This was the first hike that I completed using the book, 50 Hikes in Western Pennsylvania. I took this hike with my wife, Jackie and our two dogs, Red and Cash. We started about 10 AM and headed into the woods. It was a warm June day and the forest was alive with birds, bugs and vegetation. It took us a while to find the trailhead, but once we got on track, everything progressed smoothly.
We made the entire loop, but three major drawbacks made this trip less than fun at times. First, we had no backpack at the time suitable for hiking. So, an old Jansport had to make do. With no hipbelt, the shoulder strain from 2 gallons of water (for us and dogs) was a little much. Also, the dogs had to be leashed, so they were constantly vying for pole position along the narrow trail. Lastly, and probably most importantly, I should not have picked such a long hike for our first outing of this type. My hiking career had been on hiatus for eight years or so, and my wife had little experience as well. Out of breath and sadly out of shape, we returned to our car and nearly collapsed.
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