Hiking in Ohiopyle State Park

STORY BY Laurie Bailey

Take a break from pedaling along the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) to discover on foot Pennsylvania’s Ohiopyle State Park where the southern Laurel Ridges meet the Youghiogheny River Gorge. Although a haven for winter outdoorstypes, the Ohiopyle State Park is extra welcoming in springtime for those anxious to shed their parkas and see green along the park’s 79 miles of trails.

Named for Native American words meaning “white, frothy water,” Ohiopyle attracts 2 million yearly visitors—last May alone saw a jump of nearly 65,000 in park attendance to 161,000 visitors. The focal point of the park’s 20,500 acres is its small-town area, located near Ohiopyle Falls and Youghiogheny River’s whitewater rapids on Route 381.

To begin your journey, explore the popular Ferncliff Peninsula Natural Area’s 2.8 miles of woodsy trails. Park your bike or car in the large lot adjacent to the Train Station/Information Center directly on the GAP trail. Cross the GAP Trail Bridge (or “lower bridge” as the locals call it) as you head north, where there’s a bird’s-eye view of rafters, kayakers, and others balancing on the Yough’s slick sandstone rocks. Once you’re across, a quick left turn takes hikers into the peninsula.

In the 1880s, the peninsula was home to the Ferncliff Hotel and dance pavilion. Today it’s a 100-acre Natural National Landmark. The area’s warmer climate nurtures seeds deposited from Maryland and West Virginia as they travel the Youghiogheny’s northern flow.

“The Youghiogheny River Gorge makes a little microclimate that traps the heat … that allows for seeds to grow along the edge of the peninsula,” says Barbara Wallace, environmental education specialist for the park.

When first entering the peninsula’s outer easyrated Ferncliff Trail, hikers can opt to take the central Fernwood or Oakwoods paths. If you select Oakwoods, you’ll immediately notice a slight grade over rocks and tree roots as you navigate through Southern wildflowers (like Carolina tassel rue and Barbara’s buttons) and trees, including hemlock, white pine, tulip poplars, and other oaks. Please stay on the trail to protect the local flora, says Ken Bisbee, park operations manager.

“We have over 70 species of concern located within Ohiopyle State Park, which makes it a really special place in the world,” he says. “Some of those are found in Ferncliff.”

Both trails eventually meet up to allow visitors a chance to visit Fernwood Trail’s scenic vistas with impressive views of the rapids 60 to 100 feet below. From there, the trail descends to the river’s edge with plenty of opportunities to venture out onto cool, wet rocks.

“It’s just relaxing, and you don’t have to be afraid of getting lost as you are relatively close to the bike trail,” says Megan Varosky, park employee and lifetime Ohiopyle hiker. She suggests making the hike longer by exiting the Ferncliff loop, turning left toward the GAP trail’s “high bridge” and taking the familyfriendly, moderately rated Great Gorge Trail, which leads to the popular 30-foot Cucumber Falls.

“The Great Gorge Trail is where the spring wildflowers are best,” says Wallace. “It’s just fantastic.”

This route also takes hikers to the Cucumber Falls Trail, looping back to Route 381 and avoiding the weekend-packed Cucumber Falls parking lot, Varosky adds.

For Instagram-worthy snapshots, try the Baughman Trail, which is essentially the Laurel Ridge, says Varosky. Rated “difficult” with its 1 1/2-mile initial steep and rugged grade, the loop takes you near the river and into the forest. The highlight is a stunning view of the Youghiogheny River Gorge from atop Baughman Rock. Get there by parking at the Middle Yough Take-out parking area adjacent to the Train Station/Information Center.

Next, enjoy the newly renovated Visitor Center on Route 381, with its three observation decks above the Ohiopyle Falls, then head south on the road’s wide walking lane. Cross the bridge toward the Meadow Run Cascades Waterfall Area with its natural waterslide channels on the left. Turn right off of Route 381 and walk downhill on railroad tie steps to hike along one of the Youghiogheny’s channels, a narrow, rocky path with a sharp but short drop to the water that leads to a different section of the Cucumber Falls Trail and, eventually, the bottom of the 30-foot falls.

“Watch your footing,” Bisbee says. “It’s fairly rocky and not an easy trail.”

Most first-time visitors gravitate to the trails near the town hub, Bisbee says. For a more secluded experience, take a 10-minute drive from the Visitor Center via winding Kentuck and Holland Hill roads to the Jonathan Run Trail—one of the park’s “hidden gems,” says Varosky. A fairly easy hike, Jonathan Run travels along a stream that is extra soothing after a springtime rain.

“But the waterfalls (on Jonathan Run) are more difficult to get to,” she says, warning that hikers may get “a little dirty” traversing the slippery footpath—steep in some places—to get to the worthwhile view.

Spring is the best time for seeing—and hearing—birds on all the park’s trails, Wallace says. Listen closely and you’ll hear tree swallows, yellow-breasted and cerulean wood warblers, and other songbirds, migrating from their wintering grounds in Central and South America.

“A lot of them nest here, with the river as a perfect stopover point,” she says.

This spring, park officials are anticipating another season of record-breaking visitor numbers, especially after a year of isolation due to Covid-19, Bisbee says.

“People are discovering us for the first time or possibly rediscovering us if they haven’t been here for years,” he says.

The increased trail traffic has affected the park’s natural resources with inexperienced hikers creating makeshift pathways. Park officials stress that it’s important for visitors to stay on the trails, not pick the wildflowers and, of course, leave no trace.

“I think one of the benefits of this pandemic is that people are looking to get outdoors because the governor encourages outdoor activities,” Bisbee says.

Although just over 2 miles long, the trails at the scenic Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve provide lots to see. Adjacent to Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, the reserve’s trails provide hikers of all ages an opportunity to discover local history and nature along 10 crushed gravel paths. Named for the late wife of golf legend Arnold Palmer, the 50-acre reserve is also a certified Nature Explore Classroom and Audubon Bird Habitat.

To start exploring, park in the lot at the Environmental Learning Barn (built c. 1879) on Walzer Way. Enjoy the wildflowers—asters, great blue lobelia, and wild bergamot—in the nearby gardens, then take the Blockhouse Trail to the reconstructed 1780 Archibald Lochry Blockhouse. Once a safe haven for colonists traveling between Hanna’s Town and Fort Ligonier, the blockhouse sits next to a reconstructed colonial garden with medicinal, culinary, and ornamental plants essential for sustaining 18th-century settlers. Continue on the Cattail Trail to a boardwalk that takes visitors through a wetland where markers explain key ecological features. From there, merge onto the appropriately named Tall Grass Trail and Garden Path to a vegetable and pollinator garden and apiary and learn about sustainable beekeeping. Cross Walzer Way on the Meadow Trail to Butterfly Loop featuring graceful monarchs. Returning to Meadow Trail, pass a sunflower garden and merge onto the Thicket Trail. You can also take the mossy Pond Trail that leads to Palmer Pond, sourced from a natural underground spring, or take Deer Trail to the Discovery Trail Area. Both the Thicket and Deer trails lead back to the Blockhouse Trail and the barn.

Trails are well-marked at intersections, and although the paths are secluded from the adjacent Route 30 traffic, hikers are never far from a view of the Saint Vincent College basilica. Take it slow at first for exploring and taking photographs, but a second lap through these trailways will add significant steps to this educational workout.