The Beauty Around Us

Friday Afternoon Drive: Allegany State Park

By Linda G. on April 17, 2016

Bob and I went for a drive Friday afternoon.  We drove to Allegany State Park via Bradford, PA.  Our first stop was at Willow Dale Duck Pond.  Our second stop was at Marilla Reservoir.

From Marilla Reservoir we drove into Bradford, stopping at Country Fair. We went to the bathroom and picked up a couple snacks and water to drink. From Bradford we drove to Allegany State Park, entering the park via Interstate Parkway to ASP Route 2. We followed ASP 2 to France Brook Road.  The unpaved France Book Road runs from ASP Route 2, about 5 miles south of Red House Lake, to ASP Route 1 near Bay State Road.

One view from France Brook Road

We turned right onto ASP Route 1 and stopped at the Program Site 62 sign for Bridal Falls.  It’s a short (~.25 mile) hike to Bridal Falls from the roadside parking area.

Bridal Falls

 

Leaving Bridal Falls, we continued our drive on ASP Route 1 to Red House Lake.  We passed by the Tudor-style Red House Administration Building and parked alongside the lake near the arched bridge.  The bridge crosses over the Red House Lake Dam.  We hiked on a trail that went around the spillway.  It was our first time on this trail.

Red House Brook

We discovered that there were 30-meter and 50-meter ski jumps at Allegany State Park.
We passed by the ski jump on our way around the spillway.
I didn’t realize it was a ski jump at the time.
I’ll be sure to take a picture next time we are in the area!

We climbed back up to ASP Route 1 from the spillway area.  Part way across the arched bridge are steps that lead down to the creek bed.  We walked a short distance down the steps to an overlook of the Red House Lake dam.

Red House Lake dam

Red House Lake

This was our last stop on our Friday afternoon drive.  From Allegany State Park we drove back home.  It was a beautiful afternoon for a drive.