Find the top rated birding trails in Carlisle, whether you're looking for an easy short birding trail or a long birding trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a birding trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
This is one of the most secluded rides in a pristine natural setting I have been on in PA. Absolutely quiet with no crowds or traffic to contend with. Rode a couple weeks after tropical storm Ida came through. There was a great deal of flood erosion damage at the Rausch Creek bridge (Appalachian Trail crossing). Considering this, the entire tail bed was in surprising good condition. No standing water anywhere and very few flies or mosquitoes. Only encountered a couple washouts over its entire length. These were easily navigated around though with little effort. The trail is indeed a little rougher at the western Ellendale end but it was evident that many repairs were recently done. Only a matter of time where these coarse gravel fill-ins will eventually smooth out. Used a hard tail hybrid with 29” x 2.25” knobby tires filled to 50#. Ride tolerable for 90% of the time although I did tire of the coarser stone sections at the conclusion of my ride. Due to its isolation and cellphone signal dead zone, I recommend starting at The Coldspring Road access. Although a very steep dirt road, Coldspring Road is in very good condition and accessible to most cars. I highly recommend this as the ultimate “get away from it all” ride.
Ephrata side of trail is paved and clean. Warwick side has Small crushed limestone that just cakes on chains and bikes. This is the only local trail I ride that I have to wash the bike when done.
Another downside is the 11 road crossing that can be very challenging depending on time of day. With 2 of the worst traffic crossings on the Warwick Side.
Lewisburg end start at the Miller Center/YMCA. First mile in Lewisburg is confusing and crossing Highway 15 is not at a crosswalk and the trail is not well marked. Mifflinburg end is just beyond the Rusty Rail restaurant. Lots of parking in that area. Lewisburg end first 2 miles are asphalt, many road crossings. Mifflinburg end is 1.5 miles asphalt. Middle is through cornfields and farm fields with several farm access road crossings. Could be a 5 star except for Lewisburg end and a couple of Highway crossings should be more visibly marked - cars don’t stop for bikes.
My husband and I biked the larger section of this trail this weekend and had a great time. Beautiful rolling farmland, nice facilities and friendly people. Looking ahead to them completing this to Carlisle. We will definitely be back to check it out.
Well maintained , has park benches to stop and have lunch
This is the best trail I’ve found for skating in this section of PA. It’s long, windy, paved most of the way and only has a few parts where the hills are steep enough to be a potential danger on skates. There are a few wooden bridges that inlines can roll right over but may be sketchy on rollerskates. Also if it rains, I wouldn’t recommend skating until it dries because wet forest litter is like ice. I also wouldn’t go anytime after a wind storm. Otherwise it’s a fantastic trail with lots of rest spots.
A great kid-friendly ride with trailside opportunities to take a break and enjoy😎 From the Ephrata Linear Park trailhead it’s about an easy two miles to the gnome village of Nibbles T McGibbons. A small playground trailside offers shade and a few picnic tables with nearby porta-potty. And, our 6 yo grandson gave the dirt bike course a try👍🏼 We reversed direction at the cornfields, a little more than half-way on this shorter-than-most rail trails for a roundtrip of 8 miles.😎
This is a fabulous trial, actually it is in the hall of fame trail book. Today had lots of debris and mud slides. York county parks were there at 8:00 am starting cleanup. We moved a few branches on our way to Maryland line.
This trail is great for bikes. Nice paved trail, great views, very scenic. Note that the trail around Marietta is closed for construction.
A really nice ride. Crushed stone but well maintained and smooth ride. Not the most scenic but nice and shady on a hot day.
My wife and I rode the trail this morning. Excellent ride for e-bikes. Most of trail is asphalt. A small section is dirt/small gravel but very easy to ride on. Beautiful ride through the country side. Be sure not to miss the Gnome Village!
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