About Cook Forest and The Ancients
Your visit to this landscape should begin in the heart of The Ancients known as Forest Cathedral in Cook Forest State Park. The Longfellow Trail is loop among the ancient and soaring trees, offering a serene and mystical point of view. Elevate your perspective and senses with a visit to Seneca Point Overlook and the nearby Cook Forest Fire Tower overlooking the Clarion River Valley. Drive along River Road to get closer to the Clarion, a federally designated Wild & Scenic river, and enjoy multiple picnic sites along the way.
If you didn’t know it yet, the Mountain Laurel is Pennsylvania’s state flower. And this Pennsylvania Wilds landscape is also home to the extensive and beautiful Mountain Laurel Fields in nearby Clear Creek State Forest, just north of the historic town of Brookville, where the Western PA Laurel Festival takes place on Main Street in the summer months.
Explore the Pennsylvania Great Outdoors
The Pennsylvania Great Outdoors (PAGO) provides traveler resources for a 5-county region in the southwestern portion of the Pennsylvania Wilds. Home to the northeast’s largest wild elk herd and the region’s old growth forests, PAGO offers region-specific outdoor recreation guides, wildlife and elk viewing tips, road trips, accommodations and more! PAGO maintains an active blog filled with visitor tips.
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