Hiking my Old Stomping Grounds: Pinnacle, Pulpit Rock, Sand Spring, and Eagle's Nest

I agreed to watch my dad's dogs while he went away for vacation for a week in late April. This meant I'd be spending the week back in Pennsylvania in the area I grew up. After leaving the area in 2006, I hadn't spent too much time back home. Since I was going to be in the area, I wanted to revisit some of the hiking spots that I frequented when I lived in the area.

Pinnacle and Pulpit Rock

The first hike I wanted to tackle was at the Hamburg Reservoir. Growing up just 15 minutes from the area, this was by far the place that I hiked more than anywhere else. Hands down, the most popular destination here is the Pinnacle and Pulpit Rock. I have probably been to Pulpit Rock and the Pinnacle hundreds of times before moving out of the area. I have hiked, run, cross country skied, and mountain biked (bikes are no longer allowed on the AT portion of the trail) to the Pinnacle over the years. 

The Pinnacle, with sweeping views across the surrounding countryside, is one of the most popular destinations along the Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania. Pulpit Rock, just a couple miles from the Pinnacle, is another popular viewpoint.

I headed to the Pinnacle on Monday, April 27th with perfect weather planned. I decided to trail run. Since I was running, I decided to head to the Pinnacle first since the elevation gain is more gradual.

Crossing the AT about a 1/2 mile from the trailhead

There are a couple ways to start the hike from the trailhead. I headed up the Furnace Creek Trail. This trail climbs to the top of Blue Mountain more gradually and is more manageable when running uphill. From the trailhead, the route follows a nice dirt road used by the Borough of Hamburg to maintain the municipal water supply. The trail passes the reservoir and enters the forest on a rougher dirt road.

The reservoir

Mossy spring flowing into Furnace Creek

Once past the reservoir the Furnace Creek Trail follows close to its namesake creek. Rhododendron and mountain laurel often line the creek. After about 2.5 miles, the Furnace Creek Trail ends on the AT. 

Bluets

Unlike most of the AT, the trail here is a wide doubletrack as it makes its way toward the Pinnacle. Now on the top of Blue Mountain, the AT is pretty flat at this point. The trail finally turns back to singletrack the last half-mile or so to the Pinnacle. At this point the trail becomes more rock, living up to its "Rocksylvania" moniker, and the terrain becomes more challenging.

Furnace Creek Trail

Around four miles into the hike/run, I reached the main attraction, the Pinnacle. The Pinnacle is one of the most scenic views along the AT in PA. The view looks over a wide of farm are of farmland from Allentown to Reading. Blue Mountain stretches into the distance with the AT following its crest. 

View from the Pinnacle

Another view from the Pinnacle

Blue Mountain stretching over the farmland

I enjoyed the view from the Pinnacle for a while. I've been hiking the Pinnacle for probably 40 years. Despite a lot of development in the area the past 30 years, the view hasn't really changed. Surprisingly, the farmland below has seemed to escaped the development. 

Lucky to get a clear day

Looking across a rock at the Pinnacle

After enjoying the view, I continued on the AT toward Pulpit Rock. This two mile stretch of the AT is pretty rocky. Whether hiking or running, the trail becomes challenging. The stretches with the most rocks become nearly impossible to run. Even hiking you have to watch your footing closely. 

Passing through the rockiest section

Passing through a rocky corridor

Another particularly rough stretch near Pulpit Rock

Soon enough I reached Pulpit Rock. While the view from Pulpit Rock isn't nearly as expansive as the Pinnacle, it's still quite pretty. Blue Rocks, a rock glacier, sits in the valley below the vista. Interstate 78 can be seen as it makes its way to the Lehigh Valley among the farmland.

View back over the mountain from Pulpit Rock

Pulpit Rock view with Blue Rock below

After taking a some time to enjoy the view, I decided to take the road from Pulpit Rock. A road leads to an observatory on the top of the mountain at Pulpit Rock. I was surprised that the lower of this road was paved since the last time I was here. Before returning to the trailhead, I made one last stop at the Windsor Furnace Shelter. This was actually the first place I ever stayed on an overnight backpacking trip more than thirty years ago. 

