Explore the best rated trails in Oil City, PA. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Redbank Valley Rail Trail and Clarion Highlands. With more than 38 trails covering 414 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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You’ll want to pack water, food, and flashlights to travel the Sandy Creek Trail, as it crosses 12 miles of remote, but scenic, countryside in Northwestern Pennsylvania. Named for separate Sandy...
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...
Located on the western side of the Allegheny National Forest, this trail extends north to south, parallel to the Allegheny River from the town of Tidioute to Grove Run. The trail retains much of the...
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The East Branch Trail is a rare dual-lane rail-trail. The 8-foot asphalt lane serves walkers, bicyclists, in-line skaters, and people in wheelchairs. Horses, specifically horses pulling Amish buggies...
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...
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...
The Armstrong Trail connects riverfront towns along the east bank of the Allegheny River as it winds through the lush Allegheny Plateau. The flat trail, currently 35.5 miles, follows the river...
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...
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 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 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...
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...
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 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...
Tracing a section of the abandoned Rural Valley Railroad corridor the Great Shamokin Path parallels the Cowanshannock Creek for 3.5 miles. The eastern part of the trail, which is surfaced primarily...
Deep within the Allegheny National Forest lies a rail-trail with a past. The Kinzua Valley Trail follows the route of the former Kinzua and Hemlock Railroad (later Valley Railroad) near the town of...
Located along the banks of Conewango Creek, the open 3-mile segment of this proposed 11-mile trail follows an old New York Central branch north from the city of Warren. Designed to serve primarily as...
Running 1.5 miles, the Queen City Trail serves as a community connector for the small city of Titusville, where the American oil industry began in 1859. The trail provides a short, paved connection...
Rail 66 Country Trail is a rustic trail paralleling Route 66, that begins in the Village of Marianne near the Clarion Junction (SR 322/SR 66) and extends north to the Clarion/Forest County line. The...
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 Mill Creek Trail serves as a connector between Twin Lakes Recreation Area and the Brush Hollow Trail. Just south of Forest Road 138, the Mill Creek Trail leaves the Twin Lakes Trail and heads...
The Clarion-Little Toby Trail lets you venture on the wild side for 18 miles as it traverses remote state hunting grounds adjoining the Allegheny National Forest. You’ll likely see deer and other...
Tracing a section of the abandoned Rural Valley Railroad corridor the Great Shamokin Path parallels the Cowanshannock Creek for 3.5 miles. The eastern part of the trail, which is surfaced primarily...
The Five Bridges Trail in northwestern Pennsylvania uses a portion of the former Pittsburgh and Shawmut Railroad corridor, which ran from Brockway to Brookville. Begin at the western end of the...
This trail passes through a variety of pleasing landscapes. The area near Crane Run is especially scenic. The trail is marked with white diamonds. The skill level of this trail is rated more...
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 Armstrong Trail connects riverfront towns along the east bank of the Allegheny River as it winds through the lush Allegheny Plateau. The flat trail, currently 35.5 miles, follows the river...
Running 1.5 miles, the Queen City Trail serves as a community connector for the small city of Titusville, where the American oil industry began in 1859. The trail provides a short, paved connection...
This trail is not groomed. Three stacked loops offer a variety of hiking and skiing opportunities at a range of difficulty levels. The trail starts out on a railroad grade along Big Mill Creek. This...
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...
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 Bayfront Connector Trail, also known as the Bayfront Bikeway, offers a paved route across the city of Erie in northwestern Pennsylvania. At its east end is the Penn State Behrend campus; from...
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 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...
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...
The East Branch Trail is a rare dual-lane rail-trail. The 8-foot asphalt lane serves walkers, bicyclists, in-line skaters, and people in wheelchairs. Horses, specifically horses pulling Amish buggies...
Starting in Meadville, known as the home of the zipper, the 7.2-mile Ernst Trail closes the gap between the city and surrounding forests and farms for visitors. The trail is named for Calvin Ernst,...
If Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow on Groundhog Day, Mahoning Shadow Trail users expect six more weeks of winter before spring arrives. The 15-mile Central Pennsylvania trail passes through the...
You’ll want to pack water, food, and flashlights to travel the Sandy Creek Trail, as it crosses 12 miles of remote, but scenic, countryside in Northwestern Pennsylvania. Named for separate Sandy...
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...
Deep within the Allegheny National Forest lies a rail-trail with a past. The Kinzua Valley Trail follows the route of the former Kinzua and Hemlock Railroad (later Valley Railroad) near the town of...
The Mill Creek Trail serves as a connector between Twin Lakes Recreation Area and the Brush Hollow Trail. Just south of Forest Road 138, the Mill Creek Trail leaves the Twin Lakes Trail and heads...
The Marienville Bike Trail is part of a system of roads and trails in the Allegheny National Forest. The trails are open to mountain bikes, trail bikes, and ATVs and are rated as difficult because of...
Located along the banks of Conewango Creek, the open 3-mile segment of this proposed 11-mile trail follows an old New York Central branch north from the city of Warren. Designed to serve primarily as...
This trail passes through a variety of pleasing landscapes. The area near Crane Run is especially scenic. The trail is marked with white diamonds. The skill level of this trail is rated more...
The East Branch Trail is a rare dual-lane rail-trail. The 8-foot asphalt lane serves walkers, bicyclists, in-line skaters, and people in wheelchairs. Horses, specifically horses pulling Amish buggies...
You’ll want to pack water, food, and flashlights to travel the Sandy Creek Trail, as it crosses 12 miles of remote, but scenic, countryside in Northwestern Pennsylvania. Named for separate Sandy...
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 route is primitive and unimproved. The trail crosses several streams that are not bridged. The trail follows the scenic Tionesta Creek with lots of great scenery and fishing.
