As you roll through these quiet stretches, keep your eyes moving, because these two national forests are full of wildlife and the Skyway's slow pace and open overlooks give you a real chance to see it. Black bears live all through this country — you might catch one crossing a clearing or ambling along a ridge, especially at dawn or dusk; give them all the room in the world and never, ever get between a sow and her cubs. White-tailed deer step out onto the road at first and last light, so watch your speed then. Up on the high ridges, watch the sky for ravens — big, glossy black birds, bigger than any crow, that ride the wind along the crest and tumble through it just for fun.
And somewhere out in these woods, rooting up the forest floor, are the wild boar — the tusked descendants of that Hooper Bald menagerie you'll hear about. You're not likely to see one from the road, and that's probably for the best; a big boar is four hundred pounds of muscle and bad temper. So drive easy, look often, and let the mountain show you who lives here. On a good day it will.
Photo: DiscoA340 · CC BY-SA 4.0
