cherry springs state park

We visited the park late February in hopes to enjoy the clear skies and brilliant stars. On our way to the park a friend jokingly stated how great it would be to see a shooting star. At first we were a little deterred because the bright moon and recent snow made it a little more difficult (fairly bright out) to see the stars. Within 3 minutes (not even joking!) of stepping out of our vehicle we saw the most amazing, brilliant, shooting star I've ever seen in my life. It was so clear and defined we could even see the tail! We all were fortunate enough to spot it and I got chills after seeing it. I can't wait to plan a summer trip back here. Pros of going in the winter: You have the place to yourself!Cons: Dress warmly!

It is a place that everyone should experience atleast once. If you think you've seen the stars before--you've never seen them like this.

The park has a lot of history. There are several displays that illustrate its past. There is also dark sky programs, check the internet for the various events that go on during the night. This area has people (astronomers) from all over the world bring their telescopes for viewing the sky.There is also a woodsmans show on the first weekend of Aug that is put on by the Galeton Rotary Club. This too has competitors that compete on a professional level.Be aware that most of the time the park is open for self guided tours.

I brought my wife out here as part of a surprise weekend getaway at a nearby cabin. We were lucky that it was an extraordinarily clear (if very cold) night. There are red lighted footpaths from the parking area to the public viewing area. When we were there (a Saturday night in October), there were a number of park ranger/docents with telescopes set up who invited us to take a look at what they had trained the telescopes on, which was neat. Even without a telescope, the sky was breathakingly stunning. We spread a ground blanket out and laid back to look up. In addition to the Milky Way, we saw numerous shooting stars as well as satellites passing overhead. The view was so clear, from horizon to horizon, that you could easily imagine sliding right off of the hilltop out into the stars. It did get very cold as the night wore on. When I go again, I will bring more layers and possibly some of those chemical pouch hand warmers. Also, be sure you have a full tank of gas when setting out toward the park-- there are no gas stations nearby (that we found), our GPS did not work very well, and we did not get much of a cellular signal.

Our main objective with this park was to come here at night and see the stars, since the park is known for having some of the darkest skies on the eastern seaboard. Unfortunately, we could not meet that objective because both nights we were in the area, it was very overcast. But we were in the area, during the day; and decided to check it out. We did the one-mile Working Forest Interpretive Trail; it was an easy trail to walk, but it was not very scenic. We would not come back here again during the day; but if we are in the area again, we will check it out on a clear night.

Unfortunately it was cloudy and raining when we visited. But what was amazing was the it was utterly quiet and we could still tell how beautiful the sky was and would be without the clouds...a must visit, at night, if in the area!

My husband and I went to do some astrophotography. It was very dark and the skies were very clear that night. It was the darkest and best place we have been to see the Milky Way and get some great photos. The only bad thing is that it was so dark we could not find out way around. I would recommend going during the day and getting the lay out in your mind before going at night.

We were anticipating a unique experience, a dark park with no "light pollution" In preparation we covered our flashlights in red cellophane and got to the park before dark so our headhlights would not be an issue. However, imagine our dismay when from the public viewing area we could see the flood lights of a ?local house. And worse, they had decorated an evergreen with Christmas lights which were also on. The other 2-3 vehicles in the park kept their car lights on. Needless to say, this was no "Dark Park"

This spot has a bunch of long benches set up in a huge field with red lights to show the path to it. Don't bring a flashlight! People's eyes are adjusting to the dark! There is a person who professionally uses a special laser to give the group a tour of the sky. When I went, I saw Saturn, Mars, the Milky Way, a whole bunch of constellations, and satellites. I could sit there all night. Also, it was free! My gosh it was an amazing night

It was great to actually see the Milky Way and lots of stars. The presentation was a bit difficult to follow sometimes since the presenter's laser pointer didn't always seem to work.

