| Bedford |
| DESCRIPTION: Blue Knob State Park is a vast, beautiful wilderness in northeastern Bedford County. If you're looking for a quiet place amidst old growth forest and mountain streams, this is the place. While most of the park is forested, there are fields at higher elevations. There is fairly limited road access throughout the park, but eight different trails intertwine throughout the areas of the park. It is a haven for a diversity of wildlife including Black Bear, White-tailed Deer, Red Fox, Coyote, squirrels, snakes, amphibians, birds, and fish. Blue Knob State Park is a guarantee for exciting bird watching all year round. In the winter, Pileated Woodpeckers can be heard deep in the forest while nearby chickadees and titmice glean the bark for insects. This is also a perfect stopover site for migrating songbirds. Blossoming with flowers and buzzing with insects by springtime, many birds can't resist staying here for a few days to rest and fatten up for the remainder of their journey north. By this time the woods are echoing with the warbles of the Rose-breasted Grosbeak, the buzzes of Cedar Waxwings, the gawks of Common Ravens, and the chirps of Acadian Flycatchers. Come to Blue Knob to hear the cacophony of bird song and the splashes of color in the spring and summer at Blue Knob! |
DIRECTIONS: From I-99 north of Bedford, take Exit 7. Take PA 869 north for 9.3 miles and turn right on Pavia Road. Go 0.7 mile and turn right on Whysong Road. Go 0.06 mile to Park office on the right. You can get a park map here. From the Park Office, follow Whysong Road up the mountain to access the 2-mile Homestead Trail and the 3-mile Sawmill Trail. Return to Pavia Road and then turn right on Knob Road for more trail access and a scenic vista. Go 3.1 miles and turn right onto Tower Road to access the beautiful Mountain View Trail. Beyond this point you can also access the Ski Resort, which lies at a high elevation of 3146 feet. To the immediate west and northwest of the park is State Game Lands 28, which provides multiple habitats for birds. |
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| Posted: 2009-10-24 00:00:00 Updated: 2009-12-02 00:00:00 |
