Find the top rated cross country skiing trails in Bloomsburg, whether you're looking for an easy short cross country skiing trail or a long cross country skiing trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a cross country skiing trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The discovery of anthracite coal in the Tremont area of Pennsylvania shaped commerce and development well into the 1800s. The Union Canal was constructed in the 1820s to connect the Schuylkill and...
In a pretty valley between the West Branch of the Susquehanna River and Bald Eagle Mountain, the Lycoming Creek Bikeway is a fitting hometown asset. Tourists are not flocking to it, but the local...
Swatara Creek runs through the vast woodlands of Swatara State Park in eastern Pennsylvania. Bear Hole Trail traces the eastern side of the waterway, while the Swatara Rail-Trail runs along the other...
Like so many trails in this area, the Great Hazleton Rails to Trails occupies the former corridor of a railroad line that supported the local coal mining industry. After a half century of disuse, the...
The Back Mountain Trail, originally built by lumber and ice king Albert Lewis of Wyoming Valley 115 years ago, was acquired by the Lehigh Valley Railroad in 1887. Lumber, ice, leather goods and...
Currently, 9 miles of the Buffalo Valley Rail Trail are complete. The trail runs between Lewisburg and Mifflinburg, and interpretive signs relate the region's history. The trail is mostly paved at...
The Bloomsburg Rail-Trail runs for a short distance along the former rail bed on the northwest side of town. Following the east bank of Fishing Creek, the trail stretches between Millville Road just...
Tracing nearly two miles of riverfront, the Luzerne County National Recreation Trail (also known as the Luzerne County Rail Trail) will eventually form a 16-mile pathway along an active railway. Chain...
Eastern Pennsylvania’s D&L Trail spans just over 140 miles through the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor from Bristol, in the Greater Philadelphia region, to Mountain Top, nestled in the...
The Iroquois Trail is scenic and remote, stretching about 2 miles through Tunkhannock, a gateway community to the Endless Mountains in northeastern Pennsylvania. The rail-trail follows the route of...
Southeastern Pennsylvania’s Schuylkill River Trail forms the spine of the Schuylkill River National Heritage Area, a five-county expanse between Philadelphia and Pottsville. Built along former...
Lykens Valley Rail Trail is nearly half-way complete with 9 miles of trail open out of 20 miles planned. Those 9 miles are available in three disconnected segments. In Millersburg, a 0.4-mile segment...
The beautiful Lehigh and New England trail is a short, crushed-stone trail that follows a section of the former Lehigh and New England Railroad corridor just south of Tamaqua in eastern Pennsylvania....
The beautiful Lehigh and New England trail is a short, crushed-stone trail that follows a section of the former Lehigh and New England Railroad corridor just south of Tamaqua in eastern Pennsylvania....
The Bloomsburg Rail-Trail runs for a short distance along the former rail bed on the northwest side of town. Following the east bank of Fishing Creek, the trail stretches between Millville Road just...
Eastern Pennsylvania’s D&L Trail spans just over 140 miles through the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor from Bristol, in the Greater Philadelphia region, to Mountain Top, nestled in the...
Currently, 9 miles of the Buffalo Valley Rail Trail are complete. The trail runs between Lewisburg and Mifflinburg, and interpretive signs relate the region's history. The trail is mostly paved at...
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Though little-known compared to other popular rail-trails in Pennsylvania, the Penns Creek Path is worth the effort of visiting for a scenic bike ride or hike in the forest. Pretty in all seasons, it...
Like so many trails in this area, the Great Hazleton Rails to Trails occupies the former corridor of a railroad line that supported the local coal mining industry. After a half century of disuse, the...
Lykens Valley Rail Trail is nearly half-way complete with 9 miles of trail open out of 20 miles planned. Those 9 miles are available in three disconnected segments. In Millersburg, a 0.4-mile segment...
