Mountain Springs Revisited

On May 16th and with only a few hours left before sundown, my husband and I went up to Mountain Springs. We hiked and fished at the mouth of the creek called Cherry Run that flows into Mountain Springs lake, which is the headwaters of Bowman's Creek that meanders into the heart of Noxen. Mountain Springs is nestled in the back country roads of Noxen, PA of the Endless Mountains. This place is quite nostalgic for my sweet Barry. At least once a year, we try to visit and fish this area. It's a place where Barry used to fish as a kid. His father took him there and his grandfather took his Dad (son-in-law to Barry's Mom's dad) there as well. Barry never met his Grandpa, John Hewitt. He passed away before Barry was born and his Mom would tell me that his Grandpa would have been so happy to see one of his grandsons as an avid Fly Fisherman and Hunter like him. I'm sure he is smiling over us from the heaven's above every time Barry is doing something what he used to love.















Into the Woods...
















Dandelion Flower















Wild Violets













Bowman's Creek

John Hewitt is a well known man in the Wyoming Valley during his time. He was a supreme land owner, Businessman, Philanthropist and did a lot of service for the community especially for the Boys Scouts of America. It really would have been great to have met him in person, but the memories of him still lingers on from all the stories I gathered from Barry's family. Barry and I love hearing his Grandfather's fishing and hunting stories from his Mom, Dad and Uncle Bud, especially on their trips to Nova Scotia among other places.















A Dragonfly















Cascading Water on the Rocks















A Young Newt















A slithering garden snake hiding under a big rock

Barry's mom would chuckle every time she's on a fishing trip with us. She tells me every time that she would have never imagined that handing Barry a fly rod at age 3 that fishing would be a huge part of his life. Almost thirty-seven years later and he is still going strong with his love and deep passion for fishing, as well as with hunting and now, he is rubbing his passions upon me. Barry has inherited much of his grandfather's fishing and hunting gears, including his beloved Bamboo Rod and a custom-made 8mm Mauser from the WWI era. They're simple material things to most people or prized antiques to some, but for Barry, they're prized possessions and a true reflection of his Grandpa.
















A Painted Trillium, a rare variety


















Barry first took me to Mountain Springs in the winter of 2005. I remembered it clearly as it was just yesterday. We went there on an end-tail of a blizzard-like storm. We wanted to see what Mountain Springs was like covered in snow. We drove through the mountain on Barry's '94 Jeep Wrangler, stopping at some points so I can take photos of a winter wonderland. I remember Bowman's creek was covered with fresh and white fluffy snow. The deep pools looked like an emerald gem. Something you rarely see. That Spring, we went back there again and it was the first time I saw a wild red trillium, an individual flowering sprout usually found along the creeks with three-petaled flower above a three huge green leaves. Trillium is said to be Barry's Grandfather's favorite flower of all times. The areas where they grew wildly are the same spots where Barry's Grandfather used to fish.
















During his time, vehicles were not allowed in these areas except for loggers and trolleys that took blocks of ice (Natural Ice were used before electric refrigeration came about. These ice where made naturally in the course of the winter and they were harvested from the lakes or rivers) down to Harveys Lake and into the Valley, where the city of Wilkes Barre is located. Back then, people would hike into Mountain Springs just to fish. I can only imagine what it was like back in the day. You really must be an avid fisherman to go up there and hike through the deep forest before heading towards the creek. Now Mountain Springs is mostly owned by the State. Much of it is still untouched, but I can picture it more with lush forestry and pristine waters compared to today. Barry remembered going there as a kid with the lake and small streams were teeming with huge trout, especially with native brook trout. For the past few years that we've gone fishing there, we still catch some native brookies, but not as much as Barry recalled it to be. Each Spring or Summer time we try our best to go up there and it's not all about fishing, but remembering Barry's most adored Grandfather. Hopefully, in time we'll pass this tradition to generations to come.















Mountain Springs Lake


Cherry Run Creek

















Barry at the mouth of Cherry Run Creek onto Mountain Springs Lake

This time around and with only a few hours to spare to get to our final destination, dark clouds were already upon us and before we knew it, a huge thunderstorm was already on its way. Luckily, we manage to reach our truck before the big downpour occurred. Even though our first trip to Mountain Springs was cut short this year, we still had a great time just hiking through the woods and observing the things that surrounded us...

Tears from Heaven













Through a dirt road






















Almost back to civilization
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Mountain Springs Revisited