"People come to Ole Bull to get away from everything," said the park ranger I chatted with at Ole Bull (pronounced OH-lee bowl) State Park. The park is named for Ole Bornemann Bull, a famous Norwegian violinist who bought a lot of land around here in hopes of establishing sort of a Norwegian colony in this part of Pennsylvania. That didn't happen; his mansion never got completed, and roughly 130 acres of his land eventually became the state park. The park straddles Kettle Creek, upstream from Kettle Creek State Park by about 15 miles, and has a nestled in feeling, sited as it is in a densely wooded river valley. In addition to camping, it offers fishing in the Creek, swimming in a dammed up part of the Creek (nice!), some hiking and multiuser trails, and access to the trails in the surrounding Susquehannock State Forest, including the Susquehannock Trail System. I hiked the very nice Beaver Haven Nature Trail and the Castle Vista Trail, both ranger recommended. In the rain!

The Beaver Haven Nature Trail