Tracing nearly two miles of riverfront, the Luzerne County National Recreation Trail (also known as the Luzerne County Rail Trail) will eventually form a 16-mile pathway along an active railway. Chain...
Swatara Creek runs through the vast woodlands of Swatara State Park in eastern Pennsylvania. Bear Hole Trail traces the eastern side of the waterway, while the Swatara Rail-Trail runs along the other...
Originally named St. Anthony's Wilderness by Moravian missionaries who arrived in the colony in 1742 to convert Native tribes, the Stony Creek Valley became the site of five bustling towns after...
J. Manley Robbins Trail is a short trail with a long history. Quite possibly it is the oldest documented rail-trail in the country. The trail leads through a beautiful deciduous forest high above the...
One of the premier rail-trails in the Northeast, the Pine Creek Rail Trail in Pine Creek Gorge offers travelers a spectacular 62-mile journey through the area commonly referred to as the Grand Canyon...
Southeastern Pennsylvania’s Schuylkill River Trail forms the spine of the Schuylkill River National Heritage Area, a five-county expanse between Philadelphia and Pottsville. Built along former...
The Lebanon Valley Rail-Trail takes you on a journey into Pennsylvania Dutch country. Running along the corridor of the old Cornwall-Lebanon Railroad, the 14.5-mile trail lets you experience the...
The Schuylkill Valley Heritage Trail passes through the rolling green hills of the Schuylkill River Valley, from just outside of Tamaqua to Middleport. The trail runs immediately adjacent to US...
The Back Mountain Trail, originally built by lumber and ice king Albert Lewis of Wyoming Valley 115 years ago, was acquired by the Lehigh Valley Railroad in 1887. Lumber, ice, leather goods and...
The discovery of anthracite coal in the Tremont area of Pennsylvania shaped commerce and development well into the 1800s. The Union Canal was constructed in the 1820s to connect the Schuylkill and...
In a pretty valley between the West Branch of the Susquehanna River and Bald Eagle Mountain, the Lycoming Creek Bikeway is a fitting hometown asset. Tourists are not flocking to it, but the local...
The Iroquois Trail is scenic and remote, stretching about 2 miles through Tunkhannock, a gateway community to the Endless Mountains in northeastern Pennsylvania. The rail-trail follows the route of...
Originally named St. Anthony's Wilderness by Moravian missionaries who arrived in the colony in 1742 to convert Native tribes, the Stony Creek Valley became the site of five bustling towns after...
The Lebanon Valley Rail-Trail takes you on a journey into Pennsylvania Dutch country. Running along the corridor of the old Cornwall-Lebanon Railroad, the 14.5-mile trail lets you experience the...
Lykens Valley Rail Trail is nearly half-way complete with 9 miles of trail open out of 20 miles planned. Those 9 miles are available in three disconnected segments. In Millersburg, a 0.4-mile segment...
Eastern Pennsylvania’s D&L Trail spans just over 140 miles through the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor from Bristol, in the Greater Philadelphia region, to Mountain Top, nestled in the...
The discovery of anthracite coal in the Tremont area of Pennsylvania shaped commerce and development well into the 1800s. The Union Canal was constructed in the 1820s to connect the Schuylkill and...
One of the premier rail-trails in the Northeast, the Pine Creek Rail Trail in Pine Creek Gorge offers travelers a spectacular 62-mile journey through the area commonly referred to as the Grand Canyon...
Like so many trails in this area, the Great Hazleton Rails to Trails occupies the former corridor of a railroad line that supported the local coal mining industry. After a half century of disuse, the...
Though little-known compared to other popular rail-trails in Pennsylvania, the Penns Creek Path is worth the effort of visiting for a scenic bike ride or hike in the forest. Pretty in all seasons, it...
Currently, 9 miles of the Buffalo Valley Rail Trail are complete. The trail runs between Lewisburg and Mifflinburg, and interpretive signs relate the region's history. The trail is mostly paved at...
