Through the Water fall

In this issue:

Your weather forecast for the weekend: It seems that it is autumn again, and there is no rain in sight.

— Paola Perez ([email protected])

If someone forwarded this email to you, register for free here.

The Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area is a popular outdoor destination located away from busy cities, but still close enough with a short drive (or you can get there by at the very end of your Appalachian Trail hike). This is a favorite part of our region, and Local residents are doing their best to protect it.

Here are some key facts:

The chasm is located between New Jersey and Pennsylvania (about 100 miles north of Philadelphia)

It covers 70,000 acres of mountains, forests and the Delaware River

You can do rowing, hiking, fishing, swimming, camping, biking, and many other activities here throughout the year

Learn more about this place shaped by geology, controversy and conservation.

News worth knowing

It’s time to peep the leaves. Charmaine Runes has put together a color coded, interactive county by county to show you when exactly and where can you see these shades yellow, red, orange, brown and purple from trees throughout the Keystone State.

This guide showed you when the leaves:

has not been changed yet

is starting to change

near the peak

Now almost the entire state:

at its peak

is starting to fade

Right now: Philadelphia and neighboring counties are finally peak color this week, so you can see beautiful colors close to home. If you want to go a little further, check out our map other local spots to enjoy the best of the season’s palette.

Check out next week’s forecast right here on Outdoorsy.

We now turn the microphone over to Jason Nark. You will always find his work here. Here’s one I’ve been wanting to bring you since 2019.

On a brisk, clear November morning at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, Captain Jesse Briggs nudged a tugboat toward a barge loaded with steel girders. He sipped his black coffee as two sailors jumped from the boat onto the barge to give them a tight squeeze.

The Penrose pushed the barge south down the Delaware River and turned onto the Schuylkill, passing under two bridges and Passyunk Avenue, along with all the commuters. Yellow leaves swirled on the narrow river until the tugboat mowed it down. Past the bare trees on the left side, like mutilated steel mountains, old cars piled up. There were pipes and oil tanks on the starboard side. Sometimes tires roll off the bank and into the water, Briggs said at the dump, but sometimes something wild comes along, a reminder that water is an environment, not just an economy.

“Look, there’s a bald eagle,” he said.

The Delaware River, the Schuylkill and the watershed that feeds them generate billions of dollars in revenue and taxes, a broad, murky vein that has fed Philadelphia and other coastal cities for centuries. Thousands make their living in the watershed, most of them south of Trenton, where the river is deep and tidal. — Jason Nark

Dive in for a closer look at environmental and recreational issues historically intersected with the economy of the river.

Soothing view

Your impressions of recreation in nature

Longtime Outdoorsy reader Guido Geffke wrote to us about his latest expedition:

my Philly Adventure Group on Facebook now has over 1200 members and I took 7 on a hike in the Austrian Alps (hut to hut). Met many Dutch and Germans in the houses and were stunned by the incredible scenery.

Really incredible! Hooray.

Before we end the season, I want to hear from you. What is your favorite outdoor activity? Have you tried something new? Write me a sentence or two about your adventures.

One more thing: Outdoorsy was the brainchild of my colleague, senior newsletter strategist Ashley Hoffman. This edition is the last one she will review as she leaves The Inquirer. I want to acknowledge and thank her for her tireless dedication to Outdoorsy. It wouldn’t exist without her brilliance, drive and passion for serving her audience. Like the seasonsour lives are marked by changes, many of them bitter. Please join me in wishing Ashley the best on her journey.

By submitting your written, visual and/or audio submissions, you agree to The Inquirer Terms of useincluding the Section 10 grant.