Small Waterfall

Small waterfall near the Slippery Rock Gorge Trail.

White Trillium

An example of the many Trilliums flowering along Hell's Hollow Trail in McConnells Mill. Most are white, but we did manage to spot some red, yellow and pink ones.

A Little Sun

All the rain we had made Hell's Hollow Falls all the more dramatic. McConnells Mill State Park.

Shadow Mark

Alpha Trail in McConnells Mill.

Sticks And Stones

Cleland Rock Area in McConnells Mill.

Quiet

Cleland Rock Area in McConnells Mill.

Splash

The base of a waterfall near the Alpha Trail in McConnells Mill.

Hillside

Cleland Rock Area in McConnells Mill.

Peace

Cleland Rock at McConnells Mill State Park.

Roots

Two trees near Cleland Rock in McConnells Mill.

The Return of Ryan

The first day of spring turned out to be warm and sunny. With the nice weather, the park was filled with people. My middle daughter and I did manage to find a few quiet spots, one of which was around Kildoo Falls pictured here.

A Look Upstream

It was finally warm enough for my middle daughter and I to hike along Hell's Hollow Trail on Saturday. She was preoccupied collecting walking sticks on the trip back to the car. So fun.

Melting

My middle daughter and I finally managed to hike down to Hell's Hollow Falls today. It is finally starting to warm up enough that some of the snow is melting.

Rocky Overhang

The view up on the path to Alpha Falls in McConnells Mill.

Along the Trail

Alpha Trail in McConnells Mill State Park in Pennsylvania. Sorry I have not posted in awhile; my job is starting to consume more and more of my free time.

Tree Covered Mushroom(s)

Well at least it appears that way. The tree is covered with hundreds of little fungi pictured above.

Snowed In

We received around 19 inches of snow this weekend and our driveway will finally be plowed later this afternoon. This has been the largest snow fall here in 17 years. I hope everyone is keeping warm as there have been widespread power outages in the area. We have been lucky in this regard and we wish everyone well.

The above image was taken in December when there was a few inches of snow. Hopefully sometime soon we will make it to the parks.

McConnells Mill

History
Daniel Kennedy constructed the first gristmill along Slippery Rock Creek in 1852. Several years later it was destroyed by a fire and rebuilt in 1868. In 1875 Captain Thomas McConnell purchased the mill and replaced the water wheel and grinding stones with more modern water turbines and rolling mills. According to the DCNR website, it processed corn, oats, wheat and buckwheat for local customers. Eventually it closed in 1928.

When Captain Thomas McConnell died, the mill was passed to his son James McConnell. Since James had no children at the time of his death years later, the property was given to the grandson of Captain McConnell, Thomas H. Hartman. Wishing the area to be preserved for future generations, Thomas H. Hartman transferred ownership of the mill and land to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy in either 1942 or 1946. McConnells Mill State Park was formally dedicated in October of 1957 and in May 1974 the U.S. Department of the Interior designated it a National Natural Landmark. Currently the park covers around 2546 acres and is considered one of the "Twenty Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks." The land is also designated as an Audubon Important Bird Area for its outstanding value to bird conservation.

Source and More Info:
Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Wikipedia, Great Natural Areas in Western Pennsylvania, National Registry of Natural Landmarks (PDF), Slippery Rock University - Online Rocket, Audubon Pennsylvania

Red Fishing Bobber

I did not notice when I took the photo, but the red dot near the top right corner is a fishing bobber. I bet that frustrated someone when it happened.

Dog Tracks

This image was taken last Sunday in McConnells Mill during a walk with my wife. We then headed over to Moraine and happened upon a woman who had spent the last five hours looking for her two lost St. Bernards. I hope she found them.