The nation’s longest hiking trail is just miles from Erie, but I wonder how many Erie County residents ever have stepped foot on it.

The North Country Trail enters Pennsylvania at State Game Lands 285 in Beaver County and arcs northeast, as the crow flies, until it reaches the New York state line near Willow Bay in the Allegheny National Forest. I wrote this about the trail in 2011:

“The NCT stretches 4,600 miles — more than twice the length of the more celebrated Georgia-to-Maine Appalachian Trail — through seven states, from Lake Sakakawea in western North Dakota to Lake Champlain in New York. That includes  300 miles through Pennsylvania in an arc roughly describing the northwestern corner of the state. Step into McConnell’s Mill State Park, Moraine State Park, Cook Forest State Park or the Allegheny National Forest, among other public lands, and you’re never far from the trail.”

The Allegheny National Forest Chapter of the North Country Trail Association is particularly active in helping hikers discover and utilize the trail. If you’re in the market for an introduction to opportunities on the ANF chapter’s stretch of the NCT, visit them at the Erie Sport & Travel Expo March 1-3 at the Bayfront Convention Center.

Chapter officials Keith and Karen Klos also will give a presentation, “All about the North Country Trail,” March 1 at 4:30 p.m., March 2 at noon and March 3 at 1 p.m. Stop in and say hi to them.

Set aside three hours March 23 to join a group search for bald eagles along the Clarion River.

Pack along your binoculars and spotting scopes to the Cook Forest State Park office from 8:30-11:30 a.m. for a driving tour to eagle hotspots along the National Wild & Scenic Clarion River. The park staff says this is the prime time of the year to view bald eagles on their nests and find new nesting sites.

The carpool is likely to be long, and the hiking “aggressive” to get to better viewing areas. Hot chocolate and coffee will be available at the office.

For information, call (814) 744-8407.

The second in a series of occasional profiles of birdwatchers who are from or spend a lot of time in northwestern Pennsylvania.

Bonnie Ginader

Bonnie Ginader/Contributed photo

Family: daughter, Aimee Gevirtz, and son, Geoff Ginader. Four grandchildren, one great-granddaughter.

Lives in: Millcreek Township

College: B.S., mathematics, Grove City College

Profession: Realtor^R, Pennington Lines Real Estate.

Originally from: Erie

Favorite bird: Woodcock

Favorite places to bird in northwestern Pennsylvania: Presque Isle State Park, Erie Bluffs State Park, Siegel Marsh, Pymatuning State Park.

Rarest bird I’ve seen: Piping Plover

Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve even considered attending the annual Pymatuning Eagle Weekend this year, stop considering and start doing. Spots in the wildly popular program at Pymatuning State Park go quickly.

The events run March 23-25 at the park in Crawford County. You’ll get a lesson on the history of eagles in Pennsylvania, a raptor identification course, a morning driving tour and an afternoon of birding Saturday, and more birding Sunday morning.

Cost is $60 per person or $100 per couple. Two continental breakfasts, two lunches and transportation are included; housing is not. Cabin rental is available by contacting 1-888-PAPARKS.

Registration is required by March 16. For information, or to request a brochure, call (724) 932-3142.

Little-visited Erie Bluffs State Park in Lake City is a perfect destination Friday and Saturday for hikers and skiers.

A naturalist from Presque Isle State Park will lead a 2-mile Bluffs After Dark hike from 6-7:30 p.m. Friday. It’s for hikers age 10 and older. There’s no registration fee.

For information, call Ray Bierbower at 833-0793 or e-mail him at edbierbowe@state.pa.us.

On Saturday, strap on the skis for a guided cross country ski tour of the park from 10 a.m. to noon. Registration is required; call Emily Borcz at 838-2454 or e-mail her at eborcz@state.pa.us.

Meet at the Bluffs parking lot off Route 5 for each event.

Who doesn’t love a hike in the fall?

Join up with the Clarion County Chapter of the North Country Trail Association for a 5-mile hike Oct. 24 at 11 a.m.

The group will meet at Gravel Lick Road trail crossing about a mile south of Cook Forest State Park (GPS coordinates: N 41° 19.204 W 079° 14.703).

The hike will end at the trailhead at Highland Drive.

RSVP if possible to Devin Callihan at (814) 319-5058 or cla@northcountrytrail.org.Hikers who simply show up are welcome as well.

Back in 2006, opponents scuttled the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ plans to build a “nature inn” at Erie Bluffs State Park.

That hardly was the end of the matter for the DCNR.

The state’s first “nature inn” — that is, a $7.5 million, 18,500-square-foot, for-profit hotel on taxpayer-owned land — had its grand opening today at Bald Eagle State Park. Cost for rooms ranges from $110 to $300.

This is considered a pilot project. Sierra Club Pennsylvania indicated plans also have been discussed for an inn at Parker Dam State Park in Clearfield County. Earlier attempts to place them in S.B. Elliott State Park in Clearfield County and Prince Gallitzin State Park in Cambria County were shot down by the DCNR itself.

Pennsylvania’s state parks are held in trust for the people of the state. According to Section 27 of the state Constitution:

“The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and (a)esthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania’s public natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come. As trustee of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.”

These lands belong to residents, not to government officials. The notion that the money generated from inns and other private entities is necessary to fund the parks is a laughable, cyclical argument; once infrastructure is built, of course upkeep is needed. But the state parks and other public lands in their native (or at least second-growth) skins are the draw. Bald Eagle State Parks’ inn boasts of Blu-Ray players. How about blue sky?

I’ve stayed at aged hotels in our grand national parks. I plan to do so again. But I’d argue against any proposal to put up new buildings. Modern convenience isn’t the reason I visit national or state parks. The occasional glance around suggests other visitors aren’t in it for in-room movie rentals either.

Pay-to-play fees arrived at federal and state recreation sites over the past two decades. Pay-to-stay ought not to get the same chance in Pennsylvania’s public lands.

Pennsylvania is No. 2 in early voting for the Odwalla Plant A Tree program.

How it works, according to DCNR:

“Beginning May 25, Pennsylvania will be competing with the 49 other states in the Plant a Tree”campaign sponsored by Odwalla fruit juices. Citizens across the nation will be asked to go to the Odwalla website … and vote for their favorite state to have a tree planted. Odwalla is dedicating $200,000 in trees for this campaign. Each vote will count as a dollar, and once all $200,000 are allotted, the campaign will end. The number of votes a state gets will equal the number of dollars it receives to plant trees within state parks. Please help Pennsylvania become the top vote-getter. Log on early as votes will go fast. It costs nothing to participate and takes only a few seconds to vote for Pennsylvania.”

As of Wednesday morning, Pennsylvania’s 1,463 votes trailed on Texas, which had 1,893.