Read the trail description, the reviews, AND the West Penn Trail website. This is an awesome trail but NOT for casual riders or those not used to serious climbs and loose gravel. That said, we loved the challenges of riding it end and back from Blairsville. You must be able to push or carry your bike up several flights of wooden stairs and later climb and descent short pieces in excess of 12%. You’ll be rewarded for your efforts with many river crossings, tunnel views, and lots of amazing views. Don’t miss this trail if you’re in the area and want a challenge.

This is a nice little trail. Don’t bother with the Ehrenfeld Trailhead unless you want a few extra miles or the space is full at the next trailhead. The trail is on road anyway and has some short but tough hills for a casual cyclist. That said, we really liked the trail. It rolls up and down, much more than most rail trails but nothing serious. The trail does have a lot of double track the first miles so I wouldn’t recommend for a trike. The tunnel is great. Very much worth the ride. This isn’t a destination trail, of course, but it’s one you should ride if you’re in the area.

I biked and hiked this trail on Sunday 8/16/2020 with a temperature in the mid 80's. Despite the smooth crushed limestone surface for the 1st 2.1 miles, it was still a workout trying to move at a moderate speed. I took a photo / water break about every .5 miles to catch my breath. I continued biking the trail into the State Game Lands at mile 2.1 for about .25 miles before I dismounted and hiked 3.6 miles of the trail pushing my hybrid bike. At mile 5.7, the grassy, tire-rutted part of the trail dumped out on to a State Game Lands access road. I was able to gingerly bike this section of trail over ballast and cinders for the last .6 miles before encountering one of those DCNR yellow bar gates very near Rt 885. My T-shirt was soaked with perspiration. After taking some pictures and drinking a lot of water, I headed back. I found it best to bike the grass next to the dirt path that had been forged over the years from fellow travelers. The dirt path was narrow and many of the underlying stones had made their way to the surface which made the dirt path a bit treacherous in some places. I was able to bike at a fairly moderate pace on the grass with a hybrid bike travelling between 11mph and 15mph. When I finally got back on the crushed limestone surface, I was flying; hitting speeds of 21mph. If there had not been any soft spots on the crushed limestone surface, I would have been able to hit higher speeds. But the fear of wiping out held me in check. It took me about 2 hours and 10 minutes to ascend to the end of the trail and about 20 minutes to descend back to the Igou Rd Trailhead.

Some commentary: The trail is nice where it has been surfaced with the crushed limestone. It's wide and hard packed most of the way with lots of poop-out benches. There are mileposts every .25 miles. The ROW (Right of Way) was built on a shelf cut out of a mountain. So on one side of the ROW, one has an ascending hill while on the other side of the trail one has a descending hill with nice vistas. It is not until one starts to bike / hike the undeveloped part of the trail, that one can obtain vistas of distant mountains along with a couple of rock cuts. I covered this trail by myself in the evening and I could hear and see wildlife in the undeveloped section of the trail. I felt very uneasy and was ever so glad to be able to move quickly thru the undeveloped area on my return trip. I would recommend covering the undeveloped section with another person or dog.

I gave this trail 3 stars because I have been on a lot prettier trails and the fact that the majority of the trail is unfinished. I also don't like the fact that there is not a trailhead at its north end. If there were a trailhead at its north end, I would have spotted a car at the south end and driven to its north end with a friend and biked the trail in one direction downhill to the spotted vehicle.

Riding East to West paid off because the ride back was down hill. Went from Black Lick to Nanty-Glo.

Had the same problem others have posted regarding finding the beginning of the trail. We drove past it and found a place to park just at the edge of Clearfield. The scenery is so pretty. Fun to go over the bridges. From Curwensville to Grampian is a long gradual uphill. Met some very nice folks along the way. Definitely will be back.

Rode from Saylor Park in Black Lick to NAnty-Glo. Approximately 48 miles round trip. Outstanding trail. Very well maintained witH rest stops including picnic tables and bathrooms spaced along the trail. Very scenic, following a river. Historical markers along the way detailing coal industry history. Excellent coal miners memorial and mosaic map at a Vintondale. I’ve ridden a lot of rail trails and this is one of the best.

A few short areas that are on road but well marked. Started west at Winslow.... about 4% down so coming back, the finish was a challenge for the last 4 miles. Seems that part is not used much. Neat to go into Punxsy and see Phil. Just go off the trail for a few blocks in town. Punsxy Pizza was good.

Worth it

Great, flat, well maintained trail... the rocks, and coloring right now is absolutely beautiful.