Exploring the Mauch Chunk Inclined Plane (Jim Thorpe PA)

[@Twisted_Adventures2]

The ruins at the top of the mountain where you saw the metal pipe was the engine house. That pipe was one of two smoke stacks. The larger ruins you were in was the reservoir for the engine house

[@TheDotDetective]

Thanks for your effort. I'm a social studies teacher, too. Explored the area extensively this past November, however, you did a lot of off touristy recording. Thanks for what you do!

[@markcooper8605]

Another great episode. The waterfall was awesome. You have a loyal fan base. I hope part 2 hurries right along.

[@bonniemoreland8558]

Great zoom on that waterfall..!!!!💖👍💖👍💖

[@rosemarykasper4001]

Thank you for enduring the heat. It was an awesome adventure and very much appreciated by an old lady that has trouble walking anymore, much less hiking! Take care out there!

[@Wistful77]

The bridge view was fantastic. -Tough hike. Thanks for taking us along!

[@ctrotman1]

Watching from lehighton. Town right next to it

[@julieshaffer7140]

love this area. we lived near there. thank you for showing the beautiful views.

[@anthonyloguirato8006]

Great video! The views were amazing! Regardless of what people say to you, I appreciate the quality videos that you are putting out. It’s definitely not as easy as it looks. Keep up the great work!

[@christine_penn]

Hiked up that yesterday. It was not nearly as nice as it was on your day and leaves made it a bit slippery. That incline plain gives a nice workout. Views at the top are well worth it. Love your videos...and would love to join you on a hike someday. (I'm local.)

[@angelm2655]

WOW! What a view! Thanks for sharing!

[@stephaniepooch5132]

Great place this old lady has rode her mountain bike up that switch back many times

[@bahamajim1998]

Impressive not so old lady lol

[@yarrow_and_sage]

That's really cool to see all those ruins and that spectacular view. Please continue to make videos, I really enjoy your content and I'm learning a lot from them. I live in eastern Lancaster county so it's cool to learn stuff about the areas near to where I live. Take care of yourself in this heat!

[@josiemcbride3646]

Omg I'm definitely doing this on my next day off. Thank you for uploading a video of the area. I love exploring these places around this area.

[@georgiewright8937]

"We'll make it to the top,...maybe...(questioning look)...." You crack me up sometimes with your off the cuff commentary. Lol.

[@pamelaattrux336]

Wow this was really amazing , especially the view I want to thankyou for doing all these videos,I am from Canada but love hiking and history and just stuff of regular interest

[@kateclark7250]

Interesting place. Seeing that waterfall in the distance was pretty cool! Thank you for hiking up there so we could see all this. Glad you were okay...

[@Friskee62]

EXCELLENT video...the car looks like a 1962 Buick Special Convertible.

[@crushhardtack1997]

THOMAS FISKE that’s what I think it is too.

[@brantmorrison3704]

The fender shape made me think it was probably a Buick from the early 1960s, though I did not know the exact year.

[@salgal861]

Very good eye, my thoughts ran from 1963 dodge dart to GM and Ford Falcon.

[@ladyvalhalla7154]

Great view! Loved the waterfall..Thank you...hard work but worth it.

[@user-David-Alan]

That was beautiful, Thank you for your effort. I see some people think the car was a buick. I think it was a '61 Pontiac tempest. Just a guess.

[@patriciayoung1880]

thanks for the video and memories! Could have been my dad and his buddies who drove that car up the mountain in their heydays!! Hydrate well!

[@crushhardtack1997]

Interesting history, beautiful views!

[@yamahog7997]

I hiked up that years ago when they had refurbished it...it was a tough hike up.

[@Keith58x]

The second biggest tourist attraction of the Victorian era behind Niagara Falls. This was the inspiration of the roller coaster. The first roller coaster at Coney Island was called "The Switchback"!!

