Blog

Filter

Culture Economic Development Fishing Hunting News Outdoor Recreation PA Wilds Made Stewardship Travel

July 25, 2024

Tips for photographing and releasing fish

When you catch a nice trout or bass, it’s only natural to want a photo to commemorate the moment, show friends, or share on social media. All are great reasons to photograph your catch. However, this process can be stressful for fish, and even though they are released afterwards, many can die hours or even days later from being mishandled for the sake of a picture. It doesn’t have to be that way. Following are a few basic guidelines to ensure great photos as well as healthy fish that live to fight another day.

July 24, 2024

PA Wilds Stays: Overnight accommodations in the Dark Skies landscape of the Pennsylvania Wilds

The Dark Skies landscape of the PA Wilds region is home to the world’s second certified International Dark-Sky Park. Although clearly stargazing is a major highlight for those who are traveling in this part of the PA Wilds, the stars are just the beginning. Choose the lodging establishment that fits your needs, book a night there, and start exploring the Dark Skies landscape of the PA Wilds!

July 23, 2024

Learning to camp, PA Wilds style

I’ll never forget my first time camping out. It was the summer of 1973, and my parents had just bought a brand new Ford Pinto hatchback. It was shimmering dark green with a white leather interior... the ultimate economy SUV of the time. My sister and I especially liked the cavernous back seat, which when folded down, turned into a traveling playroom with a glass ceiling.

July 18, 2024

Staying cool in the PA Wilds during the summer heat

The kids are out of school, the leaves are green, the vacations are planned… and the temperature is way too hot! We have a few tips for staying cool in the summer heat.

July 17, 2024

Get the picture? Outdoor photo advice from the PA Wilds’ photo pros

You gotta love Facebook and Instagram for the endless supply of picture-perfect photos of the vast Pennsylvania Wilds. Opening my phone or laptop every morning provides a daily diet of beautiful pictures from all over the Wilds. Some images come from the pros, while most others come from amateur photographers like you and me. 

July 15, 2024

Relaxing on a summer day at Lyman Run

I followed Lyman Run State Park's signs to an opening in the hills to a lake and a beach. I had made it to Lyman Run Reservoir and beach! Even on a weekday in mid-July, the beach was busy with splashes and children’s laughter. Parents and adults dotted the grassy slopes that bordered the sandcastle-speckled beach. Beyond, in the beautiful water, the merriment of children not confined to school rang out.

July 9, 2024

A look inside Xtreme Wear: Who prints your t-shirts in the PA Wilds

Let’s take an inside look at who is behind the process of printing your favorite PA Wilds-themed t-shirts! Many of the shirts you see at the PA Wilds Conservation Shops are printed by Xtreme Wear in DuBois, Clearfield County, along the I-80 Frontier landscape of the PA Wilds. Hear directly from the staff at Xtreme Wear about the printing process, who their clients are, and their favorite things about the PA Wilds region.

July 8, 2024

Habitat rehabilitation partnership in Allegheny National Forest is a win for wildlife

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service recently partnered with multiple organizations to rehabilitate and enhance existing wildlife habitat in the Allegheny National Forest. On Saturday, June 1, 2024, three dozen participants worked in the Farnsworth watershed to improve wildlife habitat by restoring fencing, installing bird boxes, and planting trees and shrubs.

July 5, 2024

The rare beauty of synchronous fireflies and the PA Firefly Festival

Imagine this: as you’re camping in the middle of a dark forest, you spot something unusual - a series of twinkling lights that are all in sync with one another, appearing like a string of Christmas lights or an eerie almost-sentient creature flashing out a message. As strange as it might seem, this is the Photinus Carolinus firefly, a type of Synchronous Firefly. Synchronous species of fireflies are rare, so rare that they can only be seen in a handful of places around the world… including the Pennsylvania Wilds.

July 2, 2024

A Watershed Moment: How The Watershed Journal uplifts and empowers local literary arts

The Watershed Journal Literary Group is an autonomous, grassroots, charitable nonprofit literary organization located in the I-80 Frontier Landscape of the PA Wilds serving storytellers in western Pennsylvania. On the first Tuesday of each month, the Wilds Are Calling blog on PAWilds.com will feature one story and its related image from an edition of The Watershed Journal. This once-a-month feature is called A Watershed Moment, highlighting the talented writers and artisans in our rural PA Wilds region.