Wintergreen Gorge

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View from the Wintergreen Gorge Bridge into Wintergreen Gorge Four Mile Creek from Wintergreen Gorge Bridge.jpg
View from the Wintergreen Gorge Bridge into Wintergreen Gorge

Wintergreen Gorge is a six-mile-long canyon located in Harborcreek Township, Erie County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The canyon reaches 250 feet deep at its highest point, gradually becoming shallower as it proceeds north. It is situated along Fourmile Creek and is partially on the campus of Penn State Behrend. The Bayfront Connector spans the gorge over the Wintergreen Gorge Bridge.

Wintergreen Gorge was named for the wintergreen plant that was commonly found in the canyon. [1] The gorge is also home to wide swaths of forest, as well as a variety of plant and animal life. [2]

A series of trails have been created to allow access to the canyon while promoting sustainable trail practices. [3]

Formation

Wintergreen Gorge was formed 11,000 years ago by Fourmile Creek eroding the glacial debris left behind from the last ice age when the glaciers retreated 20,000 years ago [4] and eroding further into shale from the late Devonian period.

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Fourmile or Four Mile may refer to:

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The Wintergreen Gorge Bridge is a 1,114-foot (340 m), steel, plate girder bridge that carries Pennsylvania Route 290 and the Bayfront Connector over Fourmile Creek and the Wintergreen Gorge in Harborcreek Township, Erie County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is both the second-longest and the second-highest bridge in Erie County, with the Interstate 79 bridge in the city of Erie and the Interstate 90 bridge over Sixmile Creek being the longest and the highest, respectively.

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References

  1. Federal Writer's Project (1940). Pennsylvania: A Guide to the Keystone State. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 579.
  2. "Ecology". sites.psu.edu. Retrieved 2023-01-11.
  3. "Hiking Trails". sites.psu.edu. Retrieved 2023-01-11.
  4. Cuneo, Robin (August 15, 2005). "Gorgeous gorge". Erie Times-News . Retrieved May 27, 2009.

42°06′34″N79°59′15″W / 42.1095°N 79.9876°W / 42.1095; -79.9876