. The failure was caused by badly rusted bolts at the base of the towers. It was determined that the entire structure oscillated 4-5 times before the base bolts gave way. The towers fell intact in sections, and were damaged further as they hit the ground. They have been left as they fell, the ruins illustrating the forces of nature at work.

No longer a train route, this engineering masterpiece was reinvented as a pedestrian walkway in 2011. Visitors can stroll 600 feet out on the remaining support towers, peer miles out into the Kinzua Gorge, and gaze down through the partial glass platform at the end of the walkway. It was incredible to see the havoc wreaked by this tornado, bringing down tons of steel towers like they were nothing more than tinker toys. Along with the visitors center and pedestrian walkway, there are picnic areas and hiking trails winding through the park, so we were able to make an afternoon of our visit. 

Cook Forest (Cooksburg, Pennsylvania)

One of our scheduled events during the summer of 2018 was the Summerfest vegetarian conference in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, held over the 4^th of July weekend. When we find ourselves in this part of the country, this time of year, we make it a point to attend. (Here is a post from Summerfest 2014: https://beckylaine.blogspot.com/2014/07/vegetarian-summerfest-johnstown.html )

After leaving Johnstown, we continued our trek east, traveling to northwestern Pennsylvania, to the town of Shippenville, located twenty miles from the Cook Forest State Park. The 8,500-acre Cook Forest State Park is known for its stands of old growth forest, with towering white pines and hemlocks comprising a National Natural Landmark. A scenic 13-mile stretch of the Clarion River flows through the park and is popular for canoeing, kayaking, and tubing. Trails abound for hiking, biking, and horseback riding, and picnics along the shores of river. We took a day to explore a small portion of the park before moving on to our next destination.

McConnells Mill State Park

June 2018 wrapped up with a short stop in Mercer, Pennsylvania. We were due in Johnstown, PA by July 4^th, and it just so happens we have friends who live in the Mercer and Grove City area, which was right on the way. We only stayed three days, but had a very nice visit and got a nice introduction to a very beautiful part of the state of Pennsylvania. Our friends took us on a 30-mile scenic drive to the McConnells Mill State Park, located in Perry and Slippery Rock Townships in Lawrence County. Just getting there was half the fun, as we drove through bucolic country roads, over rivers and creeks, and through landscape dotted with farmhouses, meadows, and groves of trees.

McConnells Mills features a deep scenic gorge with a restored watermill and a covered bridge, accessible by a roadway that winds between looming boulders on the hillside. This park was chosen by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources as one of the “25 Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks”, and it’s not hard to see why. The site was originally opened as a gristmill in 1852, and by 1875 the waterwheel and grindstones were replaced with water turbines and rolling mills, making McConnells Mill one of the first rolling mills in the country. The mill processed oats, corn, buckwheat, and wheat until it was closed in 1928. 

Today, hiking, rock climbing, and white water boating are popular in the park. We spent a nice morning walking on some of the many trails, and learning a lot about the history of the area from our friends.