Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway Hike Route Map

The Route...

Ocqueoc Falls Scenic Site Entrance

Two feet of snow on the ground in early December...this is going to be awesome!

Ocqueoc Falls Trailhead

Thankfully someone plowed out the parking area...

Ocqueoc Falls Trailhead

The trailhead...

Ocqueoc Falls Trailhead

My intention was to do all three loops but the effort of breaking trail would limit me to the bottom two...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Starting out...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

A heavy blanket of snow straining a White Pine...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

My first glimpse of the Ocqueoc River...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Another glimpse of the Ocqueoc through the trees...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

For the first bit the trail followed the river quite closely...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The not-quite-frozen river made me hopeful for some decent waterfall shots later...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Another pretty overlook of the Ocqueoc...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Mountain Ash berrise clinging to life...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

A snow covered bench with a view...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

This would be the view...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Continuing on, the trail made a brief foray away from the river and into the woods...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

A young pine having a rough time with the heavy snow...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The trail as it passes through what appears to be an old orchard...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Balsam Fir...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The thick canopy of the Balsam Fir offers quite a good amount of shelter...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The snow-covered forest was stunning...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Only a tad over a mile in and breaking trail was already wearing on me...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

More Balsam branches...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

A small rise gives a nice view behind me...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Marker 5 means I'm 1.5 miles in...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The snow-covered pines literally walled me in at times...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

...and the snow continued to be quite deep...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

It turned out the gate was just keeping out anyone not on two legs...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

More amazing trail side snow sculptures...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

I couldn't even tell what kind of tree this was! Amazing...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Slow down...bridge ahead!

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Couldn't go off trail if I wanted to...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The rather modern-looking bridge over the Little Ocqueoc River...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

This spot along the Little Ocqueoc was serene...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The trail ahead simply looked tiring, so I decided to save the far loop for another day...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

This spot along the Little Ocqueoc was so inviting I decided it would be a good spot for a break...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

This is my Balsam cave...get your own!

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

This nice bit of shelter under a small Balsam allowed me to to perform a bit of quick maintenance on my equipment...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

OK, back on the trail...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Heading bak the loop climbed a small ridge into a Red Pine plantation...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The views from atop the ridge were nice but a bit limited...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Seriously, does there look like there's a trail in this direction?

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

The unending rows of Red Pine plantations can cause you to loose the trail quite easily...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Snow grenades, just waiting to drop on some unsuspecting hiker...

Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway

Its not a matter of IF your gonna get snow dumped on you, but WHEN...