Hickory Run State Park-Boulder Hike

Perfect spring weather, super friendly/nice guys, and a very different type of hiking from our usual events. Though some folks were caught in traffic we all were able to eventually meet up later as one big happy group. We even extend the event, and in addition to hiking the boulder field we added a hike  into the forest, which was nice to be able to spend more time with the guys. During our break between both hikes, we enjoyed a brown bag lunch. Thanks to one of our group hikers who treated us all to snacks galore (and everything rather healthy too to boot!). Great team, hope to see everyone again real soon. Lets keep the fun and adventure going.  HAPPY SPRING ALL!

The 15,990-acre Hickory Run State Park, Carbon County, lies in the western foothills of the Pocono Mountains. This large park has over 40 miles of hiking trails, three state park natural areas and miles of trout streams. Boulder Field, a striking boulder-strewn area, is a National Natural Landmark.

We will meet at the Bolder Field Parking lot at 11:30Am in Hickory Run Park. From there we will hike/climb over the boulders to the other side of the field.  On the other side there should be regular small forest trail which we can explore. Because the bolder field is rather unusual and interesting, we take our time to explore while crossing. This is not a hurried event, as we want to take it slow with caution too. Because this area is very rocky, extremely uneven (A field full of many different size boulders, and does not have an established path, attendees need to  have a good sense of balance & be a bit agile to jump and slightly climb around/over the boulders  (this is definitely not mountain climbing, but what I would call bolder jumping/hopping). As you walk over the boulders you have to be careful as to which boulders you jump from/ to. I have been there several times and never had a problem nor have I ever seen any problems, but if you have them, you may want to bring knee/elbow pads just in case, if you want. Please wear good hiking shoes with extra traction.

If it's a warm enough day, lets plan to have lunch on the other side of bolder field (everyone bring their own bagged lunch). If the weather that day is cooler however, perhaps we can head on back up to Rte 80 area to grab lunch.

Note: If you had any thought of bringing your dog (which we would hope you would ask to do so ahead of time), I am not sure that would be a good idea on this trip as they may not be able to jump from bolder to bolder safely.