This is a lesser known destination that abounds
with opportunities for hiking, canoeing and boating. It is dotted
with spectacular scenic overlooks among a network of reservoirs,
especially memorable in the fall foliage season. Located between
Interstate 86 in western New York and Interstate 80 in western
Pennsylvania, the principal city in the
Allegheny National
Forest region is
Bradford, PA
(population just over 9,000). Bradford is about 80 miles south of
Buffalo, NY and 160 miles north of Pittsburgh, PA.
The principal industry of Bradford is the extraction and refining
of high-quality motor oils, and the city has the oldest
continuously operating oil refinery in the United States, dating
back to 1881. There is a small museum related to the local oil
industry, and a wooden 19th century oil derrick in
town. Additionally, Bradford is where Zippo lighters and Case
knives are made. Factory tours are available.
Augmenting
the enjoyment of its scenic beauties, the Allegheny National
Forest is remarkably uncrowded, at least on weekdays. My visit
took place on a bright, sunny and remarkably crisp August Monday
(with temperatures in the high 60s to low 70s) that was absolutely
ideal for long walks ... to take in the scenic vistas of the many
lakes and reservoirs in the area, centered on
Kinzua Dam.
Other hikers and motorists were relatively few and far between,
adding to the tranquility of the place.
Cook Forest State Park
Be sure to
visit
Cook Forest State Park, which adjoins the
Allegheny National Forest. Within Cook, the
Seneca Point Overlook
and the view from atop the nearby fire tower are especially
recommended, as well as a walk within the
Forest Cathedral
of old growth trees that were preserved from logging by
the Cook family who settled here in 1828 and set up a lumbering
business serving Pittsburgh.
Kinzua Bridge State Park
Do not leave the National
Forest without a visit to the awesome
Kinzua Bridge State
Park. This
steel railroad viaduct, built
in 1900 to replace an earlier bridge, was 2,053 feet long and 301
feet high. In 2003, a tornado knocked down 11 of the 20 towers
supporting the bridge. A refurbishment project to the surviving
portion was completed shortly before my visit, and new wooden
decking on the surviving portion allows pedestrians to stroll to
the end and take in an astonishing view from nearly the old
maximum of 301 feet up, with a plexiglass cutaway near the
farthest point out, so that non-acrophobes can gaze down.