Mountain biker catches stellar views at World’s End State Park

A tough mountain bike ride brought me to this lush view of the Loyalsock Canyon from 1,750 feet

Tucked away in the wilds of central Pennsylvania is the Loyalsock Canyon Vista in World’s End State Park.

To get to the 1,750-foot outlook, I took a series of logging roads on my mountain bike up  some of the toughest hills I have ever tackled. At the top I was awarded with a scenic view of the lush canyon.

There I breathed in the air, sucked some water out of my Camelback, then looped around the other side of the mountain where I took an amazing downhill trail at top speed. I thought I was going to fly off the mountain, but managed to keep my wheels to the trail, at least most of the time.

Then I rode on country roads for another hour or so, until I came across an ice-cream stand. Drenched in sweat and exhausted from the road, I sat down and savored some smooth, cool, berry-flavored ice cream.

It gave me enough power for another hour of riding until I finished off the day with a swim in the Loyalsock Creek. I slept well in my tent that night.