By Scott A. Yeager for GANT News
If you’ve never had the pleasure of driving down Greenville Pike in central Clearfield County, you are missing out on one of the Pennsylvania Wild’s most scenic byways.
From U.S. Route 322, a most excellent road in its own right, you will pass through Luthersburg and take the fork for state Route 219, south toward Curwensville.
Along the way, you will pass many well-kept farms and quiet homes, many of which have picturesque vistas, seeing the curve of the Earth or a sunrise from Coal Hill Summit is akin to a crisp drink of cool water for one’s parched soul, but that’s what you may see on your way to an even better place.
Off of SR 219, you notice a subtle fork in the road with a small sign that beacons you to follow it to Bilger’s Rock – again, a spot in the Pennsylvania Wilds that is well worth your time.
More on that in a moment. Taking the left-hand fork, you’ll now find yourself traveling Greenville Pike. If there were a single spot in the Pennsylvania Wilds with a richer and more colorful history, you would find yourself hard-pressed to find it.
To your left, through the breaks in the hardwoods and their lush undergrowth, you’ll see a space unlike any other in North America.
Some call it a deep valley, some a gulch – but if you’ve ever seen the Grand Canyon in Arizona, you may just give way to a familiar and sublime feeling that utterly overwhelms the senses.
You will feel small here, like a black raspberry too close to a black bear’s nose. It’s healthy feeling, refreshing and exciting all at once.
Over millions of years, Anderson Creek has demonstrated that time and persistence really can transform the world around us. It has been said that no substance known is more supple and as yielding as water; yet, for transforming the hard and solid, there is nothing better.
Anderson Creek is the epitome of that logic. We could all learn a thing or two from Anderson Creek and its journey toward the West Branch of the Susquehanna River.
The creek holds beauty and the path that it has carved south-eastward from its headwaters on Rockton Mountain in the Moshannon State Forest has a rich history all its own.
At times, it is natural for people to wonder what tales a place would tell if its stones could speak; in many respects, the tale of Anderson Creek and the valley that it has sculpted does just that upon first glance.
From its headwaters, Anderson Creek drops about 275 feet. That may not seem like much until you realize that many of the hills, bluffs and mountains surrounding the creek’s path rise to about 2,000 feet.
The cliffs surrounding Anderson Creek are a mixture of sandstone, like the peaceful giants of the Bilger’s Rocks site, shale and a bit of limestone.
Having once been part of the supercontinent Pangea millions of years before humans inhabited the region, the stone cliffs and forested hills have a deep history, one whose song is murmured in the gentle waters that silently slice their way through the hills.
The Anderson Creek Valley still proves to be a hospitable place for our kind, the very nature of the place makes one feel welcome and at home.
The water is clean. The forests are seven shades of green. Wildlife abounds, everything from deer to songbirds to salamanders – this little valley has it all.
Near the creek, gazing up, you feel safe and sheltered from the rest of the world. It is a dynamic place. Your senses are full and focused at the same time.
From high on Greenville Pike or at creek level, you will be put at ease. You will feel like you are in the presence of something greater than your occupation, your mobile device or social media feed.
Perhaps this is why the Anderson Creek Valley was attractive to the region’s earliest inhabitants and has been a safe harbor for generations.
Anderson Creek, its valley and Bilger’s Rocks have provided safe passage to our Nation’s first peoples by way of the Great Shamokin Path. The valley and region sheltered self-liberated individuals of color as part of the Underground Railroad.
This little valley also served as a path for those seeking an advantage in times of conflict during the French and Indian War and the War of 1812. What a gift we have been granted by Anderson Creek and its gentle handy work.
As you travel down Greenville Pike toward Curwensville and state Route 879, you will appreciate the depths to which Anderson Creek has labored to produce one of Pennsylvania’s most interesting and hidden treasures.
It is at this point where you will encounter the confluence between Anderson Creek and the West Branch of the Susquehanna River.
Like the First Nations Peoples who were heading westward on the Great Shamokin Path from their midway respite at Chinklacamoose, modern day Clearfield, many people still enjoy Anderson Creek for kayaking, rafting, fishing and hiking its banks searching for relics left behind by those who came before them so long ago.
Regardless of the reason for your visit, you will immediately receive a warm embrace from the Anderson Creek Valley. You may not be the first to have visited this region, but a part of it will remain with you – of that, you can be certain. The waters of Anderson Creek, no pun intended, make a grand impression.