Henry Run Falls Trail : Cook Forest
My wife and I have decided that 2022 was the year where we would try to hike every path in Cook Forest. We started with a new trail this year which ends at Henry Run Falls. We chose our starting point on Gravel Lick Road, which connects to Route 36 via Miola road.
Trail Info:
Location: Latitude: 41.32019942688878, Longitude: -79.24508668731079. See the map at the bottom of this post.
The hike was 2.7 miles one-way and took about an hour to walk down, and about an hour and a half to walk back, for a total of 5.4 miles. (The screenshot above is from the All Trails android app.)
Parking:
There were about four parking spots along Gravel Lick road, with almost no indication of the trail except for a brightly colored trail marker along the road, and a small wooden walkway.
Directions on PCs: Locate the Google map below the search box on the right-hand side of this webpage. Click “Get Directions” on the map pin details.
Directions on Tablets and Mobile Phones: Locate the Google map near the bottom of this page, just below the search box. Click “Get Directions” on the map pin details.
The hike started out pretty steep, with a thin pathway. The edge of the trail sloped sharply downward into the foliage below which included pine trees and Mountain Laurel.
After getting to nearly the top of the first hill, the Mountain Laurel faded away, and the trail lead to the “Scurry Overlook” which thankfully included a bench.
We then descended into the valley between the two hills, to what sure seemed like a little Squirrel city, with lots of large rocks and trees.
After another large hill, this time with a much easier slope going up and back down, we came to a walking bridge and turned left towards the sound of falling water.
The end of the trail concluded with Henry Run Falls, and not more than 100 or so feet away was the Clarion River.
After walking 2.7 miles, we took in the sights for a good 20 minutes before turning around and walking back. And what a return journey it was on the way back. The first 2 miles weren’t bad, but it’s still early in the hiking season, and we just weren’t ready to walk there and back. It took 30 minutes longer to walk back, with many stops to catch our breath, and lots of time appreciating the two benches, one at “Scurry Lookout” and the other at the base of the falls.
We definitely enjoyed the day, the falls, and even the hike. We even had some time to take a goofy picture to show an exaggeration of our exhaustion:
