Kings Gap Environmental Education Center

Saturday, September 1st
Sunday, September 2nd

Bigfoot Boot Camp- A Leave No Trace Workshop

For Kids, Families, and Youth Groups

 address: 500 Kings Gap Rd., Carlisle, PA 17015-9306

Time: 1:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Workshop times: 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm

Travel to A.T. Museum: 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Hike Time: 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Description: Bigfoot's been leaving no trace for years.  Have fun with the Leave No Trace™ National Travelling Team by learning from games and activities how you can leave no trace like Bigfoot.  As part of a half-day workshop sponsored by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Kings Gap State Park and Environmental Education Center, Pine Grove Furnace State Park and the Appalachian Trail Museum, participants will take part in fund and engaging workshop to learn how to enjoy the outdoors responsibly and ensure the long term health of our natural world. 

Sunday: After completing the workshop above, participants will travel to nearby Pine Grove Furnace State Park for a meet and greet with "Heroes of the A.T." at the Appalachian Trail Museum. Participants will be able to meet real life trail maintainers from local Appalachian Trail clubs, check out their equipment, and learn about ways to volunteer for the Trail. Participants will then complete boot camp with a short and easy hike on the Appalachian Trail, concluding at 6:00 pm.

Leave No Trace™ is a national program that strives to educate all those who enjoy the outdoors how to minimize their recreational impacts. Learn more about the Leave No Trace program at: www.lnt.org .

Kings Gap Environmental Education Center and Mansion:

The 2,531 acre Kings Gap Environmental Education Center features over 18 miles of hiking trails and the Cameron/Masland Mansion and garden.   The 38-room mansion was completed in 1908 using mountain stone quarried on site.   The garden which once provided vegetables to the mansion kitchen now features herb, native habitat and shade gardens along with a compost demonstration area. The center is operated by the PA Bureau of State Parks and grounds are open year-round from sunrise to sunset.

Additional information on the Kings Gap Environmental Education Center is available here.

Appalachian Trail "Sticky Buns" Hike 2012

Saturday, September 1st at 9:00am 

Second Annual Appalachian Trail Allenberry Sticky Bun Hike!

This easy 3 mile hike combines two of the favorite pastimes of most hikers – hiking and eating. From the Fisherman's Parking Lot, we’ll hike south on the AT through the fields to base of the mountain to the access trail to Gutshall Road, then back to Leidigh Road, following the AT back to the parking lot. After that, we’ll carpool to Allenberry for their FREE WORLD FAMOUS STICKY BUNS, courtesy of our friends at Allenberry.

This hike is a great opportunity to introduce your friends to the trail, including kids who are able to hike 3 miles.

Because we need a count for the sticky buns, you must sign up using the following site:

Allenberry Sticky Bun Hike

This hike was a BIG hit last year!  Sign up soon, because we may have to cut off sign-ups.

Meet at Fisherman's Parking lot (a/k/a Furnace Stack parking lot) on Bucher Hill Road next to the furnace stack in Boiling Springs.

Allenberry Resort, Inn and Playhouse
Cumberland Valley Appalachian Trail Club

Penn Trails: The Quaker Botanists in Penn's Woods Hike! @ Ironmaster’s Mansion at Pine Grove Furnace State Park

Saturday, September 1st

Penn Trails presents:

"The Quaker Botanists in Penn's Woods:

What we have learned from them and what we continue to learn from them"

Join Kim Blocher and Larry Knutson for a 90 minute talk and hike as we explore a little known aspect of our Pennsylvania history. Of the great plant explorers and botanists who searched North America in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, there were among them a disproportionate number of Quakers. Why is that? What are the plants they discovered and how have those plants been useful to us?

Participants will embark on a short hike and talk about the particular native plants discovered by men such as John Bartram. Michaux forest is a treasure trove to be explored, and you will do so in the spirit of these intrepid botanists.

Gather Saturday, September 1st at 1:00 pm at Ironmaster's Mansion in Pine Grove State Park.

Total Time: 90 Minutes

Group Size: limited to 18 people - registration is first come first serve. Register Here.

Kim Blocher is an amateur botanist and pastor of Zion United Church of Christ in Arendtsville, Larry Knutson is owner of Penn Trails, and both are members of the South Mountain Partnership.



Strawberry Hill Nature Preserve: Backyard Bee Keeping Hike

Sunday, September 2nd

Backyard Bee Keeping Hike

12:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Location: 1537 Mount Hope Road, Fairfield, PA 17320

The observation honey bee hive at Strawberry Hill has been a source of education and entertainment for the past year. Donated by Pennsylvania Backyard Beekeepers' Association and maintained by Shady Rest Apiaries, LLC, the hive is location in the nature center. The beekeepers from Shady Rest Apiaries have designated a four-part workshop to offer support and instruction for beginning backyard beekeepers. This series has been ongoing since January.

Beekeepers Jon and Kay Deardorff will be installing a working beehive at the quarry on Labor Day weekending during South Mountain Outdoors! The public is invited to participate in a hike to the quarry and to observe as the hive is installed and secured by fencing which will deter the local bears from enjoying the honey produced in the hive. Backyard beekeeping is an effort to protect our greatest pollinator.

The program will take between 2 and 2.5 hours - including the hike!
Terrain for the hike is natural surfaces of well maintained trails with a moderate uphill climb.

Families with children are welcome!

There is limited space - a capacity of only 30 people!

Register here to secure your spot!

Conococheague Institute for the Study of Cultural Heritage

Saturday, September 1st

8:00 am - Noon ; the Conococheague Institute Visitors Center, 12995 Bain road, Mercersburg, PA 17236

Conococheague Audubon Nature Walk at the Conococheague Institute

The guided Audubon Nature Walk will take place: 8:00 am - 12:00 pm

Participants are encouraged to RSVP by contacting The Conococheague Institute at pioneerhistory@innernet.net or call [717] 328-3467 - Drop-ins are also welcome.
Nature walkers should gather by 8:00 a.m. at the Welsh Barrens Visitors Center and should dress for a woodland walk - taking precautions to avoid ticks, especially.
The terrain is very easy, and the pace will be slow. Some of our trails are wheelchair and stroller accessible!

Great for families and children!

Come throughout the weekend to enjoy gardens, wetlands, woods and the historic buildings at The Conococheague Institute.

The Conococheague Institute will also be open for general site tours:
8:00 am - 4:00 pm on Saturday,
12:00 pm - 4:00 pm on Sunday

The Conococheague Institute, headquartered within a well-preserved 18th century farmstead near Welsh Run, PA, is a regional center dedicated to promoting the understanding and stewardship of the cultural and natural history of the Appalachian frontier of Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia. The Institute strives to achieve its mission through education, interpretation, research, and preservation. It operates a 30-acre historic site with park land, walking trails, wetlands, historic house museums, a research library and a gift shop. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. -5 p.m. and other times by appointment.

Caledonia State Park: The Underground Railroad

Saturday,
September 1st
10:00 am - Dusk
Location: 40 Rocky Mountain Rd, Fayetteville, PA [717] 352.2161




Join Caledonia Staet Park and the Franklin County Visitors Bureau on Saturday, September 1st to learn about the Underground Railroad history.

View the video, "Underground Railraoad Through South Mountain", and pick up the Underground Railroad Biking/Driving/Hiking tour!

Tour the historic Caledonia Ironworks blacksmith shop, with presentations on Thaddeus Stevens and the Underground Railroad by Wesley Foltz.

Bring family and friends for this great adventure, and be sure to take a

ride in a horse-drawn carriage

to add to your Caledonia State Park experience!