Explore the best rated trails in New Castle, PA. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Western Reserve Greenway and Portage Hike and Bike Trail. With more than 45 trails covering 4397 miles you’re bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The short but scenic Cowanshannock Trail is a great pathway for hikers, walkers, and bikers to use to link to the larger Armstrong Trail. The Cowanshannock is 1.27 miles long, and plans are to extend...
The 11.7-mile John C. Oliver Multi-Purpose Loop Trail is a centerpiece of Maurice K. Goddard State Park, which spans 2,856 acres in northwestern Pennsylvania. The mostly shaded, paved, off-road trail...
Fifty years after the last trolley cars ran on the Penn-Ohio Electric System between Youngstown, Ohio, and New Castle, Pennsylvania, in 1932, travelers on foot, bikes, and skates began using the...
Keep your eyes open for wildlife when you visit the Allegheny River Trail. This segment of the Allegheny River—once a canoe route for local tribes and French trappers—was designated a national wild...
As it winds along Oil Creek, McClintock Trail connects Oil Creek State Park with Oil City. Note that much of the route is on-road. Just south of the park, a 1.8-mile section on Waitz Road, a dirt...
Oil flows through the veins of the Samuel Justus Recreation Trail. Its northern departure point is Oil City, which was founded during the 1860s oil boom and became the headquarters for several...
The Oil City Trail connects the Samuel Justus Recreation Trail and the McClintock Trail through the center of Oil City, Pennsylvania. The 2-mile walking and biking pathway runs along the Allegheny...
Note: This developing route is not yet fully contiguous – it is just over 50% complete. Please refer to the Trail Map for more information on the existing sections of trail, as well as the online...
The 4.5-mile Mahoning Valley Trail snakes its way south from the Deer Creek Reservoir to the City of Alliance. The reservoir is a popular amenity for fishing, kayaking, canoeing, and bird-and-wildlife...
The Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) is an iconic rail-trail that runs 150 miles from Cumberland, Maryland, to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and was built in partnership between state agencies and many local...
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Ohio's Nickel Plate Trail runs for 2.5 miles from 5th Street near Ravenna Avenue (Metzger Park) to a point just south of Georgetown Road. The wooded corridor follows an old railroad right-of-way...
A short, but sweet, unassuming trail which runs on former trolley right-of-way while flanked by Clearview Avenue above and Crafton Boulevard below. Provides a traffic-free alternative to busy Crafton...
The nearly 11-mile MetroParks Bikeway provides a scenic and well-designed link to communities and natural sites in this northeast region of Ohio. The rail-trail follows a corridor between Canfield and...
The Clarion Highlands Trail is one of the highest rail-trails in the Commonwealth. It traverses the Allegheny Plateau, passing over the divide between the Clarion and Allegheny Rivers, and follows the...
Three Rivers Heritage Trail features the best that the city of Pittsburgh has to offer, connecting major cultural venues, the downtown area, historical sites, and some of the city’s most well-known...
Moraine State Park features a nearly seven mile bike trail, which follows the north shore of Lake Arthur. Along the way, you'll enjoy beautiful scenery, especially during the fall as trees line the...
Built in 1871 to transport the region’s high-quality limestone to support Pittsburgh’s growing steel industry, the Butler Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad was the first railroad in Butler County....
The Western Reserve Greenway travels 43 miles through a scenic, mostly rural area, cutting a north–south course from Ashtabula to Warren in northeastern Ohio. The route follows much of the...
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The Iron Horse Trail runs along the corridor of a railroad that originally connected Alliance and Minerva. The north section runs from State St, across from the University of Mount Union, to the...
The Trout Island Trail is planned to be a 13-mile rail-trail along the former Erie and Pittsburgh Railroad. Currently, 2.4 miles are open and fully paved in Sharpsville, following the Shenango River...
Three Rivers Heritage Trail features the best that the city of Pittsburgh has to offer, connecting major cultural venues, the downtown area, historical sites, and some of the city’s most well-known...
Washington's Landing, a 42-acre island in the Allegheny River, is now home to a thriving mixed-use community after a successful brownfield reclamation. The Washington's Landing Trail forms almost a...
Situated in downtown Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, the asphalt trail runs through a park setting on the former Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad close to the Beaver River and ending near the rugby...
The Redbank Valley Trail follows a rail corridor developed by the Allegheny Valley Railroad in 1872 to carry passengers, coal, and lumber to Pittsburgh and beyond. Passenger service along the line...
