My wife and I have hiked and biked this trail many many times, March through November. Every time we go it seems that we always find something new to enjoy be it the flora, the fauna or the seasonal changes in the scenery. Unquestionably, our favorite part of the trail is the section between Rockland Road and the Belmar Bridge. There are five stream crossings on high trestles in this stretch with picture perfect views of classic Pennsylvania fly fishing waters... particularly stunning when the fall colors paint the hillsides with a mix of pines, primarily Eastern Hemlock. Be sure to bring your camera. A short tunnel adds a little fun and provides a very welcome place to chill during the heat of summer. If a lunch break or a splash in the creek is in your plan, approximately 1/4 mile west of the Rockland Road parking lot is a side trail (dirt) that leads over to a big swimming hole used by the locals throughout the summer. Look for a blue arrow spray painted on the edge of the asphalt. We've seen folks camping here quite a bit. Despite some graffiti and trash left behind it's still a beautiful spot. East of the Rockland Road parking area to Van and west of the Belmar Bridge are nice stretches as well but it's kind of like a sandwich... the good stuff is in the middle.

The Sandy Creek Trail connects with the Allegheny River/Justis Trail which greatly adds to the possibilities if you care to make an entire day of it... especially if cycling with friends and shuttling. A ride upstream along the Allegheny will take you to the lovely town of Franklin filled with victorian homes and variety of dining and shopping options. Downstream along the Allegheny leads into the quaint little town of Emlenton with a few small eateries and a nicely stocked IGA supermarket with prepared food.

My wife and I have ridden this trail a few times, most recently in October 2011. The trail surface is great. The scenery is good to great. The trailheads at each end are a bit hard to find. Get detailed directions from the trails web site http://www.avta-trails.org/sandy-creek-trail.html

The one shortcoming, and the reason I give the trail only 4 stars, is a total lack of toilets. It's also a bit remote from other public toilets, such as at gas stations, fast food restaurants, etc. Plan ahead a bit. Cut off your coffee consumption well in advance. Locate and visit a public toilet on your way to the trail. You will be happy you did.

My wife and I rode most of this trail Sept 9 2011. We parked just across the river from Franklin and rode 5 miles down to Sandy Creek. Yes, we did have to push the bikes up the stairs at the Belmar bridge but it was well worth it! I loved the Sandy Creek trail as soon as we started. Very isolated, no other traffic and no road crossings. It is slightly uphill heading away from the river but not a big deal. I enjoyed and my wife hated going through our first tunnel on bicycles. You ride high above Sandy Creek and cross on bridges often with great views. I found nothing negative to this trip. Round trip from Franklin was 21 miles.

This is a great trail but the eastern entrance is not well marked and difficult to find. It is worth finding. From old route 8 at the bottom of the hill where a high bridge crosses Sandy Creek you will see a sign for a bible camp. Enter there then take a right on a dirt road following the signs to Fisherman's cove. Trail head is almost 3 miles in just where the dirt road turns right up a steep hill.

Rode the bike for the first time on this trail yesterday. There is access on both sides of the Allegheny river with most of the trail being paved. The trail has a little bit of everything to see. In the short distance, has many bridges with scenic views, one was an old covered bridge. I was impressed on how they made the tunnel clean and safe to ride through. I also did a little Geocaching along the trail too.

My wife and I rode this trail on 4/15/2011 and have to say that of all the trails we have been on this is number 1.
I base this on the incredible scenery,the numerous bridges and the reconstructed train tunnel.
The only thing I would do different is next time I would start at Belmar and no fisherman's cove.There is not much to look at starting from the cove to Belmar,all the beauty is from Belmar to Van and if you just want a short incredible ride just go from Belmar toward Van and turn around about the 6 mile marker because you have seen the best there is up to this point.
If you want a long ride start at the cove and ride to van,(this is what we did) and well worth it.
We are looking for a way to kayak the creek sometime this summer,just not sure where to put in and take out.
Ride this trail,you won't be dissapointed!
The only con is that there are no portajohn's on the trail and no picnic tables or benches at Van which would be nice after a 12 mile ride to take a break.

