Pennsylvania: Some parks are too crowded, please go to these instead

Driven by COVID-19 and social media, Pennsylvania’s state parks, from Chester County’s Marsh Creek to waterfall standout Ricketts Glen and beyond, have become so overcrowded on weekends that officials have taken the extraordinary step of asking people to go elsewhere.

Among those are several parks in Philadelphia’s suburban counties.

“It’s been remarkable,” Cindy Adams Dunn, secretary of the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), said of the crowds. “It’s been beyond the experience that many of us have had in our careers.”

The DCNR is seeing “significant crowding,” especially on warm weekends, officials said in a news release.

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Beltzville State Park in Lehighton, Carbon County, for example, has become so overcrowded that officials have closed a number of trailheads and parking lots from sunset Fridays through Monday mornings for all motor vehicles, to prevent damage beyond what already has occurred. Officials recommend going to Tuscarora, Tobyhanna, and Gouldsboro State Parks for swimming and picnicking.

Park officials are having a hard time in some areas trying to maintain COVID-19 measures, such as social distancing. In addition, visitors park along highways in some areas with small lots or filled lots, causing potential safety issues.

The Seven Tubs recreation area in Pinchot State Forest is also among the most crowded. Officials recommend visitors instead go to Pinchot Trail, Pine Hill Vista, Pine Hill Observation Deck (overlooking the Pocono Plateau), or the Black Diamond Trail.

Visitors thinking of exploring Rock Run in Loyalsock State Forest are instead urged to consider going to the nearby 5.7-mile Cherry Ridge Trail, 7.2-mile Hawkeye Ski Trail, or 27-mile Old Loggers Path.

Dunn said she encourages people to visit state parks and forests, but suggests they explore some of the lesser known areas.

“The outdoors are safe,” Dunn said, “but you’ve got to have the masks and the social distance. When we can’t maintain those conditions, we have to encourage people to go elsewhere and find another park.”

She noted the impact of Instagram and outdoor-oriented Facebook groups, which have hundreds of thousands of members, on the park system by users sharing pictures and locations, often of already well-known places.

Dunn noted the state has added 45,000 acres over 12 years in the Poconos region, and said many of those acres go unexplored by the majority of visitors.

“We have a lot of land, a lot of trails, a lot of parks,” Dunn said. “So don’t just depend on someone else’s Instagram.”

Among state parks experiencing overcrowding:

Officials recommend finding your own alternative outdoor area from among its 121 state parks, and 2.2 million acres of forests. Or, explore local parks, other trails, water trails, or other recreational opportunities.