Comments on: Stony Valley/Rausch Gap: offroad bike camping trip (S24O)

By: Apertome

Apertome — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:32:16 +0000

Jimbo: Hmm, never saw those signs.

Regardless, yes, it’s a very interesting area indeed. Wish I got to explore it more!

By: Jimbo

Jimbo — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 04:45:01 +0000

Not to bust your stones or anything but the “no bikes allowed” signs are just to the left off of your “Heading toward the railroad siding” photo just south of the bridge. Anyhow, there are some very nice treks just to the east and west of the one you describe here. Worth checking out. Advice – carry a snakebite kit and keep your eyes open, especially east of Goldmine Road.

By: Baump

Baump — Fri, 01 May 2009 14:14:08 +0000

I’d forgotten….also a great place for wildlife. I saw two rattlesnakes on the rocks between the AT and the reservoir. My friend has seen bear while camping near the devil’s racecourse, a boulder field. The history makes it even more interesting. Can anyone imagine that whole valley and the surrounding slopes completely devoid of trees?

By: Doug

Doug — Fri, 01 May 2009 02:14:45 +0000

I was wondering when you were going to take that LHT camping?

As I read this post I kept thinking Rausch Gap Shelter sounds familiar. So I dug out my AT journals…and sure enough we stayed at Rausch Gap Shelter on June 11, 2001. The night before we had stayed at Peter Mtn Shelter. I wrote: ” Today started out with an easy stretch then about 5 miles in we had a descent to a road and 1,000 ft back up. Then it was flat.” I also wrote we were trying out a bug tent inside the shelter for the first time that we had received in our last mail drop. I remember that water trough and watching some dumb-ass thru-hiker rinsing out his dishes in it. Goo times!

Anyway, enough of my memories. Looks like you had a good time. And oh…it’s called Hiker Midnight. That’s when the sun goes down, no one knows what to do , and everyone is tired, so you just hit the sack.

By: doc

doc — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 13:12:44 +0000

I always encounter “fishing bikes” on the Dauphin County side, where guys take old mtb’s and attach bucket panniers for carrying bait and their catch; and pvc tubes for their poles. I need to photograph one. If you continue past the parking area on the Lebanon side, you come up to the resevoir – another great site.
It looks like you guys had a great trip.

By: furiousBall

furiousBall — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 20:42:33 +0000

amazing shots and what a cool trip. loved the pics of the lost bridge

By: Baump

Baump — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 20:38:51 +0000

Sounds like a great trip. Its a fantastic area for biking, hiking, and driving (get back to that in a minute). FYI, there’s a good website that describes the amazing, but disappearing, history of this little valley: http://home.comcast.net/~StAnthonyWilderness/picpage.htm. In October of each year the SGL has a day where you can drive the length of the rail trail (yeah, its driving…but was easier when we had a baby and 2 old dogs) and make lots of stops. They have tour guides at the Cold Springs Hotel site.

Keep up the great blog.