We ride trikes, so our preferences and requirements for suitable trails are slightly different than those for two wheelers. That said, I can't imagine a better trail for the use of any type of wheels. Being paved, it's perfect for trikes. There are spots that are rippled like a wash board but HEY, it's paved, who cares. Riding through the Allegheny Forest, the scenery is spectacular and never-ending. We criss-crossed Sandy Creek for miles. Bridges are always fun but crossing the Allegheny River on a high bridge was thrilling. There are picnic tables and benches along the trail, but only one restroom, so be prepared. This trail has one short tunnel that has been resurfaced with concrete which brightens it enough to pass through without lights. However, you should be prepared and use lights because the same kind of people who paint the graffiti on the walls also leave soda cans standing upright on the path. I didn't turn my 'too bright' light on and hit one with my trike which made me glad I had three wheels. A two wheel biker may have lost his balance. The only trike specific problem we had was getting through the gates. Our trikes are almost 33" wide and some of the gates, I'd say, were only 34" wide so it was a really tight squeeze. We loved this ride and recommend it to everyone! It's a long trip for us to get here but well worth it and we'll be back.

In April of 2010 we rode this trail. It happened to be Earth Day. There were several groups of people on the trail cleaning up. It is a well maintained trail that connects to the Allegheny trail. We parked at the Rockland Rd. lot and it was easily accessible for an RV. It was mostly down hill to the Allegheny. We decided to ride the Allegheny trail for a short distance... we had walk our bikes down (and consequently back up) a stairwell with a "bike rail" to get to the Allegheny trail. Beautiful scenery and I bet in the fall it is a very busy trail.

To expand upon Brian's post below - the trail extension he spoke of down the west side of the Allegheny River has been completed for nearly a year. It follows the river for a distance of 5 miles to a secluded PA Fish Commission boat launch known as 'Fisherman's Cove'. This trailhead can be accessed from the south by traveling OLD Route 8 (that is the two lane highway, not the four lane) to Fisherman's Cove Road. The entire trail from Fisherman's Cove to the Van trailhead is 13 miles.

Also, the trail extension he spoke of on the Allegheny River Trail is complete. You can now ride right in to downtown Emlenton.

Photos of both these trails are on my website - http://www.themanfromvan.com

"This trail is a nice one, it's paved unlike most Rail Trails, so riding is really easy. It's a shallow downhill decent (almost level) from the trailhead in Van down to the Belmar bridge at the trail's end.

Along the way there are several bridges you pass over which gives a nice view of the creek below, and a short tunnel you pass through...the tunnel has bridges on either end leading up to it.

The trail is very secluded, and away from pretty much everything. The trailhead in Van is basically just a gravel/dirt parking lot with no restroom facilities. The Van trailhead is up a short gravel road in Van, just off Route 322, there's a sign along the road for it, but if you blink you'll miss it. Since the trail is secluded you'll need to bring food and water along with you if you need it. There is a portajohn at the Tailhead parking lot just across the big bridge in Belmar, but that's it as far as facilities goes.

When I was on the trail on 7/27/06 they were working on paving a new trail extension from Belmar that went along the West bank of the Allegheny River, though I'm not sure of what the completed length of this section will be. They were also working on paving a section of the Allegheny River Trail, South below the Rockland Tunnel. When I was there that day they had it paved up to a point about 3 miles North of the old Quaker State refinery in Emlenton.

"

Its a great trail to ride but
was closed.The tunnel is being
repaired it will open some time in august.

"Just a heads up that this trail (A.K.A. Sandy Creek Trail) is closed heading west at a point 5 miles west of the Van access point. There is no explanation other than the ""Trail Closed"" sign on the barricade. Also note that there is a road closed sign on Tarklin Rd. at the Van access point but the road is open to the trail access point."