Frequently Asked Questions

Water sources you do not need to filter:

1. You should find a couple gallons of water in trail shelters at the Dynamite House (mile 10.7), Spook Hollow (mile 30.5), and Gravel Lick (mile 61). Those shelters are close enough to roads that we usually check them and keep water supplied throughout the hiking season, since other water sources are not close.
2. Ole Bull State Park, mile 26.5:  You walk right past a great water pump right along the trail in the park.
3. Spring house after Spook Hollow section, just before Big Spring Camp and Big Spring Road, about mile 31.
4. Cross Fork:  Can get water at Kinneys Store, Deb's Restaurant, or the restrooms at the forestry maintenance building behind the restaurant. To get to the DCNR restrooms, turn left when you get to the road in Cross Fork, go about 100 yards, and turn right into the driveway there.
5. At mile 68.7, just before you get to the Wild Boy Shelter, you cross two streams which merge into Wild Boy Run. There is a wall of rock beside the first stream.  Pure spring water runs out of the rocks.

Water from streams:  Filtering, boiling, or some kind of purification recommended.

1. Lyman Run, mile 6.8.   Get it from the second crossing, at the log bridge, not the suspension bridge.  Easier to get to at second bridge.
2. Little Lyman Run, Cross Fork Creek (2 crossings), Yochum Run, and Cherry Run -- miles 20-22.
3. Young Woman's Creek, at "Ted's Truss" bridge, just before mile 37.
4. Greenlick Run - mile 39
5. Porter Branch - mile 44
6. Elkhorn Run and two crossings of Hammersley Run -- miles 54-55
7. Gravel Lick Run and Sinnemahoning Creek - mile 61
8. Stony Run - 3 or 4 crossings, mile 65
9. Prouty Lick run -- 3 crossings in mile 72 area
10. Palmatier Hollow - mile 80

There are substantial beaver lodges and dams at the lower end of Hogback Hollow (around mile 16-17) and along Osborne Branch (mile 43).  Beaver can carry giardia.  I would suggest not getting water from Bolich Run or Osborne Branch, even though water is very accessible at those places, unless you boil that water or have a very good filtering or purification system.  There is also a big beaver lodge and dam in the Splash Dam area (mile 81), but you wouldn't use that anyway -- too hard a scramble down a big bank to get there.  

Some have drunk water from streams in our state forest without filtering or purifying it in any way, but that is against "best practices" for safety.  Everyone is responsible for his or her own decisions.  However, as you can see, there is lots of accessible water on the STS. 

Email   fd15@pa.gov     and request a Hammersley trails hiking map.  It will be sent to you free; "your tax dollars at work."    

(FD = Forest District.  The Susquehannock State Forest is FD 15.)

If you want to start looking at something sooner, google "Susquehannock State Forest Maps." Under "Hiking Trails," click on Hammersley Wild Area Hiking Trails. You can download and print the map if you want to.

The post office will hold packages for hikers as will the three businesses in town.

 In late March and into April, expect the following:   

1. Streams will be high.  Streams you could cross on rocks in other seasons will be over boot-top in early spring.
2. A lot of the trail will be WET.  Muddy.  Mucky.  
3. The forest roads will be muddy and will get deep ruts which won't be leveled out till probably May.  (That matters for day-hikers - section hikers-- but if you're doing a circuit backpack, the condition of the dirt roads won't matter to you.)

RECOMMENDATIONS:

• The later in the spring you do your hike, the more the snow has time to melt. 
• Be prepared to cope with stream crossings somehow. 
• Some people get big, heavy-duty garbage bags, and when they come to a stream, they put one over each boot and get across that way.  Stream bottoms are slippery, though, and it's hard to hold up the garbage bag and hold your hiking stick or trekking poles.  Maybe you can rig up a suspender system to hold the garbage bags for the stream crossings.  
• Alternatively -- some people just "bite the bullet" - which in this case means take off boots and socks, roll up pants, and wade it.  Takes extra time on both sides of the stream, but it can be better than soaked boots and socks for the rest of the hike.  Have a small towel handy.
• Be prepared for muddy, mucky, possibly puddly sections of trail.  If your boots aren't super-good waterproof boots, you will have wet feet even without crossing any streams.  
• There are such things as "water socks," which I have used inside my hiking boots, and they really work to keep your feet dry.  Some people put light-weight plastic bags over their socks before they put their boots on, and I have done that with success as well.  
• You can also do the best you can to waterproof your boots.  You can coat them with Shoe-goo or clear Flex-seal, for example.  It's not beautiful, but it can really make a difference in keeping feet drier.   Shoe-goo and Flex-seal create plastic coatings that are more effective than other supposed waterproofing treatments.
• By all means have several pairs of EXTRA SOCKS.  You will be glad to have clean, dry socks at the end of a day.
• The biggest streams are bridged, but in March-April there are probably a good half-dozen crossings that will be 4-8' wide and 6-8" deep, so water would pool above most boot tops. When your boots get wet from the inside, they won't be dry for the rest of your hike, and that can result in blisters and general wet-foot-all-day misery.

Chuck Dillon's guide and maps have been available at Pine Creek Outfitters. Wild Asaph in Wellsboro also sells guidebooks along with all types of camping gear.

The Susquehannock Lodge keeps guidebooks in stock, and is just down the road from the Northern Gateway on Denton Hill.

  1. Re-supply.  Well, the STS is very much a wilderness trail.  There are no general stores or Dollar Stores or convenience stores (also no gas stations) anywhere near!.  The trail stays almost exclusively in Susquehannock State Forest.  The only opportunity to purchase anything would be in Cross Fork, where you can get ice cream, drinks, and snacks at Kinneys Store, a tiny place for fishermen and folks who have camps in the area.  There's also a restaurant across the road there, and people who time it right for lunch or supper rave about the Bubba Burger and perhaps some cold beer.