Note: This developing route is not yet fully contiguous – it is just over 50% complete. Please refer to the Trail Map for more information on the existing sections of trail, as well as the online...
A short, but sweet, unassuming trail which runs on former trolley right-of-way while flanked by Clearview Avenue above and Crafton Boulevard below. Provides a traffic-free alternative to busy Crafton...
The Airport Connector is a spur off the impressive Montour Trail that circles the western outskirts of Pittsburgh. The paved pathway begins just off the extended-term parking lot on the western end of...
The Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) is an iconic rail-trail that runs 150 miles from Cumberland, Maryland, to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and was built in partnership between state agencies and many local...
Moraine State Park features a nearly seven mile bike trail, which follows the north shore of Lake Arthur. Along the way, you'll enjoy beautiful scenery, especially during the fall as trees line the...
The bucolic Headwaters Trail is a pleasant 8-mile journey through the rural landscape between Mantua and Garrettsville. The path has a crushed-stone surface and is mostly shaded. It follows the route...
The 4.5-mile Mahoning Valley Trail snakes its way south from the Deer Creek Reservoir to the City of Alliance. The reservoir is a popular amenity for fishing, kayaking, canoeing, and bird-and-wildlife...
The Tredway Trail's full name is the Wynn and Clara Tredway River Trail, a 4.3-mile run on the eastern side of the Allegheny River just north of New Kensington. The trail is included in an initiative...
The Shenango River Trail once served as a towpath along the Erie Canal Extension. During the mid-1800s, mules pulled boats along the canal, linking goods from the Great Lakes to Pittsburgh and beyond....
The Niles Greenway is a paved, multi-use path running northsouth between the county line on the south and the town of Niles. The pleasant trail passes through a mix of wooded areas, scattered light...
Oil flows through the veins of the Samuel Justus Recreation Trail. Its northern departure point is Oil City, which was founded during the 1860s oil boom and became the headquarters for several...
The Clarion Highlands Trail is one of the highest rail-trails in the Commonwealth. It traverses the Allegheny Plateau, passing over the divide between the Clarion and Allegheny Rivers, and follows the...
Keep your eyes open for wildlife when you visit the Allegheny River Trail. This segment of the Allegheny River—once a canoe route for local tribes and French trappers—was designated a national wild...
It’s hard to believe that the world’s first oil boom occurred along the path of what’s now the Oil Creek State Park Trail. The park’s forests, beaver ponds, and trout streams were once the site of oil...
The Newton Falls Trail, built on a former railroad bed, follows the Mahoning River as it winds its way downtown. The route provides pleasant neighborhood views of the quaint township that was...
One of Pennsylvania's rail-with-trails, where trains and trail users share a corridor, the Arboretum Trail is a lovely landscaped trail through downtown Oakmont. The rail corridor has a dramatic...
Fifty years after the last trolley cars ran on the Penn-Ohio Electric System between Youngstown, Ohio, and New Castle, Pennsylvania, in 1932, travelers on foot, bikes, and skates began using the...
The Berlin Lake Trail lies mid-way between Cleveland and Pittsburgh in Deerfield Township of Portage County. The 2-mile crushed limestone rail-trail crosses Berlin Lake, traveling through wooded areas...
The Shenango River Trail once served as a towpath along the Erie Canal Extension. During the mid-1800s, mules pulled boats along the canal, linking goods from the Great Lakes to Pittsburgh and beyond....
The Clarion Highlands Trail is one of the highest rail-trails in the Commonwealth. It traverses the Allegheny Plateau, passing over the divide between the Clarion and Allegheny Rivers, and follows the...
The Redbank Valley Trail follows a rail corridor developed by the Allegheny Valley Railroad in 1872 to carry passengers, coal, and lumber to Pittsburgh and beyond. Passenger service along the line...
Located on the abandoned Erie and Pittsburgh branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad, this short but intriguing trail runs through Pymatuning State Park, a large and popular two-state recreation area...
The 4.5-mile Mahoning Valley Trail snakes its way south from the Deer Creek Reservoir to the City of Alliance. The reservoir is a popular amenity for fishing, kayaking, canoeing, and bird-and-wildlife...
Moraine State Park features a nearly seven mile bike trail, which follows the north shore of Lake Arthur. Along the way, you'll enjoy beautiful scenery, especially during the fall as trees line the...
