Advice, experience wanted for Mid-PA (Duncannon/Swatara)

[Riff42]

Hey all. What should I expect from the Susquehanna river (+10-0miles) to Swatara Rt501 section? Horrible climbs, evil rocks, perfect views? What should I expect for October? Snow? I've heard that Duncannon is an awesome place to be for a stop. Thanks!

[TOMP]

Did this hike a few days back, yes there are some large rocky areas but not more than a 1-2 mile combined, there is an area called the rock maze that is fun, there are alot more small rock sections like 5-6miles on an old logging or mining roads that can be sharp, there are some but few good views, some nice camp spots, some really nice camp spots, some historic landmarks, big shelters, some caves, a friendly ridge runner, the first up out of duncannon is the steapest (dont remember any other climb being noticably hard). All in all a good section. Dont know about october.

[Wise Old Owl]

Riff - one of the best things to do is get the KML off of the ATC website and shove it into google earth and do a fly over.... I have my laptop set up for this and check out other trails prior to going.

[Riff42]

Is the KML special for the view, or just follows the trail? It would be amazing to have fly THROUGH if someone wants to video their hike!!
THanks all.

[Cookerhiker]

One of the things I like the most about this stretch is the views of the Susquehanna River once you've ascended to the ridgeline. Because of the turns & twists of the river, you actually see it from both the right and left sides of the trail. It's almost like the feeling of being on an island.

[rocketsocks]

One of the things I like the most about this stretch is the views of the Susquehanna River once you've ascended to the ridgeline. Because of the turns & twists of the river, you actually see it from both the right and left sides of the trail. It's almost like the feeling of being on an island.

and in fact there is an Island there,City Island,saw a Grateful Dead show there years ago,walking over the bridge,was very strage,a girl in our party likend it to walking out of Russia like cattle,I didn't know she even went to Russia.hehehe,and there some good small mouth fishing on the river to,collected some rocks just North of there ina little town called Sunbury,nice little Celestine crystals,rootbeer colored.

[joshuasdad]

I did Duncannon to Swatara on September 24-25th. Rolled out of the Doyle a bit before dawn. My first impression of the hike was...thousands of spiders. They were everywhere--in the bushes in front of houses, casting webs across the sidewalk on the Susquehanna bridge, and when you got up towards to the top of the ridge, it looked like something out of the Hobbit (that old cartoon movie I saw in elementary school). The reason you could see them was a heavy, heavy dew from a fog, which also meant very few views from the ridge top. I took some neat shots of being between the fog layer and the upper cloud layer, but had no real views. I thought I would never finish those first two miles up and along the ridge--not really hard, but tedious. After that, it is easy, relatively flat hiking, with a few rocks to break things up. Turns out I needed all of the daylight to finish the section to Clarks Valley Road. The next section (to Swatara) is of similar length, but was much easier (though then very wet, because of historic rains). Rocks are definitely not too bad on that trip, at least compared to Port Clinton northward.