Dirt Farming: NY/PA style

Figured I'd start a new report for daily rides since I usually pack a camera and it's nice to have a place to post the pics. This will be updated as I go and hopefully highlight some good dirt roads in the area and as my experience in the dual sport world grows maybe even some more technical trails. For now I'm in a search for good seasonal roads and until today it's been difficult to find what I'm looking for. I hadn't planned on riding today. Drove to work since I have to pick up my kids later but it was sunny this morning, a perfect fall day. I left work at noon and went home to get the bike.
I live in NY state but the PA border is just down the road. Decided to hit PA and see what I could find. These shots are all taken around the Little Meadows area somewhere. I found all sorts of good roads out there.

I guess you've all run into this. No problem, there were better places to go.



Places like this...





with cool old things...



and lot's of wild life! :eek1 This thing was the size of a football and active. I shut the bike off so they wouldn't try to mate with it.



I found Jesus out there. He was in someones yard, they had a bench placed in front of him and I suppose they sit there and discuss the worlds problems with him...



Some cool stones in a graveyard...









Lot's of flooding around here lately. Finding closed or washed out bridges is easy. Finding your way around them is fun





more good dirt...





and wild life. I hate these things...



Home, Sweet, Home



just needs a mattress and a little paint...



the creek is encroaching in the property. Lot's of creeks around here are eroding badly and finding new paths...



I think this might have been a store at one time



That's today's look at Dirt Farming in PA. Stay tuned for more.

Will be looking forward to photos from that same ride in a week or two when the leaves hit their peak of autumn color.

Here's a few pics from a couple of weeks ago taken in the Poconos. I'm riding down that way a lot lately and if anyone knows the good places down there chime in please.





One more thing...I'm not riding alone, that would be dangerous for a NOOB like me. No way, I have a co-pilot at all times. His name is Bob. Meet Bob...

A few more from todays ride. No descriptions since I've got to go pick up my kids. Just pics...




Puppy or cow?????



Maybe...maybe not... (wishful thinking?)

Old cemeteries are so cool.

They are. I spent a lot of time there today and only one car went by/

I grew up near there. Great to see pics!

In Little Meadows or in this area? Give me coordinates and I'll stick a pic of your house on here if you want. It's a pretty area but on the PA side of the border the gasholes are running water trucks everywhere for the drill sites and the roads are getting to the point where they aren't much fun to ride anymore. I only saw one area being drilled yesterday but I'll head over towards Montrose next week and post some pics of the trucks and drill sites. Good for the economy here but bad for riding and lots of other things.

I like seeing local (to me) areas on RR's here. No shortage of dirt roads to explore.

Sweet pics Ride, if you make to central PA let me know, will show you around the area but looks just like it does in these pics.

Can't go wrong with most of PA. Central and western PA are beautiful areas, love riding out that way. I'll be focused on this area and the Pocono area mostly since the evening are getting shorter now. Next weekend I'll pick up a map that is more detailed showing dirt roads in the Poconos and see what I can find down that way. I don't know that area very well yet so it's been hit or miss so far finding places to ride the DR. I'm sure there's plenty of good dirt in the Delaware Water Gap area so I'll most likely head in that direction.


A few more Pocono pics.
Somewhere in the Delaware State Forest area...





On Rt 715 in Henryville, notice that small pile of bones in the foreground....



Any ideas what it was before it became a pile of bones?

Had a nice sunny day here today after almost a week of clouds and rain. Headed back out towards the Little Meadows area after work to see what else I could find. I found more good dirt roads and ended up way east of where I thought I was. Not sure how I got that far without crossing a major road, it's really not possible but I did and I found more of what I've been looking for. Didn't get many pics because the sun was low and blinding me half of the time.

It's that time of year, time for fake leaves and decorative veggies...



anyone looking for a sweet Airstream? No price listed but I'll go back and get the number if you want, if I can find it again that is...



it even comes with a HD sticker!



I could probably get the seller to throw in these sweet farmer action figures, they were right next to the trailer.



Somewhere east of Little Meadows near Laurel Lake. Still not sure how I ended up there...



trying to find my way home before dark...