Mile marker 0 for the Little Beaver Creek Greenway Trail can be found at its southern in Lisbon. Located in a former railroad depot, the Lisbon trailhead is about a quarter mile from the actual start...
The Western Reserve Greenway travels 43 miles through a scenic, mostly rural area, cutting a north–south course from Ashtabula to Warren in northeastern Ohio. The route follows much of the...
Ohio's Nickel Plate Trail runs for 2.5 miles from 5th Street near Ravenna Avenue (Metzger Park) to a point just south of Georgetown Road. The wooded corridor follows an old railroad right-of-way...
As it winds along Oil Creek, McClintock Trail connects Oil Creek State Park with Oil City. Note that much of the route is on-road. Just south of the park, a 1.8-mile section on Waitz Road, a dirt...
The Newton Falls Trail, built on a former railroad bed, follows the Mahoning River as it winds its way downtown. The route provides pleasant neighborhood views of the quaint township that was...
Situated in downtown Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, the asphalt trail runs through a park setting on the former Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad close to the Beaver River and ending near the rugby...
Oil flows through the veins of the Samuel Justus Recreation Trail. Its northern departure point is Oil City, which was founded during the 1860s oil boom and became the headquarters for several...
The Vestal Trail is 0.5-mile connection through town of McCandless that joins the Oakridge neighborhood to the playing fields at its eastern end. The trail is maintained by volunteers of the Rachel...
The Tredway Trail's full name is the Wynn and Clara Tredway River Trail, a 4.3-mile run on the eastern side of the Allegheny River just north of New Kensington. The trail is included in an initiative...
It’s hard to believe that the world’s first oil boom occurred along the path of what’s now the Oil Creek State Park Trail. The park’s forests, beaver ponds, and trout streams were once the site of oil...
The Oil City Trail connects the Samuel Justus Recreation Trail and the McClintock Trail through the center of Oil City, Pennsylvania. The 2-mile walking and biking pathway runs along the Allegheny...
The Portage Hike and Bike Trail stretches nearly 10 miles between Kent and Ravenna, about 40 miles southeast of Cleveland and the southern shores of Lake Erie. As of December 2015, its entire length...
In Pittsburgh, if you are cycling enthusiast, you must experience Bicycle Heaven - It is a nonprofit, private collection with over 5,000 complete bikes and even more bicycle parts that it is overwhelming. Some bikes date back to the late 1800s to the present.
Departing Pittsburgh’s concrete jungle, I highly recommend that you have the GAP route available on a GPS device as it is marked but you can miss the signs as you are focused on the traffic. Once on the gravel portion, it is an easy navigation exercise!
At the trailheads, there were plenty of new bicycle repair/air pump stations.
The illuminated 3,000’+ Savage Tunnel was an amazing experience as was experiencing the Mason Dixon Line.
Also, confirm (call) your dining options along the trail as even if sites on the internet say they will be open during your visit, you may be disappointed and going hungry due to staffing issues.
Chilly and breezy Fall day but the sun was out! Parked just off of Route 88 in Bristolville and rode down to South of Sunside and back then up to the Ashtabula/Trumbull county line. Round trip 30 miles. Leaves starting to change but not as much as they should be for this time of year.
Parked at the new parking area at the Monroe Road trailhead. Buffalo Creek Nature preserve. Picnic area and restrooms when open. Biked down to Freeport (downhill) then back up and continued North the Dittmer Road and back down. Nice ride. Pedaling uphill was a workout but the return trip very nice downhill!
Great walk today along the water near the mill. leaves falling, smell of fresh pine and nuts. great time!
With all the beautiful trails nearby, this one should be last on your bike trails. Not much to see, most mile markers are missing. The park at the east end road is in poor condition. I recommended finding a better trail to ride.
Started in Hawthorn at Gabriel’s Restaurant and north 6 miles then return. Nice trail next to river, saw several Deer with Forrest views.
This trail is divided into 3 sections: Central, North and South. Central and South have been connected and now the 1.5 mile connector though Chardon to the North section is completed. You can ride 20 miles and remain on the trail the entire time. New trailhead on Park Avenue in Chardon has restrooms, parking and picnic area.
Parked at Headwaters Park and biked North including thru Chardon to where the trail ends at Girdled Road.
There is also a parking lot at the Big Creek Park spur.
Hilly section is the North section which follows Route 44.
Great ride from Headwaters to Girdled Road, 30 mile round trip.
