In This Issue: Enjoying the Snow on the Old Loggers Path Give Back to the Trails With the 2008 PA Hikes Calendar Hiking on the Web - Keystone Trail Association Hiking Tip - Sleeping Bags and Colder Weather Announcements - Hiking Organizations & Outing Clubs Deal of the Month - Guyot Designs Firefly Enjoying the Snow on the Old Loggers Path The Old Logger's Path is located in Tiadaghton State Forest, in the upper right hand corner of Lycoming County. The land use to be owned by the Central Pennsylvania Lumber Company. The trail follows many of the old logging railroad grades and makes for a very easy hike. The entire trail is a little over 27 miles with the trailhead proper being at the old ghost town of Masten. Over a year ago, Mark and I had done a 15 mile hike on this trail. At that time, we opted to hike the section of the trail found north of Pleasant Stream. Since I like to finish what I started, I suggested hiking the southern half when Jody and Chris asked about doing a hike in November. Our hike began about 2 miles north of Masten, where the trail crosses Ellenton Ridge Road. There were 5 of us doing the entire hike and we met up with Jeff about a mile from the end of our first day of hiking. The first day was to be a hike of a little over 9 miles with the remaining 3 plus miles on the second day, ending our hike along Pleasant Stream Road at the point where the trail crosses over Pleasant Stream. [LINK TO TRIP REPORT AND PHOTOS] Give Back to the Trails With the 2008 PA Hikes Calendar The 2008 PA Hikes Calendar highlights various sections of the trails in central Pennsylvania and around the state. Each month depicts a hike on some of the various trails found in the Keystone State. View scenes from the Mid State Trail, Allegheny Front Trail, Chuck Keiper Trail, Donut Hole Trail, and many others. For every calendar purchased, a donation of $5.00 will be given to the Keystone Trail Association. Enjoy the beautiful scenery that the trails of Pennsylvania have to offer and give a little something back in return. [GET YOUR CALENDAR AT THE HIKING SPOT] Hiking on the Web - Keystone Trail Association Our hike on the web this month takes us to the website of the Keystone Trail Association. The KTA is a federation of individuals and organizations dedicated to providing, preserving, protecting and promoting recreational hiking opportunities in Pennsylvania. They represent the interests and concerns of the Pennsylvania hiking community and are dedicated to coordinating the efforts of walking and hiking groups in and around Pennsylvania, developing, building, and maintaining hiking trails, including trail support facilities as well as protecting hiking trail lands through support and advocacy, as well as by acquisition when desirable and feasible. The Keystone Trail Association's website has been recently revamped and upgraded. Though they are still working through some bugs and glitches, the website still has a lot of information to offer. The online guide to major trails in Pennsylvania is a great place to visit if you're researching information for your next hike in the Keystone State. The KTA website is a great resource for Pennsylvania hikers and vistors alike. [VISIT THE KEYSTONE TRAIL ASSOCIATION'S WEBSITE] Hiking Tip - Sleeping Bags and Colder Weather With fall here and winter just around the corner, nothing can make an overnight backpacking trip less enjoyable than having the wrong sleeping bag. Most sleeping bags sold today come with a temperature raiting. You should only take the rating as a suggestion and not an absolute value. Also, only compare temperature ratings within a manufacturer’s line: a 25 degree rating for one manufacturer may be a 35 degree rating for another. Mummy style sleeping bags are the warmest style sleeping bags available because they have less air inside to heat. You can also pull the hood over your head to help warm the interior of the bag and retain your body heat. And finally, don’t forget about your sleeping pad. The warmest sleeping bag will do you no good if you don’t have an insulating barrier between you and the cold ground. During the coldest months consider using two open celled sleeping pads stacked on top of each other. Announcements - Hiking Organizations & Outing Clubs January 26, 2007 : Mid State Trail Association Winter Meeting Meeting starts at 1:00PM with a potluck dinner at 12:00 beforehand. Meeting to be held at the Bald Eagle State Forest headquarters in Laurelton, along route PA45. Do you or your hiking organization or outing club have information that you'd like to share? Planning a trip, fund raiser, or future trail maintenance? Then let the "Go Take A Hike" e-Newsletter help. Submit your announcements to webmaster@pahikes.com. We will post all announcements here each month for everyone to see. [SUBMIT YOUR ANNOUNCEMENTS TO THE WEBMASTER] Deal of the Month - Guyot Designs Firefly You know how every hiking season there's always this must have piece of hiking gear? Well THIS is the piece of must have hiking gear for this season. The Firefly by Guyot Designs converts your wide-mouth water bottle into a camp lantern. You've got to see this thing in action to truly appreciate it. Typically the Firefly retails for $21.95 but the everyday price at The Hiking Spot is $17.99. And for the Deal of the month, use coupon code FIREFLY and get an additional $2.00 off. You won't find a cheaper price anywhere on the web. Only one coupon/coupon code per order. Some coupons can only be used once. Other restrictions may apply. This exclusive Deal of the Month offer is only valid for "Go Take A Hike" e-Newsletter subscribers. [GUYOT DESIGNS FIREFLY AT THE HIKING SPOT]     www.pahikes.com www.thehikingspot.com The Hiking Spot 153 Long St. Spring Mills, PA 16875 (814) 422-8172 webmaster@pahikes.com Click on the link below to unsubscribe