Find the top rated cross country skiing trails in Wheeling, 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.
Once the corridor of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway, today the 11.2-mile Conotton Creek Trail offers complete immersion in a bucolic setting in northeastern Ohio. Situated in the rolling...
The Little Beaver Creek Greenway Trail runs parallel to the Middle Fork of the Little Beaver Creek and has many beautiful and interesting features, including glacial outwashes, upland fields, mature...
Though only 2.5 miles, the National Road Bikeway features an impressive below-grade tunnel, which was built in 1902. The narrow tunnel is 532 feet long and is lighted but still gives you the...
The Montour Trail follows a portion of the old Montour Railroad, which was built between 1877 and 1914 to link the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad with the region's many coal mines. Forming a...
Morgantown is known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. But it’s also known for its extensive rail-trail system along...
Now the longest rail-trail east of the Mississippi River, the 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) spans two states in its course along great rivers and across mountain passes. Running from...
The Brooke Pioneer Trail follows the east bank of the Ohio River between Wellsburg and the Brooke–Ohio County line at Short Creek. Here the Brooke Pioneer Trail continues into Ohio County as the...
The Three Rivers Heritage Trail evolved from five separate trails and today comprises several unique sections. Most of these segments are riverfront trails along both banks of the three rivers that...
The central point of the Caperton Trail is located in Morgantown, known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. Morgantown...
Morgantown is known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. But it’s also known for its extensive rail-trail system along...
West Virginia's West Fork River Trail provides a snapshot of some of the most beautiful scenery in this region. The trail's path was once used by the far-reaching Baltimore & Ohio Railroad to deliver...
The Wheeling Heritage Trails running on the former B&O line are known locally as two trails that connect in downtown Wheeling: the Ohio River Trail and the Wheeling Creek Trail. The route is flat and...
The Zoar Valley Trail winds along the Tuscarawas River for 20 miles between the village of Schoenbrunn in the south and Fort Laurens State Memorial in Bolivar in the north. The path is mixture of...
The Brooke Pioneer Trail follows the east bank of the Ohio River between Wellsburg and the Brooke–Ohio County line at Short Creek. Here the Brooke Pioneer Trail continues into Ohio County as the...
Morgantown is known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. But it’s also known for its extensive rail-trail system along...
The Montour Trail follows a portion of the old Montour Railroad, which was built between 1877 and 1914 to link the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad with the region's many coal mines. Forming a...
The Wheeling Heritage Trails running on the former B&O line are known locally as two trails that connect in downtown Wheeling: the Ohio River Trail and the Wheeling Creek Trail. The route is flat and...
West Virginia's West Fork River Trail provides a snapshot of some of the most beautiful scenery in this region. The trail's path was once used by the far-reaching Baltimore & Ohio Railroad to deliver...
Morgantown is known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. But it’s also known for its extensive rail-trail system along...
Though only 2.5 miles, the National Road Bikeway features an impressive below-grade tunnel, which was built in 1902. The narrow tunnel is 532 feet long and is lighted but still gives you the...
The Little Beaver Creek Greenway Trail runs parallel to the Middle Fork of the Little Beaver Creek and has many beautiful and interesting features, including glacial outwashes, upland fields, mature...
About 60 miles south of Pittsburgh, the beautiful Greene River Trail parallels the Monongahela River as it winds through the coal mining region of Greene County. Conrail originally used the rail...
The central point of the Caperton Trail is located in Morgantown, known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. Morgantown...
The Panhandle Trail is another jewel in the Pittsburgh metro area trail system. A Conrail line, known as the Panhandle Railroad, once connected Pittsburgh to Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis on this...
The Three Rivers Heritage Trail evolved from five separate trails and today comprises several unique sections. Most of these segments are riverfront trails along both banks of the three rivers that...
Now the longest rail-trail east of the Mississippi River, the 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) spans two states in its course along great rivers and across mountain passes. Running from...
Once the corridor of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway, today the 11.2-mile Conotton Creek Trail offers complete immersion in a bucolic setting in northeastern Ohio. Situated in the rolling...
The central point of the Caperton Trail is located in Morgantown, known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. Morgantown...
The Zoar Valley Trail winds along the Tuscarawas River for 20 miles between the village of Schoenbrunn in the south and Fort Laurens State Memorial in Bolivar in the north. The path is mixture of...
The Panhandle Trail is another jewel in the Pittsburgh metro area trail system. A Conrail line, known as the Panhandle Railroad, once connected Pittsburgh to Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis on this...
The Brooke Pioneer Trail follows the east bank of the Ohio River between Wellsburg and the Brooke–Ohio County line at Short Creek. Here the Brooke Pioneer Trail continues into Ohio County as the...
Morgantown is known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. But it’s also known for its extensive rail-trail system along...