This trail is not groomed. The three loops are suitable for beginners. The trail is marked with blue diamonds. Check out the short 1.2 mile Hearts Content Interpretive Trail which offers a scenic hike...
The Armstrong Trail connects riverfront towns along the east bank of the Allegheny River as it winds through the lush Allegheny Plateau. The flat trail, currently 35.5 miles, follows the river...
Starting in Meadville, known as the home of the zipper, the 7.2-mile Ernst Trail closes the gap between the city and surrounding forests and farms for visitors. The trail is named for Calvin Ernst,...
Tracing a section of the abandoned Rural Valley Railroad corridor the Great Shamokin Path parallels the Cowanshannock Creek for 3.5 miles. The eastern part of the trail, which is surfaced primarily...
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 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...
Located on the western side of the Allegheny National Forest, this trail extends north to south, parallel to the Allegheny River from the town of Tidioute to Grove Run. The trail retains much of 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....
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 Clarion-Little Toby Trail lets you venture on the wild side for 18 miles as it traverses remote state hunting grounds adjoining the Allegheny National Forest. You’ll likely see deer and other...
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...
Trail is complete from Route 322 in Shippenville to the Forest County Line. Brand new asphalt paved section recently extended from mile marker 12 in Leeper to mile marker 20.5 at the Clarion-Forest County line.
The mid section of the trail, mile markers 5.5 to 7.5 which were tar and chipped since 2013, has been resurfaced with new asphalt.
Once you come to the end of the trail at Blood road, you can access the Four Seasons Marienville Trail for an additional 6 miles into Marienville.
Beautiful colors of Fall to enjoy on the trail.
Beautiful fall foliage hanging on! Rode with a group of friends we traveled from nearby Mercer and Clarion counties.
We biked from Emlenton to Kennerdell and back. Enjoyed the ride and also met a lot of friendly people on the trail that day.
Make sure you have good lights for the tunnel.
Beautiful ride from Leeper to Mariane. Very nice trail for a fall ride.
Biked from Emlenton to just North of the Kennerdell tunnel at mile marker 110 and back for a 28 mile round trip. Beautiful Fall day and enjoyed the foliage.
Quite a few people out on the trail and all friendly.
We went though both tunnels so make sure you have a light. Take what you may need along your ride because there isn't anywhere along the trail to get anything. Trail services in Emlenton. Parking in Emlenton next to the Post Office on Main Street.
Have ridden the trail a couple of times. I was surprised when I got to Leeper at the 12.7 mile mark it was paved. It turned out it was paved the next 14.1 miles to the edge of the town of Marienville. I rode another .5 miles into Marienville on a cinder path and there is an old train station that it appears that is being fixed up. The trail appears to keep going up along Rt. 66 as a cinder trail. Also the tar and chip part of the trail was also paved. We rode on October 9 and the trees were in full color. The trail is now paved from the 0.7 mile marker(Rt. 322) to 26.8. The bad part of this trail is that it crosses Rt. 66 four times and the first two are on the dangerous side. Site distance is not great for cars going 55-60 mph. If you like paved trails, this is a must.
The 26 miles from SR 322 (Marianne) to Marienville are asphalt (no more tar and chip), and about half of that is new asphalt put down in 2020. About .7 mile in Marienville between SR 322 and SR 66 is coarse gravel, unmaintained, and little-traveled as of October 2020.
The trail follows a ridge between the watersheds of the Clarion River and Allegheny River. There is a very gradual elevation rise over the 26 miles, from an altitude of 1500 feet in Marianne to 1730 feet in Marienville.
The trail parallels busy Route 66 for its entire length, with the distance between trail and road varying between 30 feet and almost 1 mile. There are four dangerous crossings of Route 66 at which cars travel at speeds approaching 60 mph, and do not slow for cyclists. There are also gravel driveways and roads crossing the trail, some of them soft and a bit treacherous for bikes with narrow tires.
Along the trail you pass O’Neil’s Quality Foods (smoked meat, deer processing, etc) at the Marianne trailhead, Zacherl’s Farm Market south of Lucinda (hay rides and a field of pumpkins when I was there in mid-October), DB’s Smokin’ BBQ north of Lucinda, apple trees by the side of the trail, a huge field of corn, a friendly and very attractive horse, and the Shamrock Dining Room at Kelly Hotel in Marienville, among other attractions.
Hiked the southern part of the trail today. Saw deer and an Eagle who was flying just ahead of us today. This is definitely a trail we want to hike again
We had a great ride, beautiful, cool day for it. We started at the Leeper trailhead and did an in and out 16 mile ride toward Marianne. They just completed the asphalt and it made for a very smooth ride. Wooded areas had beautiful fall color, farmland with fields of corn made it look all golden, horses, cattle and saw big bear prints across the path. We will be doing this trail again, hopefully the whole length of it next time. We love this type of trail and highly recommend it ¿
2nd visit to this trail in 2020. Trying to complete the whole thing. Parked in Summerville and biked to Brookville. Had lunch in Brookville. There are several places in town just off the trail. Biked back to Summerville and past it towards New Bethlehem. 35 miles on the trail this day.
Surface is packed crushed limestone but bumpy in some places.
Saw all kinds of cool history along the trail. This section crosses the Redbank Creek quite a few times via very nice wooden bridges. In Summerville there is a service station a few blocks from the trail if you need water and/or snacks.
Enjoying this trail very much and hope to visit again this Fall. Right now still very green.
Just got done running on trail for 1st time since back from out West. I moved out here in 2005 and started running the trail and in all those years I have never been able to run in July.... what the Shenango River Watchers have done with the trail is nothing short of amazing! Thank you!!
Submitted by: E.K.
10/26/2020. Very scenic views and a nice ride with moderate obstacles.
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