From here it flows to McMichael Creek, whose headwaters rise high on the edge of Pocono Plateau. Rain and snowmelt from the park filter down toward this little stream. The dam originally created a pond, which has grown in and become a marshy wetland, full of grasses and watercress. We stop where an old rockwall dam still holds back the water, except for a narrow outlet where the creek rushes through. The creek is an unnamed tributary of the McMichael. Framed by pines, Norway spruces, and fall’s leafless hardwoods, the land slopes away toward a view of rising hills beyond Merwine Hilltop Road, and a bubbling creek below. The trail is easy to follow, with few roots or rocks, and the steep downhill incline eases its way through multiple switchbacks. The new single-track trail veered off into the woods, past stands of white birch and other reminders of a large tree nursery that once flourished here. We took a short detour into the woods to visit a venerable old piece of farm equipment - a hay rake? - proof, as if it were needed, that this land used to be farmed. From the trailhead, we started upslope along the open field. And, last spring, a group of volunteers – including Pleasant Valley School District students – built a new network of single-track trails to challenge mountain bikers.īernie Kozen, executive director of the West End Park and Open Space Commission, met me at the parking area to give me a hiker’s-eye view of the new trail network. Wide, groomed trails lead from the parking area to a variety of meadow and woodland habitats. A flat, handicapped-accessible path of about a mile loops through mature forest, with exercise stations along the way. Peaceful views like these are only part of the appeal of the 244-acre park owned by Chestnuthill Township. A hazy late-fall sun lights up the big field at West End Regional Park. Cows dawdle by a barbed-wire fence, chewing their cud. A family farm sits across the road from the trailhead.
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