Bears, Otters and Monarchs: Ohiopyle State Park’s September Lineup
Six free programs at Ohiopyle State Park over the next two weeks, from black bear talks at Kentuck Campground to a volunteer trail day on Sept. 12.
Labor Day weekend is when Ohiopyle stops being crowded and starts being pleasant. The water is still warm enough, the bugs have mostly given up, and the park rangers are running programs almost every night.
Here is what is on the schedule at Ohiopyle State Park over the next two weeks, straight from the DCNR calendar.
Evening programs at Kentuck Campground
PA Black Bear is Friday, September 4 at 6 p.m. at the Kentuck Campground Amphitheater. Pennsylvania has somewhere north of 15,000 black bears and a healthy share of them are in these woods, so this is less trivia than practical information for anybody who keeps a bird feeder or a trash can.
The Odyssey of Ohiopyle Otters follows on Saturday, September 5 at 7 p.m., same amphitheater. River otters were gone from most of Pennsylvania for the better part of a century. They are back in the Yough. That is a good story.
Magical Monarchs wraps the weekend on Sunday, September 6 at 7 p.m., also at Kentuck. September is when monarchs are staging for the trip to Mexico, so the timing is not an accident.
Saturday morning on Ferncliff
Formation of Ferncliff runs Saturday, September 5 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Ferncliff Peninsula is the big loop the river wraps around at the falls, and it is a National Natural Landmark for a reason: the plant community there includes species you would normally have to drive to the coastal plain to see. Two hours, and you will never walk that loop the same way again.
Put your hands on the trail: Volunteer Trail Day, September 12
The one that matters most is Saturday, September 12, from 9 a.m. to noon at 171 Dinnerbell Road. Ohiopyle has roughly 20,500 acres and more trail miles than the staff can maintain alone, and volunteer days are how a good chunk of that work actually gets done.
You do not need experience. You need boots, gloves, water, and three hours. Anyone who has spent a season complaining about a muddy stretch of trail has an obvious way to fix it.
Later that same day, the Youghopoly Tournament runs 1 to 3 p.m. at the Tharp Knob Picnic Area. That one requires registration in advance.
Details
Full listings, times and any registration links are on the DCNR calendar at events.dcnr.pa.gov/ohiopyle_state_park. The park office is at 124 Main St., Ohiopyle, and the phone is 724-329-8591.
Source: DCNR Calendar of Events, Ohiopyle State Park.