Up From the Ashes

A few decades ago I was reading a book by someone who hiked the entire Appalachian Trail. In the book, they wrote that the Lehigh Gap in Pennsylvania was by far the ugliest part of the trail.  I could  understand that sentiment then. On the one side of the gap was the Pfizer chemical plant making green pigments. On the other side of the gap was the West Plant of the New Jersey Zinc Company. The zinc smelter destroyed all vegetation on that side of Blue Mountain, the Kittatinny Ridge.   As a side note, people in Palmerton could not have grass lawns as the grass would not grow.

Yesterday I was in Lehigh Gap, about a mile north of my beloved Slatington.  Both the Pfizer plant and the zinc smelter are gone.  You would not even know they once existed.  The area is rebounding from all of the environmental damage.  Leading the charge in the recovery is the Lehigh Gap Nature Center. Their mission is to restore and maintain their over 700 acres and to bring the zinc destroyed mountainside back to life.  They are succeeding!

The Lehigh Gap Nature Center is a wonderful place!  It is located on Paint Mill Road. It is on the Lehigh River, the D & L Trail, and the Appalachian Trail.  What a prime spot of real estate! Location, location, location! The views are spectacular.

The preserve has 13 miles of trails connecting with both the Appalachian Trail and The D & L Trail.  It is a wonderful place to hike. You may even see beaver and otter and a wide variety of birds. The center itself, located in the Osprey House, features lots of information  about the area, it’s history, and it’s salvation.  It is set up for education and even has its own lab and it’s own library.  This is the only superfund site in the nation to become, instead, an environmental center. That is something for this area to be very proud of.

I encourage all of my readers to visit the Lehigh Gap Nature Center and hike its many trails.  Again, it is a wonderful place.  I will be volunteering here, starting soon, as an Information Specialist.  Come any time, not just when I am there. But, I do know where they keep the free snacks!