Raystown Lake

If you live in Central PA and you’re not frequenting Raystown, you’re missing one of our biggest outdoor playgrounds. In July, what was originally planned as a 3-day family camping get-a-way, was rescheduled as a 7-day Funemployment respite from job hunting when I lost my job. Eventually, however, it became a 5-day new job celebration when I accepted a new job offer in State College. And although you might think that Raystown is only a place for folks with big Bayliners and the cash to put gas in them, there’s plenty of opportunity for the more athletically inclined to enjoy more human-powered pastimes: just these few days would be a virtual smorgasboard of camping, boating, water skiing, tubing, fishing, mountain biking, trail running, swimming, kayaking, and cliff jumping. Now where else can you do all of this in a place where booze is legal (but not easy to get)? Let’s go over this in order:

Trail Running: I chose the 1000 steps. Excellent choice, even if you’re walking, and you’ve only got an hour or two. Otherwise, the mountain biking trails below would be good runs.

Fishing: Apparently this very deep, very long lake has some very big fish and one monster. I saw neither. Never have. I did enjoy some cool, calm evenings chilling with friends and snagging a few rock bass and sunfish while watching the sun set and listening to very bad radio DJs suggesting that I have a “Hoppy Day” and referencing “Captain Kermit the Weather Hermit’s” forecast for “heavy Frog in low-lying areas.” Ugh.

Drinking: Buy your booze and fill your cooler in Huntingdon. I suggest Miller Chill or Bud Light Lemon for hot July days when activities that might require a bit of hydration are on the agenda. Save the Saranac for the late night campfires. Save the whiskey for more discreet occasions.

Camping: Unless you’re boating, you’re left with any of the campgrounds in Seven Points, or Susquehannock. Seven Point’s are comically over engineered (well, that’s what you get when the Army Corps of Engineers is running things) but generally pretty nice and convenient but the quality of the sites vary. They have playgrounds for the kids, electricity, OK restrooms, most have showers, and a lot of giant RVs with satellite dishes. Susquehannock is the primitive, no electricity campground and although I’ve never stayed there I want to because it offers the greatest opportunity for easy recreation and zero RVs. However, I can honestly say that I’ve never seen so many extremely large tents pitched on such crazily tilted – and contoured – rocky ground. The real draw of Susquehannock is that the cliff diving and rope swinging and mountain biking and the large kayak-friendly-no-wake-zone bay and islands are steps (or strokes) away. That and zero RVs. You can swim to the cliffs, or float over on your air matress if you prefer… like the fine young ladies we met from Maryland.

Mountain Biking: Years ago, I brought my bike and had to content myself with Old Logger’s Path. Old Logger’s Path is now no-bikes (and may have been at the time, too, for all I know). But in it’s place is the fantastic new purpose-built mountain biking paths put in with Friends of Raystown Lake. The Allegripis Trail System. These trails are super fun. The western side was partially closed for logging while I was there and it obviously hasn’t seen the traffic that the main (eastern) trails have. The logging kind of ruined the atmosphere and solitude of my solo rides, too. Which shouldn’t be a problem if you’re there on the weekend. But, it’s the eastern trails that will bring me back. The first “bumps” section I came to on Grippis Trail was so enjoyable, I kept turning around riding it again and again, a little faster each time. Seven times to be exact, then I stopped and took this picture. Super Fun. I figured I’d better get going and was very happy to find two or three more “bumps” signs, and even a vista with the fog (not "Frog"!) rising out of the valleys and the haze softening the long ridges in the distance. All by myself on a summer Monday morning. Fantastic.

Tubing: Tubing is either easy and boring or almost terrifying and dangerous. This depends entirely on who’s driving. Beagle was driving, so it tended towards dangerous. It looks mindless and pointless, but when you’re skimming along about a foot off the water outside the wake with water spraying up in your face and big waves from a speeding cigarette boat approaching, you’re glad you’re wearing a life jacket and that you brought your ibuprofen. Too much fun.

Cliff Jumping: The most popular cliffs around Seven Points – and the only ones I know about – are on the little island just off the western shore of Susquehannock campground. As usual, they don’t look like much until you stand at the top and look down. I wish I could say that I pulled graceful swan dives and pike position gainers, but no, I only jump off the high ones. I’ll leave the fancy stuff to the drunks and those with more body control and/or less sense. That's Beagle taking the leap of the high one in the pic.

Kayaking: For the first time this year I had a kayak to enjoy. On a weekend, in the middle of the day, and in the middle of the channel, you might feel like a squirrel crossing the freeway. The rest of the time, especially when the lake calms down in the evening and the sun is setting, that’s a great time to be bobbing around in a cove or bay, feet dangling in the water… there’s no one else around… kicked back in your quiet little kayak sipping whiskey and soaking up the solitude. It's like a whole different lake.

Water-Skiing: We didn’t get around to this until the last day. Every year I spend about 10 minutes water skiing. This is broken up into 2 or 3 short sessions of two or three minutes. Each ends with me trying to jump the wake and eating it hard on the landing. Usually I end up hurt in some fashion. Not this year. No injuries. Which was a good way to end a great little vacation at Raystown Lake.