The best views come after the hardest climb.

We set out for an adventure to Bushkill Falls, Pennsylvania for a day of hiking, climbing and photography.  Dubbed “The Niagara of Pennsylvania”, we wanted to see the waterfalls for ourselves.  Little did I know, on this trip, there would be a third person joining us.  I really wonder if my husband knew that Enrico would be joining us that beautiful, warm Autumn day.

As we began the ride to the falls, we stopped along the way for breakfast.  I am not one for long car rides so this was a welcomed break.   After breakfast we continued on our ride to Pennsylvania.  The ride took approximately three hours start to finish and by the time we arrived, we both were quite anxious to get out of the car, well I think it was actually the three of us who were anxious to get out of the car.

We gathered our equipment, Brian grabbed his backpack and I got my photography gear together.   We went through the visitors center, our hands were stamped (for re-entry if we so desired) and off we went.  After looking over the map of the different trails, Brian, as I knew he would, thought all of the trails would make for a wonderful day.  I spoke up, not happy about climbing all of the trails, but eventually gave in.  As we began the walk on the first trail, the scenery was quiet pretty, not many fall colors yet, but beautiful anyway.  This is when I voiced my opinion as to possibly not climbing all three trails (again), as I began my argument for hiking only one, Brian began his argument for why we should hike all three trails.  I again, began my argument for less trails (a married thing, I guess), only to discover that Enrico was on the hike with us.   Who is Enrico, I asked, he very firmly said, I am Enrico and I really think we should hike all three trials.  “Who is Enrico?” I again asked, well me of course, was the reply coming from my husband, whose name is not Enrico.  For whatever reason, Brian decided he needed an alias that day while hiking.  From then on in, every time I would sigh or complain that I was ready to head back, Enrico would chime in stating “this is so beautiful, we need to go this way to see the rest of the waterfalls.”  No matter what I said, Brian’s reply would be “Enrico doesn’t like it that way, or Enrico would prefer to do this.  As I write this, I’m still not really sure why Enrico was on the hike that day, but it sure did make for a fun day and some very funny conversations!

The falls were really quite beautiful, the sound of the water was loud, amazing and soothing all at the same time.  Time seemed to stand still for a brief moment as the three of us stood in awe of the sheer amount of water and the height from which we were looking either up or down at the falls.

I am always excited when I come across a Cairn.  I don’t know why I am so fascinated by these stacks of stones.  I first came across them in Acadia National Park in Maine.  Every since then I look for them everywhere we go and it’s an absolute must to photograph them.  A side note, if you have not been to Acadia National Park and/or Maine, it is definite bucket list item.  It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to.  From the scenery to the people to the restaurants, it is a fabulous vacation.

A collage of some of the beautiful area we covered in our 4 hours of walking, climbing and taking in all the sights and sounds.  It was quite amazing how the steps wound through the woods, some were quite steep but all were extremely safe.  And I couldn’t leave out a photo of Enrico a/k/a Brian.

Well, today’s blog was a bit longer than my usual blog, but I really wanted to share all of the beauty we experienced at Bushkill Falls.  If you are on the East coast and able to make a trip to the Pocono Mountains, I highly recommend you take the time to visit the falls.  You won’t be disappointed.

Thanks for stopping in and sharing in my life adventures and views.  See you all next week.