Now the longest rail-trail east of the Mississippi River, the 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) spans two states in its course along great rivers and across mountain passes. Running from...
About 60 miles south of Pittsburgh, the beautiful Greene River Trail parallels the Monongahela River as it winds through the coal mining region of Greene County. Conrail originally used the rail...
Though only 2.5 miles, the National Road Bikeway features an impressive below-grade tunnel, which was built in 1902. The narrow tunnel is 532 feet long and is lighted but still gives you the...
Once the corridor of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway, today the 11.2-mile Conotton Creek Trail offers complete immersion in a bucolic setting in northeastern Ohio. Situated in the rolling...
The Wheeling Heritage Trails running on the former B&O line are known locally as two trails that connect in downtown Wheeling: the Ohio River Trail and the Wheeling Creek Trail. The route is flat and...
The Montour Trail follows a portion of the old Montour Railroad, which was built between 1877 and 1914 to link the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad with the region's many coal mines. Forming a...
The Little Beaver Creek Greenway Trail runs parallel to the Middle Fork of the Little Beaver Creek and has many beautiful and interesting features, including glacial outwashes, upland fields, mature...
West Virginia's West Fork River Trail provides a snapshot of some of the most beautiful scenery in this region. The trail's path was once used by the far-reaching Baltimore & Ohio Railroad to deliver...
The Three Rivers Heritage Trail evolved from five separate trails and today comprises several unique sections. Most of these segments are riverfront trails along both banks of the three rivers that...
Morgantown is known as the home of West Virginia University, the inspiration for a Joni Mitchell song and the birthplace of Don Knotts. But it’s also known for its extensive rail-trail system along...
Nothing spectacular, but just a nice trail for a quick ride after work. Easy access every few miles for those who live in south or west hills of PGH. Have not yet done the full 58 mile “out and back”’to WV, but will someday! I believe that the portion of trail in Wash. Co PA is paved. The portion in Allegheny Co PA is crushed stone, but very easy ride for adults and kids alike.
My husband & I walked this trail recently, going up to Pt Marion PA. Very nice trail with some original railroad items along the way.
I had never spent much time on the Mon in years past but was more than pleasantly surprised by the quality trail starting near downtown. We went all the way to McKeesport and next time I plan on going further to link up with the Montoya trail. Well maintained and ample facilities along the way with a number of great river and city views!
We came from the Pittsburgh area just to ride this trail. It was a joy and we loved the town of Leetonia, especially the Dairy Queen!
But seriously, it is a beautiful trail, most of it in a woodsy atmosphere, and definitely one we will come back to again.
We started at milepost 6 at the Cliff Mine parking area and went out and back to milestone 25 (national tunnel) on a warm day (88 Deg F). The ride was great with shade over 75% of this portion of the trail. The trail is well maintained and almost all was crushed limestone. We had road bikes and were fine with these.
Went through 2 tunnels (milepost 7 and 25) where it was cool and very moist (water flowing on walls and some dropping from the ceiling).
Nice historic signs along the way describing bridges and coal mining and processing that was previously in this area. Very well done.
It was obvious the trail is continually maintained and was in great shape. Regular water stops and trail maps every five miles and pocket maps available at the trail and online.
Many trees alongside the trail provided great shade but blocked the view.
Gradual grade up and down throughout. Only a few city blocks are on city street. All rest was off road.
Overall great ride. I recommend it.
I began at the Trailhead near Carnegie, PA and rode only to the West Virginia State line since I was doing an out and back making my mileage 47.25 instead of 58. I rode the day after some very heavy rain. The trail in Allegheny County is gravel and while wet, for the most part, the water was absorbed by the trail or ran off. There were a few places where you could see a bit of the trail washed out, but it was no problem with the 28 mm gravel tires I was riding. A tree had fallen and was blocking a portion of the trail in Allegheny County when I passed in the morning. Upon my return a few hours later, crews were working on the remains of the tree which had been removed from the trail surface.
God Bless Washington County where I grew up, the trail is paved from the Allegheny County line to the West Virginia Line. There were no puddles from the heavy rains and the pavement was just about pristine. Beautiful riding surface. Much to my surprise, this trail had some elevation changes if you care to call 879 feet of climbing over 47 miles an elevation change. I doubt any grade exceeded 1.5%, but there were both uphill and downhill sections going both directions.
The reviews of this trail were pretty negative. One complained about the pavement in Washington County and I have to conclude the author was off his meds. I thought it was wonderful. Others complained that it was not very scenic. While there were no tunnels or viaducts or vast expanses to view, it was just a rural ride that I felt was all beautiful all of the time. I saw many deer including a Mama and her fawn and an assortment of other critters.
