We no longer live nearly as close to Worlds End State Park but still enjoy revisiting it from time to time for a little hiking. A few photos show why we like returning:
Views of many small waterfalls on Double Run. While I did enjoy sights on this part of our hike, I was less enamored of the trail routing. We were led onto rocks that lined the stream bed - not great footing, and slippery to boot. But by walking carefully we got through this part of the trail unscathed.
We climbed steadily up to our ultimate goal, Canyon Vista. According to a guidebook I have, Hiking The Endless Mountains by Jeff Mitchell, Canyon Vista is "One of Pennsylvania's most famous vistas..." In a state abundant with natural scenery, that's high praise indeed.
When we got the Canyon Vista, here's what we saw:
We were hoping for more fall color, but a couple also at the vista said that the frequent rains in the region had hurt the maples; they were told that the leaves had died and fallen off before they could change color. Nevertheless, my husband and I, and the couple (visiting from Philadelphia) were as happy with the views as Mitchell was.
After the climb to Canyon Vista my husband and I prepared to climb back down. This actually took us a bit longer than the trip up. The descent was quite steep in spots, steep enough that we worked against gravity to ensure we wouldn't go too fast. The amount of boulders to cross, tree roots to avoid and wet leaves to guard against made for slow going. But again, we were cautious and made our way back to the car with no issues other than the skid I took down a wet, slippery boulder. No injuries from it, though, so no harm, no foul. But because of such tricky footing - along with that close-to-Double Run trail on the way up to Canyon Vista - I didn't wish to stop to take more photos.
Despite that iffy footing, we were very happy with our excursion to Worlds End State Park. Mitchell calls it "...one of Pennsylvania's most beautiful state parks...beauty encompasses the entire park." Truthfully, we didn't go to many state parks while living in Pennsylvania. Our hiking activities mostly took us elsewhere. But Worlds End State park was an exception, since the nearly 60-mile-long Loyalsock Trail passes through it. (We went on parts of the LT to and from Canyon Vista on this hike.)
(Mitchell says that the Loyalsock Trail is "...one of Pennsylvania's most famous hiking trails". Again, high praise for a trail in a state loaded with them. We have a fondness for the LT ourselves since we've hiked it in its entirety.)
By the way, it's believed that the "Worlds End" moniker came from early settlers to the region. According to the park's website (found here):
Early settlers to the area used two horse
trails to cross the rugged highland from Muncy Creek to the forks of
Loyalsock Creek at the town of Forksville. This treacherous road became
obsolete in 1895 with the building of PA 154.
Pioneer Road Trail and Worlds End Road follow
the path of the old horse trail. Worlds End Vista, at the junction of
Pioneer Road Trail and Worlds End Trail, is the view that possibly
inspired the name of the park.
And I should also note that one can view Canyon Vista without the rigors of scrambling over boulders and huffing and puffing up hills:
ADA accessible Loyalsock Canyon Vista, reached via Mineral Spring and
Cold Run roads, and nearby High Knob Vista, provide outstanding views of
the Endless Mountains region. Scenery is particularly unforgettable
during the June mountain laurel bloom and the fall foliage period in
October. (this info also came from the park website).
We did see some folks approach the vista via the roads, which of course is fine and sure saved them some wear and tear on their legs.
But even by foot, the views from the end of the world are worth it!
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