Hiking: Planning seven hikes in Eastern Pennsylvania

Since arriving back on the East Coast two months ago, my hiking has been limited to the Orange and White trails of the Wissahickon Gorge, a rare gem of urban wilds that rises into the Piedmont through Philadelphia's northwestern city limits. I'm getting the itch now, though, to hazard deeper into the woods. So I'm making plans to venture farther north and experience a few of the many amazing trails of Pennsylvania's Schuylkill Highlands and the Pocono Mountains.

Beneath the canopy of green along one of Eastern PA's amazing trails

My goal is to experience the following seven hikes this summer as I continue to condition for my first ever 20-mile hike later this year:

1. Pulpit Rock and Pinnacle Vistas - Appalachian Trail

This hike will take me from the Hamburg Reservoir along a section of the Appalachian Trail which, according to what I've read online, boasts two of the best vistas along the Pennsylvania portion of America's premier long trail.

2. Neversink Mountain - City of Reading

I love urban-accessible hikes, so I'm excited about hiking this historic small mountain, wedged between downtown Reading and the Schuylkill River.

3. Camelback Mountain - Big Pocono State Park

The first time I heard about Camelback Mountain I was in the ski club at my high school in the Shenandoah Valley, on a trip to nearby Massanutten Mountain. The cool kids were excited about going to Camelback for a ski trip later that year. I learned that night that skiing was not really my forte, but now that I'm an avid hiker, I figured it's about time I check out what the fuss is all about.

4. The Falls Trail - Ricketts Glen State Park

Wow! Twenty-plus wateralls on one loop trail! I have to check this place out! Having spent the better part of two years hiking the desert mountains of Central New Mexico and Southern California, I am more than ready to experience a full-on riparian environment like this.

5. Glen Onoko Falls - Lehigh Gorge State Park

This hike is located just outside the town of Jim Thorpe, known as the "Gateway to the Poconos" and the "Switzerland of the Americas". I'd always been confused by town's name, which was renamed last century as a marketing ploy (bad move if you ask me). But now that I've learned the town's original name was actually Mauch Chunk, named "Bear Mountain" by the native Lenapi people who once called this place home, I feel much better about checking this place out.

6. Hiking French Creek State Park: Chestnut Hill-Mill Creek Loop

Beyond the Wissahickon, French Creek State Park in the Pennsylvania Highlands seems to be one of the best places to hike near Philadelphia. I'm hoping to get some friends to join me on this hike and possibly whet their appetites for longer, more strenuous trails, but unless I can make some local hiking buddies quickly it looks like I'll be doing this and the other hikes listed here all by my lonesome.

7. AT-North Trail Loop on Blue Mountain at Lehigh Gap

I had the opportunity to hike a few miles of trails here while doing trail maintenance with the Philadelphia Trail Club. What a great experience. I plan to return soon to do some real hiking soon. The best thing about this area is the exposed north face of Blue Mountain so hikers experience nearly two unbroken miles of views of the Lehigh River and valley beyond.

Roots that are deep in the forest - something we all share!

There are several other Eastern Pennsylvania hikes on my radar, but these are the most accessible for the time being - each is within just a couple hours' drive from Philadelphia, making them ideal day hikes. As I get more confident with camping, I would love to plan a backpacking trip to the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon to do the West Rim Trail. But I will have to tackle that in a future blog post when I'm ready.

Thanks for reading!

Brian Schwarz is an award-winning journalist whose career was derailed by super obesity. He fought his way back to health - losing 165 pounds in the process of his "fit-life journey". A professional communicator by trade and activator by nature, Brian's personal mission is to inspire others live their fullest lives. Follow Brian on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Hiking Update: Still working on accomplishing 20-miler

I recently relocated to Philadelphia from Albuquerque, and while the hiking offers little in comparison to the mountains of the Southwest there are still many excellent opportunities to explore. Just this week I did a five-mile hike a section of the Orange Trial in the Wissahickon Gorge, located in northwest Philly. In the morning I will return to hike the trail's entirety, which is about seven miles*. And I will be paying close attention to time as I hike the gorge tomorrow as I'm still seeking a 20-mile route to finally complete the last requirement of the Boy Scouts Hiking Merit Badge.

Training hike along Wissahickon Gorge Orange Trail, east of Lincoln Drive

Those who follow this blog may have noticed that I've already outlined a couple of options along the way for my 20-miler - one, an urban hike in Albuquerque, and the other, a wilderness hike in the San Jacinto Mountains of Southern California. Unfortunately, I did not accomplish those plans. The hike in Albuquerque didn't happen as a result of the dangerous pedestrian conditions the city has become notorious for, while the San Jacinto hike was scrapped after I did the upper portion of the trail and realized degree of difficulty would be an impediment to its safe completion, especially considering my current weight, still dangerously in the obesity zone.

I'm still researching options, but what I'm thinking I may do for the 20-mile hike is to hike from downtown Philadelphia through Fairmount Park East and into the gorge, doing a loop of the Orange and Yellow trails, then returning to Philadelphia via Fairmount Park West. I don't have an exact plan yet, but I will be posting one sometime during the next month as I continue to lose weight and train.

Over the winter I packed on 20 extra pounds, and I will need to take that weight off before considering such a long hike. In fact, my goal is to get my weight down below 260 pounds again. After losing 165 pounds a couple of years ago I made it to 255 pounds before slowly putting on weight again. Now I weigh between 280 and 290 pounds, and I have recommitted myself to achieving my goal of overcoming obesity by achieving a weight of less than 227 pounds.

Thanks for reading this blog and my two related blogs, MyFitLife2Day and HikeyHikey. Also, I welcome and invite all your comments. Either leave a comment below or Tweet me @MyFitLife2Day.

*NOTE: To reach the start of the Orange Trail for tomorrow's training hike I'll take the Broad Street Subway from South Philadelphia to Olney Transportation Center in North Philadelphia, a 30-minute ride. From Olney I will transfer to the L Bus, which heads west toward Plymouth Meeting, and I'll get off at Germantown Pike and Northwestern Avenue. The trailhead is just beyond the southeast side of the bridge that crosses over the Wissahickon Creek on Germantown Pike, east of Harpers Meadow and Dewees Rock. I'll hike the entire Orange Trail, including the old section on the east side of Lincoln Drive, which ends somewhere under the rail bridge along Ridge Avenue. At this point I'll catch the 27 bus back to the Broad Street line.