Pennypack Park in late fall - an easy creek walk from the Pennypack Environmental Center

Every year I tell myself I'll get down to Pennypack while the leaves are still turning, and every year I end up going in November instead. Honestly, I think November is better. Most of the leaves are down, so you can actually see the creek from the trail. On a weekday afternoon it's mostly you, a few dog walkers and whatever is splashing around in the water.

If you've never done Pennypack, or you haven't been since you were a kid on a bike, this is the easy way back in.

What you're walking into

Pennypack Park is a city park that follows Pennypack Creek across the Northeast. Visit Philadelphia describes it as stretching nine miles, from the Montgomery County line southeast to the Delaware River, and covering more than 1,600 acres of woods, meadows, wetlands and fields. It's laced with paved and unpaved trails that walkers, runners, cyclists and horseback riders all share.

Visit Philly also says the name comes from a Lenni Lenape word for slow-moving water. Stand on the bank for a minute in late fall and you'll see why it stuck. Most days Pennypack Creek is wide, brown and in no hurry at all.

Start at the Pennypack Environmental Center

The simplest door into Pennypack Park is the Pennypack Environmental Center, which everybody calls PEC. It's a Parks & Recreation nature center on Verree Road (the city lists it at 8600A Verree Rd), on the Bustleton and Fox Chase side of the park. There's a free lot at the center plus street parking along Verree Road, and it's a short walk on pavement from the lot to the building.

PEC runs nature programs most of the year, so it's worth a look at what's coming up before you go. The staff answer email at pec@phila.gov, and the phone is 215-685-0470. I'd call ahead before counting on the building or the bathrooms, because I couldn't find posted hours on a current city page.

The walk

From PEC, head down toward Pennypack Creek and pick up the trail along the water. Then choose a direction. Downstream takes you toward Holmesburg and eventually the Delaware. Upstream takes you back toward Fox Chase and the county line.

My plan for a first visit is about as simple as it gets. Walk along the creek for 45 minutes, turn around and come back. If you keep the creek on one side going out and the other side coming back, you really can't get lost. I'm not going to give you a mileage for it, because it depends on how often you stop, and in November you'll stop a lot.

If you want dirt under your feet, the unpaved side trails climb the slopes and drop back down toward the creek. PEC warns that its trails are rocky and uneven, so wear real shoes and skip the brand-new white sneakers.

What to look for in November

With the leaves down, Pennypack Park opens up. You'll spot the creek from places where all summer you only heard it. The trunks along the water stand out, and the brush near the meadows gets busy with small birds. If you're lucky, a heron might be working the shallows. No promises on the heron. He has his own schedule.

Look for old stone, too. Visit Philadelphia says that as early as 1690 Pennypack Creek was powering a grist mill, that the Verree family later built mills along it, and that by the mid-1800s this stretch was known as Verreeville. The Verree and Klein houses are still in the park, the leftovers of a small industrial village that turned out flour, lumber, edge tools and textiles. It's a good reminder that Pennypack Creek was a workplace long before it was a place to walk the dog.

Visit Philly also notes that arrowheads and stone tools still turn up in the park, left from the Lenape presence long before any mill. If you see something, leave it where it is. It's history, and it isn't yours to take home.

Farther downstream, Frankford Avenue crosses Pennypack Creek in Holmesburg on an old stone bridge that has a whole story of its own. I'm saving that one for a future Deep cut.

Watch the clock

The clocks fall back on Sunday, Nov 1, and after that the sun sets right around 5 in the Northeast. Under the trees along Pennypack Creek it gets dim earlier than that. If you're starting from PEC, get on the trail by about 2:30 so you're walking out in daylight. Bring a layer, because it cools off fast by the water once the sun drops.

Make an evening of it

If you'd rather see Pennypack in the dark with company, PEC is hosting a Stone Soup Campfire on Friday, Nov 6, from 5:30 to 7pm. Everybody brings $5 cash or one vegetable, it all goes into a cauldron over the fire, and you hear the Stone Soup story while it cooks. Marshmallows are included. You register ahead through PEC's form, and PEC says it's best for adults and families with older kids and teens. Details are in this week's Season section.

Getting there without a car

Several SEPTA bus routes stop within walking distance of park entrances along Verree Road and the streets that cross Pennypack. SEPTA has been reworking its bus network, so I'm not printing route numbers that might be stale by the time you read this. Plug "Pennypack Environmental Center" into SEPTA's trip planner and it'll give you the current routes.

A few ground rules

• Dogs: keep them on a leash. You'll meet plenty of other dogs.
• Bikes: the paved trail is shared, so walk on the right and look over your shoulder before you drift.
• The creek: it isn't a swimming spot, even when it looks calm.
• Ticks: PEC reminds everyone that ticks don't hibernate. Do a tick check when you get home.
• Trash: carry out whatever you carry in.

The short version

Pennypack Park follows Pennypack Creek across the Northeast, and late fall is when you can finally see the water through the trees. Park at the Pennypack Environmental Center on Verree Road, walk the creek for 45 minutes, turn around and be out before the light goes, which after Nov 1 is around 5. Come back Nov 6 for soup by the fire.