Windsor Furnace Shelter

Sign along the AT near the shelter

There are several variations to this trip. My route totaled 8.2 miles. With the exception of maybe a 1/4 mile of the rockiest terrain, I ran rest of my loop. I have been to the Pinnacle and Pulpit Rock too many times to count and this trip was the perfect day to revisit once again. 

Sand Springs- Tom Lowe Loop and Eagle's Nest

After my trip to the Pinnacle and Pulpit Rock, I wanted to visit another spot the next day that I hiked frequently when I still lived in the area. This time I headed a few miles to the west to Shartlesville, PA. My destination this time was the Sand Spring-Tom Lowe Trail Loop. When I  hiked the loop in the past, I often made a side trip to a nearby vista called the Eagle's Nest.

The loop runs about 5 miles. Hiking to the Eagle's Nest and back on the the mapped trails stretches the hike out closer to 9 miles. Bushwhacking directly to the Eagle's Nest only adds about a half-mile or so round trip.

From the trailhead, the Sand Spring Trail begins off of a Game Land road a couple minutes from the parking lot. The Sand Spring Trail starts by following the upper reaches of Northkill Creek before veering away to follow a feeder creek.

Start of the Sand Spring Trail

Upper reaches of Northkill Creek

The scenic Sand Spring Trail is mostly fairly gentle. Rhododendrons and mountain laurels grow along stretches of the trail. The trail never veers to far away from the water. Several small cascades drop along the creek as it makes its way down the mountain.

Enjoying smooth trail

I always appreciate a tumbling mountain creek

The trail crosses the creek a few times along the way. Generally the crossing are pretty easy rock hops as long as there hasn't been any recent heavy rains. A few wildflowers were starting to pop up as well.

The first of several creek crossings

Passing through mountain laurel

Violets

As the trail makes its way up the mountain, the tread becomes rocky at times. This is just a short distance off the AT in "Rocksylvania" after all. While never steep, the trail gradually climbs its way to the top of Blue Mountain. The small cascades continue much of the way as the creek tumbles down the mountain.

As the trail climbed it became rockier

The creek tumbling over a rock

More small drops over the rocks

More rocky trail

The Sand Spring Trail gets its name from its namesake spring. The small feeder creek that the trail follows comes out of the ground at a pool with a sandy bottom. The force of the water coming out of the ground causes the sand to bubble at the bottom of the pool.

Turnoff to Sand Spring

Sand bubbling from the spring

After the spring, the Sand Spring Trail soon comes to a junction at the beginning of the Tom Lowe Trail. From here, about two miles from the trailhead, I turned onto the start of the Tom Lowe Trail. You can also continue another 100 yards to join the AT here if you like. Following the AT about a mile to the south takes you to the start of the Eagle's Nest Trail if you are looking to extend the hike and take in a view. 

I didn't hike on the AT this trip but was pretty close to it

Start of the Tom Lowe Trail

I think this area was part of a controlled burn

The Tom Lowe Trail follows a road at its beginning. The road is new since the last time I hiked here. The state built the road to access and manage previous controlled burns in the area. I could still smell the burned wood in the area at times. You could see a few charred trees as well.

Widened Tom Lowe Trail on road near old controlled burn

After a 1/4 mile or so on the Tom Lowe Trail, the route reaches its high point. Here the trail drops steeply for about a 1/2 mile. This is the steepest section of Sand Spring-Tom Lowe Loop. Near the bottom of the descent the route drops to another mountain creek. 

I wanted to visit the Eagle's Nest Vista. Rather than hike the trail to Eagle's Nest, which adds about four miles of somewhat boring trail to the loop, I usually bushwhacked to the vista from the creek. As the crow flies, it's only about 1/4 mile from the Tom Lowe Trail by the creek to the Eagle's Nest.

Looking at the map, I crossed the creek and began climbing away from the trail when I felt I was at the nearest point to the Eagle's Nest. I climbed in the general direction of the Eagle's Nest. Generally I followed the path of least resistance. Although the forest becomes rocky at times with steep sections, the bushwhack isn't too bad in the hardwood forest.

