Find the top rated hiking trails in Cumberland, whether you're looking for an easy short hiking trail or a long hiking trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a hiking trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
Did the entire trail with e-bike. Great ride in lowest pedal assist mode! Few areas washed out by recent rains but able to navigate.
I will say it was our first Time Visiting this area. Me and my girlfriend were taken away by the beauty of the area. We didn't get to see the entire area. Also, there is this restaurant on the trail that makes the atmosphere feel like you are at peace. We are definitely going back.
The trail is great starting at Cumberland. Pretty smooth and scenic. Not very far in there were quite a few detours as the trail was damaged in many places. I wish there had been more amenities along the trail. The last 40 miles into DC were surprisingly bad, with muddy rough conditions and detours. The trip was memorable and challenging and we were proud to raise money for theplummerhome.org for homeless veterans.
Day1: DC to Williamsport. Day 2: Williamsport to Cumberland. This was an amazing ride with beautiful fall scenery. Trail was well maintained and easy to navigate. It was mostly hard parked gravel with lots of historical sites and great views. Paw Paw tunnel was open. The trail thru tunnel is uneven and wet. Met some great people along the trail. I’ll definitely ride the trail again in the summer.
We took the Amtrak bike train to DC. Had to switch trains in Philly. Between Harrisburg and Philly we had to remove the front wheel and hang the bike. From Philly to DC they were stored in the baggage car and didn't require tire removal. The ride through DC was fantastic and much easier than we expected. The trail got a little confusing to get out of town but once we did we found the trail in much better condition then we expected. We stayed along the way in a hotel and a lock house. My favorite part was the area around the pawpaw tunnel but the trail was in very poor condition in spots. At one point when I tried to go my rear wheel would just spin and the bike wouldn't move. Very mucky and muddy. I'm sure it all depends on the amount of rain they had recently. It completed the ride from Pittsburgh to DC for me. I had ridden the GAP trail about 6 years prior. The only reason I didn't give it a five star rating is because of the mud in some areas. Overall it was great.
Because of the rainy weather before we arrived, we decided to do this trail instead of the muddy C and O Towpath. There were some tree roots riding from New Orleans to Hancock, but the vistas and beauty of the fall ride made up for it. We are leisurely cyclists with hybrid tires.
Great trail, no complaints there, but the tree roots are indeed a real problem. Crushed limestone would be far safer. As an experienced long distance traveler with roughly 50 years of experience since my first 100 mile ride, I blithely dismissed reviews citing tree root issues. However, to my great surprise, the vertical 6" tree root bumps in the trail (and yes, I'm talking about passing through Hancock) are so severe that they will...
a) bump my wife completely out of her seat on a recumbent trike, and we kept slowing down further and further, to roughly 8 mph or less.
b) throw my monster battery off the bike despite it being locked down.
c) bend my 20" front rim on my recumbent 2 wheeler and cause a pinch flat with 3 holes in the tube about 1/4" in length, cut right into the tube.
And bear in mind that you CAN'T see them coming. Other riders remarked upon this, and I blithely dismissed that, too.
I could easily envision the unwary rider without a lot of experience, expecting a beautifully paved ride, getting injured.
We rode a 10 mile section of trail north of the Williamsport visitors center. Sunny day, high 60’s. It was the day after a 30 minute rain storm. Trees were in full bloom. Why 2 stars when it could be a 5? The trail needs a good layer of hard packed stone. Any rain will turn many spots into mud, as we encountered. The trail rides along the Potomac River. You could just about see otherwise the trail is under cover. To make it a 5, make sure the trail has dried out and the leaves have not bloomed or the have already dropped. It would sure be a 5.
We parked at West Newton both days. On the first day we rode north to Boston and on the second day south to just past Whitsett. The trail is very flat (maybe 3 feet per mile elevation change) and well maintained. We encountered minimal road crossings, plenty of scenery and probably as a whole the friendliest people we've ever encountered on a bike trail. We'll be back!
For a baseline, our home trails are Pine Creek and Buffalo Valley and our favorite trail is the Northwest Lancaster.
On Thursday, 8/24/23, Connellsville PA (and surrounding area) was hit hard by a storm. They were without power for more than 2 days. Businesses were closed etc. HUGE CLEANUP on the trail and even BIGGER THANK YOU TO THE CREW who cleaned it up!!! We had plans to ride the GAP (Connellsville to Ohio Pyle and back) on Friday 8/25. We saw that the electricity was out in town but still thought we would chance it and take the ride. Well....the tree damage was so extensive on the trail, we made it 5 miles with lifting our bikes, climbing over and under trees when we decided to turn back. We had hope that "maybe this is it" each time we lifted our bikes. But another 100 yards (or less) and another huge obstacle. It truly was a mess-the trail took an extensive hit and all we could think about were the poor volunteers who would face this scene with chain saws in hand! THANK YOU TO THEM and ALL RTT Volunteers and donors. We returned to the trail on 9/4. It was cleaned up and wide open. Yes, there are some new ruts and bumps caused by the fallen trees but those volunteers worked a miracle in a short time frame. THANK YOU from a regular user of the GAP and trails across the US.
We did the Barnum Rail Trail on Labor Day, September 4, 2023. It’s rough, in places, but the scenery and pristine nature make it worth it. Idyllic, actually. I wish the trail was longer than 4 plus miles.
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