The Back Mountain Trail, originally built by lumber and ice king Albert Lewis of Wyoming Valley 115 years ago, was acquired by the Lehigh Valley Railroad in 1887. Lumber, ice, leather goods and...
Swatara Creek runs through the vast woodlands of Swatara State Park in eastern Pennsylvania. Bear Hole Trail traces the eastern side of the waterway, while the Swatara Rail-Trail runs along the other...
The Iroquois Trail is scenic and remote, stretching about 2 miles through Tunkhannock, a gateway community to the Endless Mountains in northeastern Pennsylvania. The rail-trail follows the route of...
The Schuylkill Valley Heritage Trail passes through the rolling green hills of the Schuylkill River Valley, from just outside of Tamaqua to Middleport. The trail runs immediately adjacent to US...
Southeastern Pennsylvania’s Schuylkill River Trail forms the spine of the Schuylkill River National Heritage Area, a five-county expanse between Philadelphia and Pottsville. Built along former...
In a pretty valley between the West Branch of the Susquehanna River and Bald Eagle Mountain, the Lycoming Creek Bikeway is a fitting hometown asset. Tourists are not flocking to it, but the local...
Tracing nearly two miles of riverfront, the Luzerne County National Recreation Trail (also known as the Luzerne County Rail Trail) will eventually form a 16-mile pathway along an active railway. Chain...
The beautiful Lehigh and New England trail is a short, crushed-stone trail that follows a section of the former Lehigh and New England Railroad corridor just south of Tamaqua in eastern Pennsylvania....
The Bloomsburg Rail-Trail runs for a short distance along the former rail bed on the northwest side of town. Following the east bank of Fishing Creek, the trail stretches between Millville Road just...
J. Manley Robbins Trail is a short trail with a long history. Quite possibly it is the oldest documented rail-trail in the country. The trail leads through a beautiful deciduous forest high above the...
This little trail is less than 4 miles long but is connected to the D&L which at the present time (fall 2018) allows roughly 10 miles north (to Lehighton) and maybe 10 miles south (to Cemeton). So if a longer ride is wanted there you go. The easiest way to access the trail is from the Slatington trail head on the D&L, proceed south a very short distance to the Heritage trail which is to the right and starts on a neighborhood roadway. There are ample signs pointing the way.
The Slate Heritage Trail is open the entire length as the turnpike bridge is complete. As others have mentioned the trail follows the creek. There are (I think) 3 through truss bridges and an old railroad trestle for your creek crossing pleasure. There is also a (very nice) reproduction 19th century covered bridge next to a covered picnic grove. Signs and markers along the way tell of the once booming slate industry complete with ruins of old slate workings. It is a very pleasant abet short trail.
The trail surface is a combination of paved and packed cinders. There are small elevation changes but overall a fairly easy trail to ride or jog.
I mentioned the much larger and much touted D&L Trail which intersects the Slate Heritage Trail. A few words here note I write as of Fall 2018:
As mentioned going north it is 10 miles to Lehighton, 15 if you continue along the Weissport section (Lehigh Canal). The D&L abruptly ends at the waste water treatment plant in Jim Thorpe, leaving the explorer really no viable option to continue north along the Lehigh Gorge section of the D&L. The Carbon County Commissioners have constructed a rather impressive bridge over the Lehigh River that will at some point in the future connect the Lehigh Canal to the Lehigh Gorge Trails adding another 35 miles of rail trail extending from Jim Thorpe to just south of Glenn Summit. However this bridge is closed until a half mile of the northern end of the Lehigh Canal trail is constructed which will not be completed until mid to late 2019 at the earliest (as of fall 2018). Check with the D&L if contemplating this trip.
Heading south on the D&L from Slatington, the trail is closed just south of Cemeton due to a road bridge replacement. This bridge will not be completed until Dec. 2020. At that point, a road bridge just upstream of the current project is due to start which will put another gap in the D&L that will last until late 2023. It is possible to detour the current gap and it might be possible to detour the future gap but make sure before you plan your vacation.
