Sojourn highlights Pine Creek area

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JERSEY SHORE - State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary John Quigley on Wednesday said he may have to close one-third of the state's state parks due to the budget shortfall.

Quigley spoke at Jersey Shore Area High School during a welcome and orientation session for the Greenway Sojourn, which involves 250 bicyclists from 24 states riding as a group on the Pine Creek Rail trail from Jersey Shore to the trail's northern terminus at Wellsboro Junction, then back to Jersey Shore.

Quigley said the dilemma with possible state park closings shows that society has some hard questions to answer regarding where conservation and recreation reside in its list of priorities.

"How those questions are answered is something we all are going to need to pay attention to," Quigley said.

Quigley said it is up to citizens, such as those attending the sojourn, to educate others and advocate for natural resource conservation and recreation.

Although Quigley painted a bleak picture regarding the state budget, he acknowledge that the sojourn is a positive step for the state's natural resources because it is a chance to showcase one of the great recreational opportunities in region.

"Pennsylvania has thousands of miles of trails and has one of the best rail-trail systems in the country," he said.

Access to natural resources and recreation can be a tool for economic and community development, Quigley said.

Natural resources, such as the Susquehanna River, provide communities such as Jersey Shore, which grew as a result of its steel mills, a chance to reinvent themselves, he said.

"Communities around the state, particularly along the river, have tried to reinvent themselves ... and find new reasons to exist," he said. "They are turning to the river and making it a focus of revitalization. (The DCNR) is proud to be a part of that."

Quigley said the agency is proud to be a sponsor of the sojourn, the seventh such event held by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy.

The conservancy is a national organization dedicated to converting abandoned rail corridors into trails for hiking, biking and walking, according to Andrea Brock, conservancy vice president of development.

Tom Sexton, director of the conservancy's northeast region, said sojourns are held at a different location every year and in the past have involved many more riders - including 700 in 2005.

The 250-rider limit was instituted for the Pine Creek sojourn because of concerns of how well valley facilities could accommodate such a large number of visitors traveling in a group.

The group is due to set out from the trail head at Jersey Shore this morning, will spend the night at a private campground in Cedar Run, then travel to the Wellsboro Junction trail head on Friday. On the return trip, the group will camp Friday night in Cedar Run, then return to Jersey Shore on Saturday, completing a 125-mile round trip.

Sexton said the sojourns are held to highlight recreational opportunities throughout the country and show that those opportunities can be a financial boon for the communities they are located in.

"You are bringing tourism dollars in Pennsylvania," he said. "We are showing that if you build rail trails, people will come, and they will come even if they are not (completed)."

Prior to riders leaving the Jersey Shore trail head today, there will be a check presentation involving the funds acquired to build a trail extension from the trail head to a proposed riverfront park in Jersey Shore, according to county transportation planner Mark Murawski.

The estimated cost of the project is $832,000, all of which is covered by grants from the DCNR, state Department of Transportation and First Communities Foundation of Pennsylvania.

Sexton said a philosophy of the sojourn is to be a backdrop for events such as the check presentation because it shows how projects such as the trail extension can garner national interest.

Former county Department of Planning and Community Development director Jerry S. Walls discussed the county Comprehensive Plan and the role it played in ensuring the Pine Creek Valley was developed in a way that preserved its character.

Walls said the idea was to promote family-run businesses that fit into the character of the valley and to discourage fast food and hotel and resort chains that could destroy its character.

Also sponsoring the sojourn is Fetzers Vineyard, of Mendocino, Calif. According to vineyard spokesman Mike Haering, the vineyard supports rails-to-trails initiatives throughout the country.