Always a nice ride on this trail. Parked at the Mahoning Avenue Trailhead. Great day for a ride. Many friendly people out on the trail. At Kirk Road the bike rental was open. They also sell snacks and water.

I visited this trail for the first time today. I had a fantastic experience. I parked in Hendersonville and rode the section in between Westland Branch junction and Library Junction. Three tunnels and many bridges. I saw two young bucks and a doe with two fawns. Trail was busy and must have passed nearly 150 other trail users or more. Trail was in great shape and beautiful. It was definitely worth the hour drive to get there and I will return again.

Smooth, some incline but relatively flat. Okay views, probably super nice in the fall. Very shaded which I loved!

My Ride: Hardtail mountain bike with 26x2.2in tires. Did entire trail in 2 days. Avg Speed: 12mph

DAY 1: Started at the parking lot in WV by RT 22. Rode 15miles to the middle of the trail at the parking lot in Bulger PA and back to WV. Then drove to camp at the Montour Trail Boggs Campsite in the parking lot for that trail. Free and fine for one night. Total: 31miles

DAY 2: Drove to Bulger PA trail parking lot (15min drive) and rode 13 miles to the end of the trail that dead ends in Rennerdale. End of the trail is a parking lot and it appears like the trail continues but it takes you to someone's backyard..... I recommend turning around at the rock quarry with pavilion and firepit seating area. Afterwards I rode back 13 miles to the car in Bulger. Total: 26miles

CLIMB/DESCENT
Weirton-Bulger: 400ft Climb
Bulger-Rennerdale: 300ft Descent

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Weirton WV - PA line: 4miles Rough gravel, not packed well. Ideal for 1.75in tires and wider, road bikes will work, just won't be much fun. The trail follows a creek and has plenty of seating and port-a-john's along the way. One of the most scenic parts of the trail if you can get past the bad gravel....

PA line - Bulger: 11miles Trail becomes asphalt. Wooded area with bridges over country roads and creeks. Very pretty. No restrooms but a couple nice overlooks with benches.

Bulger - McDonald: 5.5miles Begins with sweeping views of rolling hills with small wooded patches right outside of Bulger, then quickly becomes wooded around the trail for the remainder. The Montour Trail connects to the Panhandle Trail. THE MCDONALD TRESTLE BRIDGE IS NOT ON PANHANDLE TRAIL. Get there by taking the connection to the Montour trail and then turn left (south). The McDonald Trestle Bridge is a must see but don't let the pictures for this trail fool you, you have to go a bit out of your way to see the stellar view. Google McDonald Trestle Bridge and Montour Panhandle Connector.

McDonald - Rennerdale (End of trail): 7miles Towns get closer together and roads are a bit busier for a few miles. Also the trail becomes packed gravel soon after McDonald. A few spots are washed out but not bad. From about Oakdale to the end of the trail it is very smooth for being gravel. Also within the last few miles is a parking lot for the bike trail and Fossil's Cliff/Neville's Woods Hiking Trail. Less than 1/2 mile from the hiking trail parking lot is a rock quarry outcrop with a pavilion and seating area with large firepit. Basically this is the end of the trail. Only a road crossing and a parking lot is past this. If you miss the end of the trail and go past the last parking lot you'll end up in someone's back yard.

Nice short trail close to home

Nice country trail but the blacktop surface has gotten in such bad shape that I won't ride it anymore.

It was a nice late Spring evening for a ride on the trail. Not real crowded at that time of the day. Trail is asphalt paved in very good condition.

Been on most parts of this trail. Lisbon part is great. Tried recently opened
section North Shore Trail In Ashtabula which connects trail to lake Erie by Walnut Beach. Right off trail you enter 4 lane share the road, I road on sidewalk for this part. Then changed to 2 lanes for cars , 2 lanes for bikes. Turns west for short juant thru a park. Then go thru all nieborhoods till you get to Bridge St., after which you must carry bike up very steep, very long cement steps with no handrail to reach Point Park. Then you ride on to Walnut Beach. I did not carry bike up steps , I turned around and started back, did not see Lake Erie. This trail is all on street other than short part thru park. Will not go again.

June 5th - my brother and myself had a wonderful day biking the Panhandle and a little of the Montour. We started at the McDonald Trail Station and on a surprising note there was a pancake breakfast benefit. We met a nice couple that was working there selling the tickets and items benefiting the trail. Were awesome to talk to. We started the trail going east. We always enjoy seeing dedications to the war hero's - there was a very nice one in Oakdale. We met folks / scouts working on the flower beds that day too. Trails always offer things to see or explore. Rennerdale - there is a place you can look for fern fossils. The best part of this trail was near the end before Walker's Mill. There is a beautiful rock quarry that is a must see. We came back to the McDonald Trail Station and had some fantastic blueberry pancakes before going west. The trail station is a museum too. A lot of oil history. Not to far west is where you are by Montour trail. We did go over the McDonald Trestle bridge on our way back. It really is a must to do. Our west trip took us as far as Joffre. In Bulgar, is another nice war memorial to those that served. What was most enjoyable is a stretch where the trail travels through a large open area where it has a slight hill climb but there are some good pictures if you like this type of scenery. The day ended with good ice-cream in McDonalds at M.A.'s Ice Cream Shop. My brother had the largest 'small' ice cream cone I ever saw.