Happy Trails!
Much of trail has no maintenance. Was great trail not now!,,,,,
Trail very nice...surprised that test facilities are available. But access to get to the trail is horrible. No signs and also signs are posted "PRIVATE PROPERTY - NO TRESPASSING." No parking is available due to all the heavy duty machine parked there instead. Taylor has a trail but it does not allow access. What are we taxpayers paying for?
This is the tail of two rides. The one going out... And the one coming back...
I joined the trail at the Virginia Forrest trail head north of New Hope. I'm riding an ICE Adventure HD recumbent trike and heading north to Uhlerstown.
The ride up was gorgeous... Nice warm weather, not a lot of traffic, really picturesque. The trail is basically flat with the exception of a few quick climbs at the lock sites. I had an issue with just one where there was a lot of loose stone on that quick climb. That's really the issue when climbing with a 'bent trike. Keeping the traction to the ground. I had just a little problem that I overcame with a little repeated effort.
The problem started with about 6 miles left in the ride on the return trip. The "problem" being the trail became what I'm going to call a single-track. Instead of a nice wide cinder lane, it became a single track of cinder that was just wide enough for a walker or someone on a bicycle. I'm riding a nice wide trike, so two of my tires were in the grass all the time and I felt like I was riding a high resistance trainer for the last 6 miles. So, between that and the increased heat, I was pretty cooked by the time I got back to my truck.
Now, I did ride this stretch going out. But being fresh, it didn't affect me the way it did on the way back. I'm giving this review 4 stars because it is a beautiful ride. And for walkers and folks on bikes, my issues won't be their issues.
I'm going to be interested in finding out if the single track was an anomaly of the stretch I rode, or if it's prevalent the entire length of the trail. I know that the upper portion of the ride the trail was wide and the ride comfortable. I just had an issue with that last 6 miles when the temps climbed into the 90s and my brain was cooking.
My wife and I entered on the 54 side and road across and back. The 54 side of the trail has logging going on currently and was muddy in spots. Next time I will start on the 42 side and maybe go halfway and back. The trail map does not show the restrooms in the middle or the 42 trail head. A great easy ride with enough grade not to be boring.
We rode this as an extension of the Susquehanna Riverwalk. It was paved and had a park with a restroom but no water fountain. For part of the ride, you are in a bike lane on the road but the road appears to be a dead end, so not much traffic. Once you get to Montoursville and the bridge, there is crossroads with no clear signage as to where the bike path should be. We took a right and biked to a boat launch behind the airport which was nice. I think we were supposed to cross the main road at the intersection where the bike path continued a little further - something for next time!
We started at trailhead in S Williamsport and crossed the river at Maynard St bridge. Had to walk bike across because of pedestrians crossing at the same time. We biked to the end of the trail and continued on the Susquehanna Bikeway into Montoursville, returning to S Williamsport.
The ride had a few areas with a challenging incline but overall a great trail and very scenic as you are next to the river the whole time. There are plenty of benches to sit on and educational signs to read and learn about the history of Williamsport. Did I mention it was paved?? Loved it! Also, it didn't seem very busy for a Sunday afternoon.
This is a nice trail to bike on a hot day. Lots of shade. There is a covered picnic pavilion right after the covered bridge.
Was on Trail today between Bethlehem and Easton. The last mile to Easton is currently closed because of the recent heavy rains. Also the area around Old Orchard is fairly muddy and some trees are down. Some erosion in trail because of rain.
We just moved to the area and live a half hour from the trail head so I wanted to give it a go. July was the 4th wettest month in recorded history for the area so factor that into some of my comments.
