We parked at a water treatment plant and walked about half a mile up a gravel road to the trail. After crossing a small bridge over Furnace Creek, we stayed to the right to stay on the AT. The first mile or so was easy going with little elevation gain. There are a few spur trails and there were quite a few people on the trail. The woods were positively alive, though, with chipmunks scattering in every direction and the wildly loud song of the wood frogs ringing out, much to my delight. For the last quarter-mile or so before the Pulpit Rock overlook, the trail quickly gained elevation and required a great deal of rock scrambling.
We sat at the rocky overlook to take in the views of the Lehigh Valley and its many ridges and tried to identify the other mountains. Hawks were enjoying the gorgeous day just as much; we saw dozens circling between the ridges. It's always in situations like these that I wish I had a better camera. I tried to get some good photos of the hawks, but my camera just doesn't do them justice.After leaving Pulpit Rock, we came upon an observatory with a sign for the Lehigh Valley Amateur Astronomical Society, which excited me--I've always been fascinated with the night sky and I can't imagine a better weekend than an evening hike followed by stargazing with real equipment and people who know what they're talking about. Add it to my never-ending list of things to check out.
The next mile or so of the trail was more rock hopping and often stopping at every blaze to seek the next. There were far fewer people on this section of the trail and we enjoyed the slightly more challenging terrain to reach the short spur trail off of the AT to reach the Pinnacle. You certainly can't miss the Pinnacle with the enormous rock cairn marking your arrival, and at the overlook, the rocks jut out to allow panoramic views of the valley--absolutely gorgeous. I was shocked and disappointed at the amount of trash left behind by previous hikers, and we packed what I could to carry out after taking in the views.
The Loop continues on the AT for another 1.82 miles on an old woods road before meeting up with a blue-blazed trail that would lead back to the trailhead where we started. We came across a few swampy bogs where dozens of wood frogs sang loudly and incessantly--I loved it! Much of the remainder of the loop follows along Furnace Creek and is all easy terrain. The trail passes by the Hamburg Reservoir before leading back to the road that takes you to the parking area.
Distance: 8.7 miles
All-in-all: Enjoyable loop with some fantastic vistas; mostly easy terrain with a few areas of more moderate climbing.
Links: Map
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