On my return trip, I stopped in Burgettstown for a late breakfast of pancakes and eggs at the 1709 Main Street restaurant just off the trail. Typical small town diner, good food, courteous country people, and great prices. A couple ladies riding the trail also came in to eat while I was there.
I am sure I will ride the Panhandle Trail again when I am visiting Pops. I can find little to not like about the Panhandle Trail. I ding it one gear as there is no outstanding feature that is a must see, so it gets 9 Gears (on a 10 gear cassette).
I began at the Elm Grove Trailhead on the Wheeling Creek Trail and continued north on the Ohio River Trail until it was under water from the recent heavy rains. I should have been within just a couple miles of the northern most trailhead as I traveled out 17.5 miles. I did not ride the southern portion of the Ohio River Trail choosing to go back to the car when the Wheeling Creek Trail intersected.
The Hempfield Tunnel and Viaduct are amazing. The tunnel was obviously for a mainline as it is wide enough for two sets of railroad tracks. Obviously a train has not passed through the tunnel in many years as a huge branch has grown over the eastern entrance to the tunnel well above cyclists. The tunnel was built in 1904 and made to last as the interior and the facades are lined with brick. Unfortunately taggers have left their mark with graffiti but it could be worse.
The paved surface is in very good shape considering the winters that it suffers. There were some rough areas in the pavement, but very few and that beats gravel!. The trail is completely flat along the Ohio river and it goes from urban in Downtown Wheeling then back and forth between wilderness and industrial. No complaints over a lack of majestic scenery as the river is always nearby. The Pike Island Lock Complex is intriguing.
I rate it 9 gears (based on a 10 speed cassette)
Good biking trail except that the areas of uncrushed limestone make for rough riding. Did not try the trail south of Rt. 800 due to previous reports that it is difficult riding.
We rode Amtrak from Pittsburgh to Cumberland on June 30th. Fortunately the train was very late, so we didn't get on the trail until 3:30 and were able to avoid some of the sun we likely would have had earlier in the day. The climb to the Continental Divide was long and slow, but beautiful. We stopped to take quite a few pictures and chilled for a bit in Frostburg (ice cream shop closed at 4 on a 90 degree Saturday?!?). Stayed at Morguen Toole Co. in Meyersdale and enjoyed a great meal there too. On July 1 we headed to Confluence in the AM. We borrowed a car to visit the Flight 93 Memorial and, once again, managed to avoid riding in the hottest part of the day. Once on our way again we headed to Connellsville and stayed at the Connellsville B&B, which was wonderful. On the 2nd we rode to West Newton for lunch, after an extended stop at Rachel Sager Mosaics in Whitsett. We had a stop at Over the Bars Bike Cafe in Pittsburgh before finishing up the trail just before a thunderstorm hit. We met some wonderful folks along the way and enjoyed a fantastic few days of riding at an enjoyable pace.
I've ridden this trail twice. Once south from Fort Laurens to Dover Dam and most recently from Schoenbrunn village to Fort Laurens. The best portion of the trail is the Ohio & Erie Canal towpath to Route 800. South of Route 800 until you reach Johnstown Road NE the trail is very rough and has areas of standing water. The towpath portion of the trail is easy to follow but, again, south of Route 800 the trail is not marked at all so if you intend to travel the entire route make sure you study the map shown here at TrailLink carefully and make sure you pay attention to the intersections where you need to turn on the southern on-road portion of the trail. Also, note that the trail description listed here at TrailLink suggests that the southern portion of the trail is paved. What is not mentioned is that the southern portion is on-road and not a protected bike path. Should the midsection of the trail be improved this trail could be a gem with many interesting sites along the way such as Fort Laurens, canal locks, Zoar Village, the Fink Truss Bridge and Dover Dam. Lastly, I suggest to all riding the trail that the better route between the Fink Truss Bridge and Dover Dam is to take the access road along the Tuscarawas River rather than the old railroad right of way that passes by Camp Tuscazoar.
I parked in Wellsburg and biked toward Wheeling since this is the direction I was traveling from. I had a little trouble finding the parking lot and the start of the trail isn't visible from the road. The lot is a sharp left turn into a dirt area and is not well marked. After I got on the trail I noticed locals parked in a gas station a little beyond the trail head. The trail is a pleasant easy ride on asphalt that is tree covered and shaded most of the way. There are nice views of the Ohio River along the way. There is a Porta John at the opposite trail head about 7 miles down the trail. Though the trail ends at about 7 miles it is still paved through Wheeling. This part of the trail runs parallel to a highway but that isn't a big problem it is worth the ride to see the locks.
Use caution on the Brook trail there are two sections that have sink holes. One is very clearly marked but is dangerous to ride through the other is really just a big dip but isn't marked and can sneak up on you. I still recommend the trail for a bike or nice run/walk.
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