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Water: Up, Down, and All Around
by Catherine Smith
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At ChicoryLane water is ever-present and always changing. In springtime, mud puddles and wet ruts in paths are common. The house basement might flood then, too. One rainy April, I called a friend who, like me, lived in a house built into a hillside. “Do you have water in your basement?” I asked. “No,” she replied. “I opened the basement door. It’s just moving through.”
This newsletter focuses on freshwater—its many forms and the way it behaves. Freshwater’s varied forms and restless shape-shifting are characteristics of ChicoryLane. For example, in the rutted wet path (photo, right), did that puddled water come down in rainfall or ooze out of saturated soil? Maybe both. Will it evaporate up to become clouds in the sky or soak down into soil and rock to become groundwater? Again, maybe both. All of that might happen in a puddle’s lifetime.
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In Pennsylvania, most freshwater is below ground—about thirty times more than on the surface. Here in the Susquehanna River Basin of central Pennsylvania’s ridge and valley terrain, underground freshwater rises to the surface primarily through springs. Some springs are famous. Think historic tourist attractions such as Penn’s Cave’s spring-fed lake, Bellefonte’s Big Spring Park, or Woodward Cave’s Sinking Creek. Other springs are obscure but important, supplying water for drinking, cooking, and washing to households and communities throughout Penns, Brush, and Georges Valleys in southeastern Centre County.
At ChicoryLane in Penns Valley, household water and the farm pond come from spring-fed groundwater. As seen in the image left (enlarged view), that water passes through ancient sedimentary rock layers composed of shale, sandstone, and limestone. On the surface, streams carry recent rain mixed with older groundwater.
Groundwater can surprise you. For example, in Brush Valley with many springs along the base of ridges but few out in the valley floor, household basements can suddenly fill with water, then empty just as suddenly in dry weather. Why? Groundwater moves. As it flows through soil and rock layers, it might rise and fall in a basement. Or open a new sinkhole in a field.
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A conservation easement gives ChicoryLane’s owners a legal right and responsibility to care for all these waters:
Chicory Lane includes water resources including perennial as well as intermittent seasonal surface streams, storm runoffs, several types of wetlands, pond and vernal pool impoundments, ground waters and subsurface flows. This Conservation Easement seeks to protect the quality of water resources within or in the vicinity of the Property by implementing measures that help protect water resources from sediment and non-point pollution and promote the . . . natural filtration of storm water (ChicoryLane Easement, 2017).
As protections, ChicoryLane’s paths and driveways are unpaved, allowing water to soak in rather than rush off. Restored wetlands and vernal pools absorb excess rain. Native shrubs and trees stabilize soil and limit erosion. Plank walkways and corduroy log bridges provide low-impact access to marshy areas. A mix of volunteer and paid labor, public funding, and our own time and resources make these protections possible.
From clouds, to rain, to puddles, streams, groundwaters, aquifers and around again, water cycles endlessly through ChicoryLane.
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Images, above
Top left: A corduroy bridge of logs placed perpendicular to the direction of the path enables low-impact access to wet areas
Top right: Visitors on corduroy bridge
Bottom left: a puncheon rough plank walkway enables marsh-crossing
Bottom right: 3:26 minute video shows James Lesher constructing a puncheon walkway
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References and Resources
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Conservation Easement dated July 2017 by and between John B. Smith and Catherine F. Smith and Clearwater Conservancy of Central Pennsylvania. Article 1.section 1.05 (a)(i), Water Resources
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Gary M. Fleeger, The Geology of Pennsylvania’s Groundwater, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), 1999
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Rick Henry with Centre County GIS, Gregg Township Geology and Hydrogeology, 2025
- Susquehanna River Basin
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Wikipedia, Corduroy Road
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Wikipedia, Groundwater Recharge
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David M. Carroll, Following the Water: A Hydromancer's Notebook, 2009
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2025 Upcoming Events at a Glance - Save the Dates
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Spring Bird Walk with Joe Gyekis - April 19
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Summer Open Day with various guides - June 7
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Writing in Place with Travis Wingard, PSU Extension Educator - July 23
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Ecological Enhancement with John Smith, James Lesher, Sam Stoltzfus - August 9
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Black Walnut Natural Dyeing with Cathryn Pugh, PSU Extension Educator - August 16
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Fall Bird Walk with Joe Gyekis - September 13
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Fall Open Day with various guides - October 18
See detail here, including event times and descriptions
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ChicoryLane is an ecological reserve near Spring Mills protected by a Conservation Easement held by Clearwater Conservancy. Its 68 acres are actively managed for conservation.
The landscape is natural and scenic. It includes wetlands and meadows, streams, remnant and successional forests, and a grassland. This diversity of habitats is especially inviting to birds and butterflies. A system of mowed trails makes most of the property accessible to walkers.
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