[@thecrone7964]

The "Switchback" was the earliest documented pleasure riders were in 1827 by visitors out to admire the new railway technology. This gives rise to the credit of the railway as the first roller coaster. Summit Hill has a storied history as the western terminus of the United States' second operational railway, the Mauch Chunk & Summit Hill Railway, and some of the earliest coal mines developed in North America, where the Lehigh Coal Mining Company began mining in 1792, establishing the town as little more than a mining camp with stables and paddocks. Anthracite coal was discovered on the ridgeline of Sharpe Mountain[4] (now known as Pisgah Mountain[5]) in 1791 by a hunter,[4] and news of the find led to the founding of the Lehigh Coal Mining Company in 1792 which began exploring the area in earnest and buying up promising land. Coal was found in 1794 by Phillip Ginter[6] along the northeast-to-southwest-running ridgeline of Pisgah Mountain lying several hundred feet below the ridge on the north slope in an area that became the boroughs of Summit Hill and Lansford.

[@JosephBenRobert]

This was so cool my Grandfather hoped a train to Mauch Chunk worked there for a while before returning to Bucks County to live with the Quakers.

[@chris_mic]

Back in the 90's a group of friends and I would attend Mt. Bike Weekend annually in Jim Thorpe. We would ride up the switchback to the top then bike down the incline.

[@sk3wtr89]

that view at the top was awesome!

[@mrambler4235]

Another great vid! Keep them coming my friend!

[@gregkellow4723]

If you like the incline planes, I'd suggest the Ashley Planes near Wilkes Barre. It's a 3 plane incline. Very cool history. Some ruins are still there. It's on Earth Conservancy/State Game lands, so it's very accessable. There's trails and stone bridges. Check it out on Google.

[@thewanderingwoodsman7227]

Thanks, I'll look into it.

[@joshlewis4574]

I’ve wanted to see this forever! Read about it long time ago!

[@thegreaterbilby2171]

wow that sure must've been hard yakka getting up there, so thanks for going to all that super effort to bring this video to us to enjoy also.

[@michaelluedtke660]

You hiked the switchback. The ball field you started at had two holes that would store push carts that got pulled by cables.

[@wvrockcrusher]

Very cool place to see and the views are fantastic! Thanks for sweating it out for us to see this place. Maybe should have done this one in the cool fall weather. I always watch your content you put up because you find some very interesting places. Thanks for taking us along!

[@thewanderingwoodsman7227]

perhaps I should have....

[@bahamajim1998]

Love Jim Thorpe. Very cool vid man

[@OutdoorsWithShawn]

That area was were one of the first roller coasters was made when they let people ride down the mountainside.

[@bethpatton1315]

Awesome! But , just like everyone else said," water take it easy " GOOD VIDEO!!! Been there! Like everything!

[@lynfl9814]

This video was of places I did not get to explore when I lived in PA (now in FL, 60+ years in PA). I lived about 33 miles from here. I knew about this from my Dad. He was born in 1906 and he talked about the Switchback being the beginning of roller coasters in the US. This railroad started out being used for coal; but, then was also used to make money off of entertaining people. Here is more information on the Switchback becoming the prototype 'roller coaster in the US' from this website: www.britannica.com/topic/roller-coaster "In the early 19th century, the so-called Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway in Pennsylvania became the prototype for roller coasters in the United States, the country most associated with thrill rides. Its origins were in Gravity Road, which mining company entrepreneur Josiah White built in 1827 to haul coal from the mines at Summit Hill to the Lehigh River landing at Mauch Chunk (now the town of Jim Thorpe)-a 9-mile (14.5-km) downhill journey. Trains of as many as 14 cars, loaded with 50,000 pounds (23,000 kg) of anthracite coal, sped down the mountain under the command of a single courageous “runner," who operated a brake lever. Mules dragged the cars back up the mountain. Coal was hauled in the morning, but increasingly the afternoon runs along Gravity Road carried passengers paying 50 cents per ride. By the mid-19th century, the demand for coal was increasing, so White added a backtrack with two 120-horsepower steam engines at the top of nearby Mount Pisgah, which pulled the trains up the incline of 664 vertical feet (202 meters), assisted by “barney," or “safety," cars. The ingenious addition of a ratchet rail running between the dual two-rail tracks, when engaged by a ratchet on the barney, prevented the cars from rolling backward. This safety device, later perfected, also gave rise to the clanking sound that would characterize future roller coasters. In 1872 a tunnel was completed that became a more efficient coal route than Gravity Road, but the Mauch Chunk Switchback continued as a thrill ride. By 1873 some 35,000 tourists annually were taking an 80-minute, 18-mile (29-km) scenic ride up and down Mount Pisgah and neighboring Mount Jefferson for the cost of $1." I also founded it amazing that you were able to spot Glenn Onoko Falls and zoom on it. Cool! This video really had me reminiscing about how lovely Pennsylvania is; thanks for doing this video.