Coming from Baltimore the trip was almost 5 hours. The last 60 miles is the mountains of pa. so be sure to have the car that can...handle the winding country roads that go up the mountain/down the mountain. Our engine overheated 5 miles outside the campground and with no cell service (someone said that Verizon has a tower in the area)... well fortunately we did have 2 gallons of water. Now for the campgrounds. Each site is marked by a wooden stake. Upon entering the campground, stop by the rangers station(ranger doesn't need to be there) to pickup an envelope. Find an available campsite. tear off the piece of envelope, write your name on it and clip to the wooden stake at your campsite. Put twenty one dollars in the envelope, this is per night for the weekend and includes one car. each additional car is five dollars per night and each weekend night is twenty one dollars. deposit the envelope at the rangers station. The campsite consist of a fire ring/structure, a picnic table and place for a couple tents. There are spots closer to the observation field that has more flat ground than on the lower end, and some people preferred to set up camp against the woods. You can have more than one tent (I saw as many as three/four at some campsites. ( I don't know if there is any rules concerning number of tents. I was told by someone that there is only suppose to be 5 people per campsite. Once again I saw campsites with several people). One camper slept in a tarp covered hammock. There was a good mix of younger/older couples, a few families/groups of several friends. There was enough space between campsites so that your neighbors conversations were a comfortable background noise.. Everyone was friendly, respectful and cleaned their sites before they left.(didn't see trash cans...I guess because of the critters). Some people even left firewood for the next lucky camper. You will need firewood...you can scavenge the woods and find enough wood if you are willing to spend some time doing it. I brought firewood and used matchlight charcoal to start my fire. If you are going to forage for wood a small folding saw/axe would be great for the little dead understory trees. My husband is handicap and this place is challenging for a wheelchair....the roads are rocks/dirt. you can park next to your tent in the grass. I would consider getting there early and choosing a spot on higher flatter ground. You can drive up to the graveled lot near the observation field or for the star show program. They do have handicap parking. On the STAR SHOW NIGHT there was a lot of traffic..so i am guessing the lower campsites would have less car light issues. But that is only during the star show. The campsites closer to the observation field has less trees and offers a better panoramic view of the stars. Ah the stars...I did see the milky way. What awed me was knowing the stars are always there. And that the same stars I saw today were once seen by someone thousands of years ago. I never realized how beautiful and FULL the night sky is. We only stayed one night and I have a strong dislike for tent camping. With my husband's disability we did take a larger tent and a queen double high air mattress (note that the temp was in the 40's on a September night. Be sure to bring a blanket to lay on the air mattress (like you would a sheet). That air mattress was chilly). If you chose not to use the tent fly so you can see the stars, the cold air will creep in.I wish I would have brought candles for the picnic table, a folding saw to get firewood/kindling a very small piece of tarp to carry firewood/kindling and a campstove. Don't forget red cellophane on any light in the star observation area's.The rangers were the best, both knowledgeable and helpful. For those on a tight budget like we were, there is an all you can eat KFC/Taco Bell in Shamokin at 9 dollars a person.Our family enjoyed hotdogs and s'mores, good conversation and an awesome night sky.We saw the milky way and bought a memory.

Park was very quiet on full moon night overnight visit. My GPS took me down a long gravel dusty mountain road to Lyman Run State Park, which is where you must go to pick up Observatory keys. You are wise to do this and get to Cherry Springs before sunset. Dark, winding roads. A bear crossed in front of me driving up the mountain. My observatory just fit my king-size air mattress. There was an outlet, so I was able to use airpump. There are 6 wooden steps to enter observatory, then you climb down ladder into shell. I spent the night under the full moon. Lots of unidentifiable animal noises coming from forest.You can control roof opening from inside shell. Middle of the night, I decided to sleep in my car, which was parked right next to observatory. Restroom was very close, nice flat grassy walk to it. Very clean. You must use flashlight with red lens. No gas stations for miles, so fill up your tank. I had cell service entire time.

Went with two little kids, so we could only commit to the parking lot from about 9pm to 10pm. Best views I've ever seen - better than Grand Canyon on moonless night. Could see the Milky way very close to south horizon. Lots of space.The only negative is that depending on the night, people roll in at 10pm and kill your night vision. Went one night without anyone there. Two days later there were a pile of people and couldn't get my night vision to last more than 10 mins. Check the weather before you go. Not worth your time if there will be any clouds/full moon. Without them, it's awesome! The fall is a great time to go.

I attended their astronomy program. The wind and the dampness can get you up there on top of the mountain so dress warm. I had on lined jeans, wool socks, shirt, wool sweater and light weight winter coat with hood and I felt perfect!!

We have visited several times and have never had a starry night. For some reason we always seem to be there during cloudy nights. We will continue to come and hope to see astronomers doing their thing!