April 22-23, 2026.
I was excited to visit Hickory Run State Park because we’d planned to spend a couple days camping there with my dad. Plus, we’d already visited some really nice Pennsylvania state parks so I had high hopes for this one.
By the time we pulled up to camp on the evening of the 21st, my dad and his partner Cynthia had dinner ready on the grill. We feasted on roast chicken and veggies, then made s’mores. I learned at that moment that my dad had NEVER eaten s’mores before, which felt impossible. I guess we toasted marshmallows a lot when we were kids but stopped there. I was happy to initiate my father into this camping tradition. With that, we looked at the map and made a plan for the following day.
Boulder Field to the Visitor Center
My dad and I got a ride to the boulder field and planned to walk back to camp from there over what I estimated to be about 8 miles of trail (it ended up being closer to 10). It was gray and gloomy, not a perfect day for a walk. But the point was to spend time outdoors with my dad and we’d deal with the weather. At least it wasn’t raining. But this drab backdrop made it even easier to see what little color was out there, namely eastern newts!
I spotted one on the trail and just about lost my mind. It was so tiny and SO orange! I took a bunch of pictures of this little guy and was excited to try and paint it later. We kept walking. Ooh, another one! And…another one. For the next mile of trail, we dodged newts left and right. I understood the value of the orange color; had they been brown I probably would have squished a few.
Later I learned a bit more about the eastern newt, a fascinating animal. After hatching from a gelatinous blob of underwater eggs, it lives the first part of its life as an aquatic larva. For 2 to 5 months, it swims around trying not to get eaten by predators. It has gills, so it is able to breathe underwater. If it survives this stage, it leaves the water as a terrestrial red eft. This is the phase we observed. The eft exchanges its gills for lungs and now thrives on land as an air-breather. It lives on land for 2-3 years. Next, it returns to the water for its adulthood. Its color changes to a more camouflaged olive green and it spends most of its time in the water or underneath logs and rocks. Scientists know that some individuals don’t strictly follow these rules, but we still have much to learn about the lifestyle of this mysterious creature.
On with the walk. The area had gotten a lot of rain recently, so parts of the trail were so flooded that we had to take our socks and shoes off to continue. The rocks underneath were slippery, so we slowly plodded along the underwater sections. I guess we were adopting the newt’s strategy of flexibly existing on land or water.
Recent rain also produced great waterfall viewing opportunities. When we got back to the main area of the park, we stopped to enjoy several small cascades. We knew we were getting close when there were people on the trail all of a sudden, a big shift from the majority of our walk.
When we reached the visitor center, we stopped inside. The building looked to be brand new, with many vibrant, interactive and educational exhibits. I really enjoyed learning more about the park we’d just walked through.
Cynthia picked up my dad here and I hiked back to the campground. Sitting by the campfire later, I painted the little newt we saw and planned another quick outing for the next day.
Hawk Falls
We had time for one more hike and we decided to visit Hawk Falls. The trailhead is just a 5 minute drive up the road from the visitor center. Here, we took a 1.2 mile round-trip hike to see a very pretty waterfall tucked in the trees below the highway. Cynthia set up her camera here and my dad and I explored a bit of the Orchard Trail nearby. The sun shone through the leafless trees and I pictured it as it would look a month from now, full of wildflowers and greenery. I was so ready for that time of year, but happy for the opportunity to be outside no matter what. One advantage of the trees being bare is that it’s easier to see the birds flitting around. Besides, the anticipation is part of the joy of being outdoors!
There is so much more to do at this delightful state park. Winter offers cross country skiers a network of trails to explore. Sand Spring Lake is a place for swimming in the summer and ice skating in the winter. There’s disc golf, a playground, a boat launch. I can only imagine the influx of crowds once school’s out. So, I was grateful for our cloudy and quiet day.
I’ve been impressed with the state park systems in most of the states we’ve visited so far, and this is no exception. They offer local alternatives to faraway National Parks for most families, and are often favorite stops for us, who currently have no home base.
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