An overnight Nature Conservancy trip took me through the Delaware Water Gap last week, and I made a quick stop to climb Mount Tammany in nearby Worthington State Forest.

The 1,527-foot-high summit offers terrific panoramic views of the Delaware watershed, where The Nature Conservancy and its partners are doing a lot of environmental restoration work.

The ascent up the red trail took roughly an hour of aggressive hiking/scrambling up rocks, but it was well worth the effort. The view will only get more spectacular as the foliage changes.

The descent, down the blue trail, is much easier and features a waterfall. I also saw a cool frog and Question Mark or Comma butterfly along the way. Lots of vultures and a Red-tail, but an otherwise slow mid-morning for birds.

No matter which way you go, bring plenty of water, a hiking pole and a cellphone (for any emergencies).

Mount Tammany is an hour or so from the Celery Farm, just off Route 80 just before the bridge into Pennsylvania.

More about Mount Tammany here.