Full plates and happy campers.

It was a frenzied week in PPFF world! Our new website is soooooo close to being finished and that means last minute content updates. It's almost newsletter time again. We're thinking about annual reports from our chapters and eagerly anticipating getting all their news and events compiled into one place and trumpeted to the world. The annual award winners have been announced (see News of Note below). The schedule for the showcase tour of 2015 photo contest winners has been completed (and you can find it on the current website on the PPFF Up to the Minute calendar).

The holiday lull is definitely over! 

This is your weekly (at least) reminder to be sure to take a little time to be outside this winter. The DCNR Winter Report can help you keep track of where the snow IS if it ISN'T out your window and the updated Dogs in Cabins factsheet provides the most recent information on where Fido can come along on an overnight this winter and beyond.

Snagged this masthead photo from the Laurel Hill State Park Complex Facebook page. Photographer Charlotte Pletcher caught a lovely moment of the lake just beginning to freeze. 

News of Note.

As noted above, the nominations process is complete and the Class of 2016 PPFF awards have been announced. The celebration takes place on May 11 at the West Shore Country Club to salute:

• Cliff Jones Keystone Legacy Award—Rob Wonderling
• Joseph Ibberson Government Award—Penn Nursery
• President’s Award—Greenwood Furnace State Park Complex
• Park of the Year Award—Gifford Pinchot State Park
• Forest of the Year—Tuscarora State Forest
• Volunteerism
• Education: Pam Karhan, Cherry Springs State Park
• Improvement: Ridge Runners, Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail
• Individual: Stephen Smetana, Nescopeck State Park
• Group: Save Our Native Species (SONS) of Lake Erie, Presque Isle State Park
• Young Volunteer: Zachary Jones,Gouldsboro State Park

We look forward to telling their stories over the next several months - and congratulating them in person in May!

Are you still in a New Year's resolution mood? How about #my12parks? You have two weeks left in the month to get January's under your belt.

Again, please consider writing a letter of comment on the 2015 State Forest Resource Management Plan. Want to know why? Watch Matt Keefer from DCNR tell you! (Lovely tie, Matt!)

Picture of the Week.

Thank you, readers! The call is being answered with wonderful folks sharing their stories and photos from the places they love. Your submission eagerly anticipated!

First up is Mary Ann who came to us first through a purchase of the Pennsylvania State Parks & State Forests Passport and then our Great Pennsylvania Outdoor Challenge a few years ago. Mary Ann shared the story of one of her crew's adventures on DCNR's Legacy of Conservation Heritage Geocaching Trail (now apparently no longer an "official thing"):

Our family took up geocaching 5 or 6 years ago. Many caches are hidden in recreational areas and finding them can give you a great workout. Several years ago, our family spent a weekend in North Central PA trying to finish the DCNR Legacy of Conservation geotrail, a series of 30 caches that were placed in out of the way spots in PA's wilder areas. One of the caches was at Raven's Horn, a large rock outcropping at the top of a hill on the Golden Eagle Trail in the Tiadaghton State Forest.

We started at the trail head, went along a pretty stream for about half a mile then took the path that climbed out of the valley across the face of the mountain to ascend to Raven's Horn 800 ft above us. Along the way we saw many less common native plants and beautiful old trees. At one point I stepped across what I thought was a small brown stick and my daughter said, "Mom, that's a snake!" It slithered away so quickly that I couldn't get a good look at it, but it didn't seem to be one of the more common ones we see at home. When we reached Raven's Horn, we had a beautiful view of the surrounding hilltops. We had been warned about rattlesnakes, and sure enough there was one curled up under a rock shelf taking a nap (pictured, though not visible, here with daughter Sharon). We went down below the rock outcropping and located the geocache fairly easily.

We continued down the trail along the steep, rocky edge of the mountain, stopping to observe a Red Eyed Vireo singing in the trees above us. We came to Wolf Run at the bottom of the trail and followed the creek to the Pine Creek Rail Trail. As we made our way back to our car, we saw a Yellow Warbler singing on the electric wires. What an exhilarating way to spend a morning.

If you'd like to learn more about geocaching, visit its page on the State Forests website, and keep your eyes open for instructional programs on the Calendar of Events. There's one coming up in April at Canoe Creek and as a part of the Women in the Wilds program at Black Moshannon in May. Pretty soon you'll be out there with the Pikes and other geoaficionados!

At Work & Play in the Parks & Forests.

South. 

Well, speaking of plunging into icy water, this weekend is SnowFest at Greenwood Furnace so you have your chance to cross any icy swim off your bucket list. Hope you've registered for the Friends' 5-miler, too!

East.

The Appalachian Mountain Club invites you to a lope along the Delaware Canal from Washington Crossing to New Hope on Saturday. This program will have a bit of everything from history of the past to history being made right now and a little time to spend in New Hope, too. Never been there? Do it!

North.

There's a WinterFest at Hills Creek. No icy swims, and the forecast looks a bit dicey for ice skating but you can get out and enjoy this lovely park. And a bit of a heads-up for next weekend at Bald Eagle State Park. Birds and Brew at the Nature Inn sounds absolutely divine.

West.

It's time for the 6th annual Winterfest at Moraine State Park with the Moraine Preservation Fund. Chili! Hot chocolate! 

No matter what region you're looking to visit, our website Calendar of Events, the DCNR Calendar of Events and the ever-expanding Get Outdoors PA calendar are all great sources for things to do and see.

Take Five for Trivia.

Last week's trivia to kick off the year was definitely one in the vein of "were you paying attention?" Up until last summer, there was only one state forest named for for a Pennsylvania governor - the Sproul for William Cameron Sproul, the 27th gov. However, last August the Lackawanna was renamed Pinchot State Forest in honor of his 150th birthday. So if you got it right you got to "win one for the Gifford." Yikes.

This week, in honor of all those lucky students taking SATs: "White pine is to ship masts as Eastern hemlock is to _______." 

Send in your answer and we'll enter your correct answer into our monthly prize drawing. All correct answers each week will go into the hat and at the end of the month we'll draw one lucky winner. 

The more correct answers you submit in a month (up to four or the occasional five depending on the month), the more chances you'll have to win.

In closing.