[@SeanCrowley-ks1mu]

He could have parked at the animal hospital and hiked behind it.

[@chucksayers1248]

great video, I believe that car or what was left of it was a 1961 Buick skylark

[@stevemitchell7981]

Love Jim Thorpe

[@howardtendler9213]

Learned about this around 20 years ago. Found the park and trail this past weekend. Did not take it the hike though. Also found the switch back which is several miles away. There is a place called Dunderburg Spiral Railway in NYS based on this railway. Is there map of this trail and the switch back trail?

[@PunchiePaints]

this reminded me of a hike I did in the Blue Mountains in the northeastern corner of Oregon. The trail head started at about 8000 ft above sea level - so the air was thin. The trail a steep climb for 4 miles. About killed me, but I made it. And what, you may ask, did I find at the top? A jogger.

[@RichardWatsonboltspinner]

Glad you enjoy being out there enough to do the extra effort to video and share the history of these places, always interesting.

[@thehardyguit-boys6388]

So were there mines up on that mountain? I’d like to make my way up there sometime.

[@PennsylvaniaBottleDigging]

You ever stumble across any old bottle dumps hiking around?

[@robertgallagher2484]

Have you filmed around Dushore Pa and other areas around Sullivan County? Eaglesmere?

[@walkingcam1]

Damnit, i didn't notice this great waterfall when been on the mountain((

[@keno8503]

Great video!

[@flanjivfur1]

If it’s the cemetery that I was at, the tombstones are in corporate into the base of the church. That was cool looking.

[@DDExplores]

The car skeleton has changed a little since I was there ,,,,, my viewers thought it was either a falcon or a buick,,,,

[@rabbibacongrease88]

That looks like a 1963 T Bird

[@headache11469]

I knew you would like this one. I did the easier trail that does switchback. It’s only a couple blocks from where you went in. Great views

[@thewanderingwoodsman7227]

yeah, I though about doing that one.....

[@katiefyock9607]

Mauch Chunk sounds like a Pepperidge farm cookie.

[@HD-J.R.]

I think that car was a Ford Galaxie '60 to '64. Not as old as the other ruins ;-)

[@fuzzwack1]

shes a old Buick!!

[@JamesRobertSmith]

You've convinced me that I need to visit Jim Thorpe, PA! Glen Onoko Falls would be high on my list to visit. I might even hike up the incline. Was this, in fact, a funicular railway? The image you briefly show on the dilapidated plaque shows that it could have been such.

[@thewanderingwoodsman7227]

They called it a gravity railroad

[@Ogre-zr5zk]

wikipedia has some cool old photos and engravings of the " Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway " in use back in it's heyday.

[@brantmorrison3704]

Did Jim Thorpe have any actual connection to that specific part of Pa? He was born in Oklahoma, was in school around Carlisle, Pa for a time, but he had a home he bought in Oklahoma (in the 1920s) and he later lived in California.

[@thewanderingwoodsman7227]

I think he just played football there, but I could be wrong - sports is not my thing. He is buried there, but there is some controversy regarding that. I've read that his family wants his grave moved back home....

[@brantmorrison3704]

Thank you for the reply. I didn't know he is (at least for the present) buried there. If ever you should go to Cincinnati, OH there were several inclined plane tracks built there around 1900 for carrying people and goods up the steep hills. The tracks are gone now, but some of the ruins of trestles related to the tracks remain. Not many people there are familiar with the story of the tracks.

[@brantmorrison3704]

That is an interesting history. I've only heard of a couple other towns renamed for celebrities. I can't say the name change worked to bring universal fortune and fame to those towns. Of course, there is Washington, but Gene Autry (like Thorpe, was also from Oklahoma) had a town there renamed for him some decades ago.

[@louiselasinski7623]

Jim Thorpe window wanted a town named after him. While visiting the Asa Packer Mansion years ago the guide told us that the window promised to build a hospital if they named a town after him and burri3d him there. The town changed its name but she never built the hospital.

