Back in 2010 before we moved to Pittsburgh, a former co-worker (Melissa) told me about Ricketts Glen State Park in central Pennsylvania. She said her family had visited this park in the past and loved one specific hiking trail…The Falls Trail. The trail is approximately a 3-mile loop and passes 21 named waterfalls ranging in size from 15 to 94 feet tall (see the map below). There are dozens (maybe more then a 100) small waterfalls along the trail as well.

She suggested I visit this park to photograph the waterfalls and she had me interested since the day she mentioned it. Well three years later, MJ and I finally worked it into our schedule. We tried to time it with the fall color change, but missed it by about a week. I think the leaves peaked about a week before our arrival, but we got to see some pretty colors.

Oneida Falls is one of the first waterfalls we came across on our four and a half hour hike. Yes it took us 4.5 hours to walk the three miles for a couple of good reasons.

It is a difficult hike with lots of climbing up and down large hills (we were in the mountains) and boulders. Plus at every waterfall, I climbed down to the riverbed to get the right composition for the photos.

I took numerous photos at different angles of every waterfall. This meant climbing over things, crossing the river, jumping from boulder to boulder, waiting on other hikers to get out of the way, etc..

We are just plain out of shape. Toward the end of our time, I was walking slower. And honestly one day after the hike, I can tell you my body is tired and sore.

I’ll admit that Melissa was right. This park and the Falls Loop hike are amazing. This fact should give you some idea about how great this location is….the park was supposed to become a U.S. National Park in the 1930s (Congress approved it), but a little thing called World War II put a stop to the transition as the U.S. needed the money for their war effort. Nothing more to say, it was outstanding and very beautiful.

I hope you enjoy the photo.

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