      Other than that -- you pass through Ole Bull State Park.  The park office people are friendly, and I'm sure they would hold things for you to pick up at mile 26.5, but that's early in the hike (end of day 2, maybe) unless you decide to go counterclockwise instead of clockwise around the loop.

     You can send things to the post office in Cross Fork, but their hours are very limited -- maybe only open about 3 hours a day.  I could find out about the hours they are open if you are interested in that option.  Cross Fork is at mile 49, so it's a better half-way point.

2. Reservations are not needed for shelters.  Most of the time hikers see no one else on the trail.  Even if there are other hikers out there, people start at different times and probably 80-90% go clockwise, the way the guidebooks are written, so you could easily have multiple individuals and groups on the trail at the same time, but they don't run into each other unless there's the rare 20-mile-a-day man out there passing people!  

Horses are not allowed on the STS, which is a hiker-only footpath.

However, the Susquehannock State Forest has some great equestrian trails.

Request free ("your tax dollars at work") maps

Email Forest District 15:    fd15@pa.gov

Request the maps for horse trails and equestrians.   

Also request the Susquehannock State Forest map.  

All red-blazed trails can be used by horses, but not all of them are really suited for horses.  

However, if you use the trails in the Dyer Road area -- on the map specifically for equestrians -- you will find great trails for horses, and excellent camping areas with posts and rails for tying the horses when you are not riding.

They have signage and are blazed -- mostly red blazes, for "multi-use." DCNR made the cross trails available for horses or bikes, although I am not aware of any equestrians or mountain bikers ever using the EFT or WBT.  (There are yellow blazes at the ends if the cross-trail trail dead-ends on the STS, so as not to have bikes or horses end up on the STS with no road at the connecting end.) 

Every season has advantages and disadvantages.

• Spring:  
• Advantages - increasing daylight = long days, shorter nights; no bugs yet, and vegetation (briars, stinging nettles, brush) not overgrown yet. 
• Disadvantages - some creeks high from snow melt, making crossings challenging; trail sometimes wet and marshy Maintainers may not have cleared all the winter blowdowns yet. 
• Summer:  
• Advantages - long daylight hours, warmer nights - less clothing needed for night warmth 
• Disadvantages -- weather sometimes hot for backpacking.  Bugs.  Briars, brush, and nettles.  
• Fall:  
• Advantages - Ferns and grasses die down after first good frost.   Leaves beautiful.  Trail treadway probably optimal. 
• Disadvantages -  Days get shorter all the time!  Need to set up camp earlier. Fewer hiking hours, unless you hike by headlamp. 
• Winter:  
• Advantages -- You'll pretty definitely have the world all to yourself! 
• Disadvantages -  Cold.  Need lots of warm clothes, footwear, heavier sleeping bag. Loooooong hours of darkness.   Likely snow, maybe post-holing in deep stuff in the woods. Possibly icy places like descending Morgan Hollow.

   Overall, I probably like September best for backpacking, but always - "A bad day in the woods is better than the best day at the office!"

 Northern gateway, behind forestry office on Rt. 6:  Big parking lot but fourth-tenth mile access trail to the STS

Ole Bull State Park:  The trail passes right through the parking area.

Cross Fork:  Parking area by the forestry maintenance building behind old firehouse below Deb's Restaurant

- Restrooms available at all of the above.

- All are very safe.  No one has ever had a problem (with animals or vandals) that we have heard of.

There are other very fine places to park for day hikes:  Lyman Run Rd., Cherry Springs Fire Tower, Shephard Rd., the Williams Farm on East Fork Rd., Patterson Park, Sunken Branch Rd., or even the gas company installation near the McConnell Rd. STS crossing.

No permits needed ever, anytime, anywhere.  

Yep -- any time, any where, no problem.  Just be polite and remove feces from trail.  Burying it somewhere off trail is fine. 

We recommend the Susquehannock Lodge as the best place to stay.   You can google it for info.  It is on Route 6 only about two miles east of the forestry office and northern gateway to the trail.  The owners are long-time members of our trail club, and their business caters  to hikers and cross-country skiers.  They have a good plan available with breakfasts in the morning and evening meals back at the lodge after your days' hikes, if you desire.  

The majority of hikers will complete the entire circuit without seeing a single rattler. When we do get reports of snakes it is always in the southern portion of the trail, in the hotter months of the year. Rattlesnakes like to make their homes in rocky outcroppings, and are often spotted basking in sunny, open areas. Snake bites in Potter County are extremely rare, so if you do come across a rattlesnake don't panic! Just be grateful for the opportunity to observe this elusive and intriguing animal.

The Susquehannock Trail Club loves to hear from hikers who complete the whole 84 mile loop, whether its in a single thru hike or any combination of shorter hikes. All you have to do is create a written log of your adventure, with pictures if possible, and submit to the club's Circuit Hiker Committee for approval. See our Circuit Hiker Award page for more information.

Also note that the club now accepts logs in either hard-copy or PDF format!

Cell phone coverage is available in some places along the trail, but your experience will vary depending on your carrier. Verizon seems have the best coverage in Potter County. In some places the reception is quite good, such as in the area of the Northern Gateway trailhead. In more remote areas reception will be spotty. Typically, the higher elevations will provide the best chance of obtaining a signal strong enough to at least send a quick text message, but don't expect to get any signal at all down in the hollows. Many hikers find that they can make contact to the outside world at least once or twice a day.

911 operates on its own network that blankets the entire county, so emergency calls can be made from almost everywhere in the state forest.