[@kither04]

Jim thorpes wife sold his body for profit and the town uses him as a tourist trap. He never step foot in the town. They literally bought his remains.

[@marielg9143]

Thats a dang good camera

[@classicboatworks9876]

the car 'was' a '66-'67 Coronet convertible

[@hiworldstephensonultranate290]

wow gt view i used do mountain n hill n d 90s with a group some walks were 6/7hrs brian 4th October 2021

[@chelseydeetta2847]

You have to be careful kido on those high hikes, your not 10 years old.Boy to build a foundation on a mountain edge is really something what the people did in those days. Back breaking jobs. Really something to see, great job.

[@powerlinekid4296]

Cool video on a hot day! The bridge section was known as the Five Mile Tree Bridge; not sure if that's on the information kiosk. The vista at the videos end was known as "Packers Point". There are some great pics from 1907 on archive.org, listed under "Switzerland of America".

[@the_lancaster_libertarian]

I listen to The Way I Heard it - by Mike Rowe. He made a great podcast about Jim Thorpe, the outstanding native american olympic athlete this town is named after. You should really give it a listen.

[@susanneflachsenhaar115]

Leonidas.of.Spartan correct

[@jhmorgan72753]

62 Pontiac Tempest convertible !!!

[@journeywithjay]

The view is Definitely worth the hike. Yeah man making videos is not as easy as we sometimes make it look.

[@gilvogt4440]

Mountain bike.....psshhhh.....I did it on my Big Wheel in '79 when I was only 6 yrs.old .....had calves like a black bear......

[@bahamajim1998]

Theres a nice lake there also

[@Ctcc73]

At 4:05 there is a person behind you. It did move if you keep on watching

[@marinescott7790]

What camera are you using? Love your videos.

[@thewanderingwoodsman7227]

canon SX60

[@marinescott7790]

@@thewanderingwoodsman7227 thank you.

[@darlenegood4101]

Why wouldn't the train just go down and back up instead of being a trestle across?

[@jhmorgan72753]

1962 Pontiac Tempest convertible

[@marielg9143]

It looks steep

[@alphaone101]

With all the walking, hiking and climbing that you do you have to be in pretty good physical condition so if that climb wears you out it must be really steep. If there was steel cable that was heavy enough they could have used the loaded cars going to the incline to pull the empty cars back up, then they wouldn't have needed mules or train engines.

[@thewanderingwoodsman7227]

The heat and the air quality was getting to me as well

[@robdwy1708]

Cool

[@a.s.2245]

Mauch chunk means "bear mountain"

[@brianferris1233]

History.

[@illupgravengaard9275]

early 60s olds starfire maybe

[@davemi3213]

Looks like an old dodge

[@paulbislin8471]

How it was: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aoiodIR8mracotk

[@easynhonest]

Wow! In all my years of researching this , I've never seen most of that video footage . Thanks for pointing that out .

[@paulbislin8471]

@@easynhonest It is a very interesting theme! I visited Jim Thorpe, Switzerland of America, several times in the past.

[@jhmorgan72753]

10:54 big foot with red shirt on top of falls !

[@davezimmerman6253]

Native American for Sleeping bear

[@shawndayvis6169]

COMPLAIN COMPLAIN COMPLAIN .......I 'UNSUBSCRIBED'.....IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM MAKING VIDEOS WITH CRAPPY WEATHER, THEN STOP MAKING VIDEOS !!! DAMN

[@shawndayvis6169]

Stop complaining !!!! Great videos but are you aware of how much you COMPLAIN about the hot weather or the long walks or trails , it's not like you're not getting paid !!!!

[@susanneflachsenhaar115]

Shawn Dayvis he has every right to complain. existing in the hot humid weather we had this summer was hell on earth

[@shawndayvis6169]

@@susanneflachsenhaar115 .....then he shouldn't ask us to leave comments about what we liked or didn't like about his video.

[@maureengurnick3773]

Shawn, you could take the statements as informative, if he has difficulty on these trails, others might not make the hike. They may need to do the trail in cooler weather, allow more time, and take extra supplies.

[@shawndayvis6169]

@@maureengurnick3773 .....I wasn't talking to you

[@maureengurnick3773]

You are so angry