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To reach the
trailhead, from PA 64 in Lamar, drive south toward Tylersville on SR 2002
for 3.8 miles. There is a parking lot on the left just before the Cherry Run
bridge. We reached the trailhead at 3:00pm. The first leg of the hike
is a road walk for about 3/4 mile along SR 2002. We turned left at an
alternate parking area and passed around a vehicle gate and hiked along an
old logging road through a beautiful green tunnel of hemlocks along Bear
Run.
The climb along Bear Run was very gradual. At 2.4 km we began our many
crossings back and forth of Bear Run. There was lots of water so finding
stepping stones was a challenge! The hemlocks soon gave way to some
beautiful white pine, white oak, and red maple trees and the trail passed
several small meadows.
At 6.8km there is a large clearing that is planted for wildlife. Here we saw
a beautiful deer and several wild turkeys. We continued on a forestry road
that started our gradual descent. The hemlocks reappeared and the road swung
to the left into a gap through Bear Mountain.
At the bottom of the hill we veered away from the forestry road onto the
Cherry Run Trail. After crossing a small stream we continued on the old
logging road. Along this section you can hear Cherry Run even when it's not
visible. There are many overhanging rhododendrons along the trail. At 13.6km
there is a shack on the left which is believed to date from before this area
became a game land.
At 15.6km we turned right onto a new trail which passes behind a hunting
camp. We crossed on a footbridge over part of Cherry Run, then took a right
to find a 2nd footbridge over the rest of the run. We followed the trail
which led us back to our vehicle.
The map and hiking info for this trail calls for it to take 5 hours to
complete...we did it in 3.5 hours! A great trail!
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