My buddy and I rode the entire lower section of the Armstrong Trail this past weekend from Rosston to East Brady and back and were well pleased with the trail. We started at the parking area at/near the Rosston Marina and headed south over the decked Crooked Creek bridge to a dead end .2 miles from the parking area and then turned around. Just a short ways up the trail you hit Ford City and the trail is paved. I liked this area. The pavement was pretty good with practically no heaves but there were some little ruts across the trail which were not bad at all. There is an old factory you ride by but it isn't trashy. The trail then turns back to crushed gravel/limestone sand for a ways before hitting Kittanning. Pavement again and there were some areas with root heaves but really not that bad - just stand up off the seat for a few moments. This area was pleasant also. After Kittanning the pavement ends and you're basically in the woods and alongside the river the rest of the way. You do go through the small town of Templeton but that's it till East Brady. In East Brady you pick up pavement again starting with Shady Shores Drive and then an actual trail by the park which dead ends at the intersection of 6th St and Purdum St. This is the last point I saw an actual "Armstrong Trail" sign but there were green and white signs with a bike image and the words "Bike Path" along the streets. We followed those out Purdum St to 3rd St to Kellys Way out to the Old Bank Deli and saw that they continued. This brings me to a gripe about the Armstrong Trail. Traillink and the trail's website list this section of the trail as 31 miles long so we thought we could squeeze in a metric century ride (62.13 miles) with just a little extra riding. However, I believe that the 31 miles includes this road riding because the trail signs along the way show the trail going through East Brady and continuing to follow Rt 68 across the Allegheny River and then turning north, probably onto Seybertown Rd. Our round trip mileage to this point with a detour to the park was 60.75 miles. Anyway, we grabbed some pastries at the Deli then rode back through town and down to the Riverside Park which was very nice. Paved trails, picnic tables and a very nice shelter with benches facing the river. We enjoyed our lunch there and then did the long ride back.
Pros of the trail - the surface where it wasn't paved was GAP level smooth. About as good as it gets. There were well spaced benches for resting. Plenty of historical interest with lots of signs with titles big enough to read without stopping if you wanted to. The Allegheny River is right beside you almost the entire time and it is a nice, clean river to look at. The Riverside Park in East Brady is a nice touch and a great place to stop. There are a lot of summer campsites along the river and they were very clean and well kept - a pleasure to look at.
Cons - beside the aforementioned root heaves in Kittanning there were a few short gravelly sections that could be fixed up and the smaller bridges with wooden decking were rough - they really need redecked. The biggest con in my opinion was the lack of trailside amenities. There were almost none. I saw nothing in Ford City or Kittanning. To be honest those towns were near the beginning or end of our ride so I went back to Google Drive through there (which doesn't cover a lot of the area) and there is a pizza place in Kittanning but that looks to be it right on the trail. There are places to be sure in Kittanning but they are off the trail a ways. After that there is nothing until East Brady and the pickings are slim there. Of course, you have to ride into town which wasn't bad and there is the Old Bank Deli with pastries, ice cream, coffee, etc. I also saw a pizza place and there was a gas station/food mart. That was about it. If you're doing the entire thing like we did bring your own lunch. We did and I'm glad.
Overall this was a nice trail and I suspect if/when the Erie to Pittsburgh connection is complete and through riders start using this that more trailside amenities may open. Until then, go knowing you might want to pack your own food (or ride off the trail a bit) and enjoy. Outside of the two larger towns we saw almost no one. On a sunny, pleasant Saturday over 60+ miles we saw less than a dozen bikers (some twice) and maybe one jogger. I was amazed by that. The middle section of the trail is quite isolated and even though there apparently was a trailhead at Rimer we didn't realize it since no one was there.
Go, enjoy the trail and maybe if enough people use it a few more establishments will pop up.
This was our first time riding this trail. It was so peaceful and beautiful ride. At the North end is Drake Well that’s a must to see!!! They have a bike rack and very nice helpful people. We told “Vicky” that a tree was down on the trail and she let park rangers know to get it cleaned off the trail and thanked us for letting her know. We will be back!!!
Just finished this trail. My only advise, DO NOT start at the bailey trailhead. It is fine for a walking trail but definitely too rough for bikers. Otherwise this was a beautiful, easy ride. Start at krider road trailhead or bean's trailhead. Either way you go, will be an enjoyable, easy ride.
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