FIRST --- FINDING THE TRAILHEAD
I am an RT member and recently received the 2018 version of the Rail-Trails Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York Guidebook. Please ignore the directions in the book unless you are giving them to someone you dislike very much. Here is how to find it: After you get off Interstate 81 at exit 100 make a left to the traffic light. It is marked route 72. Turn left and continue on 72 until it intersects with route 443. Veer to the right onto 443 and continue on 443 until you reach Gold Mine Road on the left (it is like 9 miles or so to the turnoff). There is a wooden PA sign for Swatara Creek RT & Park directly to the right. Once you are on Gold Mine Road continue over the top of the first mountain (there are two!!). As you descend the mountain (I want to say about half way down) there is a gravel road on the left and a PA State Game Sign just past the gravel road (right now weeds almost have it obscured (see my picture, if RT allows it to be posted. Drive back that road. You will see on the right an extensive pile of macadam road that has been taken up and dumped there. Past it you will find the trail head, although there is no sign noting that this is Stony Valley RT. You have made it there!
THE TRAIL
I did my ride this morning after the very rainy July. There are significant wash outs some as deep as a foot and as long as 30-40 yards. There was a tree across the trail (which they will remove) that required some nifty maneuvering to get around since the trail is elevated at this point. The trail is VERY FLAT and CANOPIED its entire length. As a result there were a lot of puddles in the trail and in some cases extended puddles a 1/20th of a mile or so where the water was over the top of my rims with a rocky and muddy bottom. There were many soft spots causing some sliding and skidding. There were a lot of branches on the trail and they have been there for some time. I jumped a number of them and some were rotten and paths ridden through them. All-in-all the trail is very rough but very beautiful. On my way back to the car there was a porcupine on the trail and all he did was bury his head and extend his quills without moving an inch from the center of the trail. Since it is canopied its entire length I do not recommend sun glasses. I wore mine and it was very hard to see some of the debris, water and washouts on the trail.
DISTANCE
The trail book says it is 21 miles long. I rode 17 miles between the two trail heads noted in the book. I started to ride the dirt road past the trail head and it was laden with mega potholes and since I wasn't even sure I was on the right trail I turned around. Next time I will continue along the access road and report of what I find.
EQUIPMENT
I have read some of the reviews and one noted that doing this trail on a road bike can be fun and successful. I strongly suggest that you disregard that review. I have a full suspension mountain bike and I needed every bit of it. I spent more than my share of time out of the saddle and found myself slipping, sliding, bouncing and jumping the entire length of the trail between the trail heads. I would never even try this on a hybrid or gravel bike even if it is dried out let alone a road bike. It is a very bumpy ride...as someone else wrote, rough.
As noted, cell phone coverage is non-existent. I recommend either riding with someone or certainly wearing a RoadID so you have some help if something happens.
REVIEWER
The context for the reviewer is important for understanding the review. I do 10-15 century rides a year on my road bike and ride my mountain bike many times a week a minimum of 35-40 miles. I travel all over the country with my bikes doing centuries, trails and single track. This is a less traveled trail that is quite spectacular but be prepared when you ride it.
I took the opportunity to ride the Pine Creek rail/trail on a nearly perfect, sunny, 80 degree day on a mid July weekday. I set out for an 82 mile R/T from the Waterville parking access area heading north on the gentle but steady uphill climb through the Grand Canyon of PA back. I rode a gravel bike with 32mm tubeless tires which was the petfect choice for the unpaved trail. The surface was densely packed fine gravel the entire way without a single hole or rut. There is no public access to drinking water so plan accordingly. I started out with two 24 ounce bottles and topped them off at a general store along the route. Be advised that there is no water available in the 17 mile canyon stretch so top off at one of the general stores when you have the chance. Trail traffic was minimal during my Friday afternoon ride sometimes going 5-6 or more miles without seeing another soul heading the opposite direction. Also be advised that there was no cell service the entire 42 mile length one-way through the canyon that I rode out and back. Overall this was a very beautiful ride along the river that I'm very happy that I chose to spend half the day putting in an 82 mile ride. 👍
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