Scenes in Hickory Run State Park along Shades of Death Trail, at Stametz Dam. Carbon County Pa. The area of the park was once known as the "Shades of Death", because of the unforgiving rocky, and agriculturally useless lands. Property here and throughout the Poconos was given away after the Revolutionary War, but most grantees didn't bother to try settling here. Robert Morris purchased much of it in 1793. When the Upper Division of the Lehigh Canal was completed just to the west in 1838, the log

There are 50 miles of hiking trails at Hickory Run State Park, but if you only have one day to spend in the park, these are the trails you want to do. ***Save this post for your visit to the Poconos!*** 1. Shades of Death—2 mi, out-and-back, difficult. Don’t let the name scare you off. This is a fantastic trail! We parked in the lot right off PA 534 and made our way to the other end at the Visitor Center. The kids played with the fun exhibits in the Visitor Center before heading back. It is a ro

Hiking Hickory Run Trail, in Hickory Run State Park, Carbon County Pa. A level grade separate from the old water line, and not looking like a mill race, makes its way along the Hickory Run. Was this one of the old logging railroads? The far western end of this trail was definitely a spur from the Lehigh Valley Railroad, because USGS maps from 1900 show it...but was this an extension? | Metrotrails