Bushwhacking on rocky terrain

Not too far into the bushwhack, I spotted a faint hard path and weathered yellow blazes. When I last hiked here, there wasn't blazes or a herd path. Although it didn't look too heavily trafficked, the direct route the Eagle's Nest was now blazed. I didn't see that there was an official trail here, so I'm not sure if this was marked by the Blue Mountain Eagle Climbing Club (the local trail maintenance group) or some individual. Either way, the blazes led right to the viewpoint at the Eagle's Nest.

Intersecting blazes of the "trail" toward Eagle's Nest

Crossing rocks near the top of Eagle's Nest

Unlike the Pinnacle or Pulpit Rock, the Eagle's Nest never really saw that many visitors. Nonetheless, the rocky perch offers a descent 180 degree view to the south. Compared to my hike the day before to the Pinnacle, the view was a little hazy. I hiked through some showers earlier on the hike after all. 

Plaque on Eagle's Nest

While the view didn't look much different than I remembered from the Pinnacle or Pulpit Rock, the view on Eagle's Nest changed a little since the last time I hiked here. For starters, the trees had grown up and slightly blocked the view. In the past 25 years since my last time here, the area around I 78 has become considerably more developed. The entire countryside visible from the vista seemed more developed than I remember. There was also a bench on the summit, which I don't remember being there before since hardly anyone visited here back then.. Even with the changes and slightly hazy conditions, the Eagle's Nest is a nice addition to the main loop.

Eagle's Nest view with South Mountain in the distance

View a little further to the east, with a plume
of smoke rising below

There seems to be more
development visible than I remember

Lichen covered rock

After taking time to enjoy the view, I followed the yellow blazes and faint trail back down the mountain toward the Tom Lowe Trail. I was curious if the trail and blazes continued all the way to the main trail. The trail did lead back to the Tom Lowe Trail with blazes the entire way and visible from the main trail. Despite the blazes and path, there aren't any signs at the junction and I never did see this path on any maps. I still don't know if it's an official trail or an unofficial path blazed by an individual.

Passing back through rocky terrain

Back on the Tom Lowe Trail, the trail follows close to the creek for the next mile or so. Several pretty cascades fall along the length of the creek in this section. At one point there is even a bench by one of the cascades.

Closeup of a small cascade

There's a bench by this spot

Closeup of the tumbling creek

One of the prettier spot on the creek

A small drop just off the trail 

The trail leaves this pretty creek after a mile or so and gains a little elevation as it climbs a small ridge. After a gaining a couple hundred feet, the trail loses all the elevation it just gained. Through the trees, a small pond is visible not too far off the trail. I have been to this pond before and made a short diversion to circle the pond. I have fished in this pond many years ago. 

Hiking along the pond

I rejoined the Tom Lowe Trail after visiting the pond. A few minutes later the trail reaches the Northkill Creek again. The trail crosses the Northkill Creek. This is actually the trickiest water crossing on the entire loop. In high water, this one could be a little tricky. I slipped on a rock and dunked my feet here.

Crossing of Northkill Creek

Once across the creek, the trail travels a thin strip of land between the road to the trailhead and the creek. Several houses are visible near the road. The Tom Lowe Trail ends at the road, maybe 100' below the parking lot at the trail head.

Mushrooms on a tree

Phlox growing along the road

The Sand Spring/Tom Lowe Loop runs about five miles. My hike including the trip to the Eagle's Nest totaled around 5.6 miles. I'm glad I decided to take this hike. While the Eagle's Nest was a little hazy and perhaps more grown up than I remember, the hike along the creeks was much better than I remember. I didn't remember the creeks tumbling so much.

It was nice to revisit some of the hiking spots where I grew up. These were some of the hikes that ignited my passion for hiking. Every hike to the Pinnacle and Pulpit Rock touches the AT to some extent. I often used the Sand Spring Trail to access the AT and the Eagle's Nest Shelter as well. Most of my hikes growing up in the area utilized the AT to some extent. These frequent visits hiking on the AT in the area were the inspiration that lead me to thru hike the AT in 1999.

If you enjoyed this post, check out and "LIKE" Tomcat's Outdoor Adventures on Facebook where I post photos more often and revisit past adventures.