A brief sampling of the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania

Once inside the park, I stopped at four rustic overlooks that provided different views of an approximately one-mile long section of the canyon. When compared to its two cousins out west, the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania is deep, green, and compact, while the others are more expansive and rich in red, gold and yellow earth colors.

However, I'm sure the colors throughout this unique gorge are especially stunning in the autumn when the thick cover of hardwood trees turns beautiful shades of yellow, orange, red and purple -- and pockets of pine trees continue to add swatches of green.

The best way to experience the canyon is to take advantage of the many hiking trails in both state parks and the surrounding Tioga State Forest. Hikers can view rock formations and waterfalls up close, and enter the habitat of wildlife including eagles, osprey, coyotes, deer, wild turkeys, herons, river otters and many others.

Located at the bottom of the canyon, the 42-mile long Pine Creek Trail cuts through both Leonard Harrison and Colton Point state parks. For more than 100 years before becoming a multi-use pathway, this trail contained a busy railroad that transported timber to sawmills in Pennsylvania, passengers to neighboring cities and coal to New York.

In 1988, the last train passed through the canyon and the former track-bed took on a new life as part of the state's extensive rail-trail network.

Unfortunately, during my first trip to the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania, I did not have time to hike along any of the trails or even sample the views from the east rim in Harrison State Park.

I'm going to set my sights on returning in the fall so I can do both when the leaves are changing. In addition, I'm going to take another ride on some of the twisty back roads that I found when heading home from the canyon.

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