This weekend I'm going on a hunt for fire towers. Hope to have a few good pics from one or two. We'll also be making a trip to Boulder Field at Hickory Run SP. Last time we were there we weren't able to walk across the "field" due to back pain. Here's a pic from the last visit.



Stay tuned.

A little background on my riding experience while I have time to write. I've had my license since I turned 16 but never owned a bike until 4 years ago. I would borrow bikes when I was younger and go to the showrooms every year and look but never buy. Once I had kids the thought never crossed my mind, much, and I once tried to have the mc part removed from my license but they were going to charge me to do that so I kept it intact. When I did start riding I started with a Ninja 500 and loved that bike. Great starter but I took my buddy's VFR out for a spin and got rid of the Ninja shortly after buying an 00 Triumph Sprint. That was followed by an 06 Sprint which got totaled last summer with a few broken ribs, etc., and I replaced that with an 07 Tiger which I still have and love. I've loved all those bikes and the DR has won a special place in my heart. My first real trip was tiny but being my first felt like something monumental. Just a 3 hour trip out to the PA Grand Canyon staying over night in a motel. I was hooked after that. When I picked up the 00 Sprint I took a 3 day ride around the ADK mountains. Last year I bought camping gear and did a lot of long weekend trips and one week long trip around NE and a good share of ME. This summer I had a 3 week ride out west on the Tiger and that was the best. You all know how it goes, the more you go the longer you want to stay out there. I'm no different. I've been hooked on the amazing ride reports here and that's really what's inspired me to travel more. Hopefully I'll be able to make longer and farther trips in the future but right now I'm exploring the local dirt roads and absolutely loving it. Sometimes the stuff right under your nose is the best if you know how and where to find it. The DR allows me to look deeper and learn new skills in the process. The DR rocks but the Tiger isn't going anywhere, it's just too good of a bike to let go.
Tomorrow is a Tiger day in search of fire towers. It should handle the task fine. I'll be breaking in a special woman as a new passenger and she will be more comfortable on the Tiger, I want her to be comfortable on her first real ride.

Its a lamb - the inscription says Children of John J & Elizabeth J Davis.

Nice pictures

the best part of my youth was hereabouts as well, binghampton to elmira in the north ,all of bradford and tioga counties south of the border . You could at that time ride all day on dirt roads only crossing pavement 2 or 3 times a day.
Ed

I grew up in Athens. You're right about all the dirt roads back then. We'd try to get lost in my buddies truck staying on dirt only and we always ended up in Rome it seems. What town are you from?

Its a lamb - the inscription says Children of John J & Elizabeth J Davis.

Thanks Gregster. Duh, lamb! How the hell did I miss that? I can be a bit dim at times.

Left work early today and headed out in search of fire towers. 0 for 2 on the fire towers I'm afraid. I followed the map I posted and tried Elk Mt. first. The map lead me to a trail that looked promising so I lugged my sorry ass up this wicked steep rutted trail. No way I could have ridden the DR up that trail and I was riding the Tiger so didn't even think about it. Made it to the top and I was at the top of the chair lifts! The map shows the tower farther to the east. Couldn't see any towers around so that one was a bust, Same for the Snow Hill Rd site in the Poconos. This trail was gated so I walked but could have ridden the DR on it. No fire tower there either, damn. I'm sure I was at the right location there but it didn't even seem high enough to warrant a tower. Maybe that map isn't very accurate. I'll keep searching.
Here's a link to that map source.
http://itouchmap.com/?f=tower&s=PA


A few pics from today. It was gorgeous out so not finding any towers wasn't that bad really. Nice riding and beautiful temps in the high 60's.

On a detour caused by a washed out bridge. Glad I had to go that way...



HAPPY HAY!



No tower but there was one flower, just one...



hardy tree...

The Happy Hay is just a few miles from my compound. If the waterfall pic was taken on SR 2036 then that's even closer.

I think it was actually. I was trying to take another road a mile or so farther south but the bridge was washed out. Do you know anything about a fire tower at Elk?

Todays ride to Boulder Field at Hickory Run SP. My girlfriends first ride! She did great.

Locked and loaded...



even had a chance to ride dirt roads on the Tiger. She's doing good so far...



Boulder Field. I'm sure this hole is man made, still cool...



an oasis in the harsh terrain...





aaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....