Big Pocono State Park, PA from Riday's Gate with SGL 38

ABOUT THE PARK: 

Big Pocono State Park - Pennsylvania DCNR

Note that Big Pocono State Park is closed from December through April every winter.  It is gated to traffic but you are allowed to hike in by parking further away at either Riday's Gate or the upper SGL 38 lot.  Very few people do that so where this is normally a very busy park in season when you can drive to the views, it is empty in the winter and makes for lots of solitude while hiking.

DIRECTIONS: 

GPS Coordinates 41.03595, -75.34202

Parking at Riday's Gate on Railroad Drive.  There is room for about 3 cars.

TRAIL MAP: 

Big Pocono State Park Map - Pennyslvania DCNR  (This map does not show Riday's Gate parking or the railbed going up to the Big Pocono trails.)

HIKE DISTANCE:  13 miles

Other Big Pocono State Park Hikes:

Big Pocono State Park from Riday's Gate (11/15/2010) - 9.5 miles

Big Pocono State Park from Parking at the Top when open (6/27/2016) - 3 miles

THE HIKE: 

I extended this version of the hike by continuing into neighboring State Game Lands 38 taking some trails not on any map or app.

Starting on the railbed at Riday's Gate.

Passing a second gate.

There is only about 200 ft elevation gain in the first 1.3 miles so you don't even notice it.

At this sign we continued straight on the railbed which becomes a Big Pocono State Park trail, North Trail Lower Loop.  We would be returning from the left.

The trails turns left at this intersection.  Although the railbed continues on, it is just for a short distance before running into Camelback Ski Resort private property.

At the left turn the trail begins to ascend more steeply.

Higher up we began to encounter snow.

And more snow.

As the trail skirted the Camelback ski slopes there was a good deal of snow, no doubt blown over from the ski area where they make their own snow.

Skiers

Coming out at the top where in the summer this would be a very busy place.

It was very cold and windy up here so I didn't linger for pictures - we headed into the cover of trees for as long as there was a trail.

Delaware Water Gap

Road walking out of Big Pocono State Park with no traffic.

State Forest Heliport

This is the left turn to pick up the South Trail and loop back the other way but we continued on the paved road.

Passing the gated entrance road.

A short distance ahead is the upper level parking for SGL 38 where we turned left at the far end ...

... on a gated road.

Just beyond is a powercut with views where we turned right a short distance ...

... then watched on the left for a trail that I could see on the Gaia app that I knew would lead to Wolf Swamp Run.

You can see a mountain bike log crossing a short distance in on that trail.

Looking back to the power cut where we entered the unmarked mountain bike trail.  I even had some mountain bike tracks to follow.

It's a very pretty trail that is easy to follow and in a little under 1 mile descends to ...

... Wolf Swamp Run.  We had made it to this point from the other side when we hiked SGL 38 last June but were unable to cross because the water was raging and the rocks were slimy.  I knew I would not be able to cross this time either, especially with ice, so I had already been on the lookout to see if there was another trail to be able to make a loop (there was nothing on the app) and indeed, I had seen such a trail.

We backtracked a little and turned right on the trail I had seen.  It ascends a bit higher over Wolf Swamp Run and eventually runs into a trail on the app where we turned left.  This trail was exactly what I had hoped I would find and I vaguely remembered it from many years ago when someone had shown me this way to Wolf Swamp Run coming from the opposite direction.

The trail climbs steeply before ...

... meeting up with a gravel road to the cell towers where we turned left.

The gravel road isn't much fun so when I spotted in inviting looking trail off to the left that was not on the app, I decided to take it.

It turned out to be a gorgeous trail that came out at the same place the gravel road would have taken us.

Meeting back up with the gravel road just before ...

... the power cut where we had started this look to the left after coming in from the parking lot on the right.  But now ...

... we turned right into the power cut going down a dip and back up.

Almost at the top of the rise, left on a grassy path.

This eventually leads to the South Trail back at Big Pocono State Park without any road walking.

Passing by the Scout Trail.

At this intersection we would be heading straight to return via the South Trail but first a left on the Indian Trail.

Right at the bench.

It becomes rockier at the tip of the mountain.

A view of Great Wolf Lodge.

View of the Delaware Water Gap.

There is a bit of a rock scramble on the way back.

Oh no, do you see it down there, completely out of my reach?

Ugh

It would not be a hike in Pennsylvania without a rocky section.

Finishing the Indian Trail loop, turning left on the South Trail.

This trail descends steeply at times.

Continuing right on the North Trail Lower Loop.

I suppose this counts as Balloon #3 of the year.

Now meeting back up with the railbed and turning right to retrace where the North Trail Lower Loop turns left.