Sandy Creek Trail - Pennsylvania

 It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them.

- Ernest Hemmingway

July 24, 2025

During a 16-day camping trip in July 2025 we visited state parks in New York and Pennsylvania. One morning, we rode our bikes on the Sandy Creek Trail in northwestern Pennsylvania.

The 12-mile-long paved trail is named for two separate Sandy Creeks; one at each end. It traverses the bed of the former Jamestown, Franklin & Clearfield Railroad, which was founded in the early 20th century to connect important industrial and agricultural centers. It played an important role in transporting goods and passengers across Pennsylvania and New York, then later became part of the Penn Central Railroad until it was discontinued. 

The Sandy Creek Trail was completed in 2005. It runs east to west from the village of Van to Fisherman's Cove and winds along 8 miles of East Sandy Creek through hills, valleys and forest. The trail crosses over 7 bridges, goes through 1 tunnel, and crosses over the Allegheny River and the Allegheny River Trail just south of the town of Franklin. There are no services along the trail or at either end, so it's a good idea to pack some water, food and flashlights for the tunnel before heading out on the trail.

As an added bonus, at its eastern end, the Sandy Creek Trail is only a short distance from the Clarion Highlands Trail, and at its midpoint, it connects with the Allegheny River Trail. The trail is also part of the Industrial Heartland Trails Coalition, which is a network of trails spanning more than 1,500 miles across New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio.

We started our ride at the Belmar Trailhead and headed east over the 1,385 foot-long Belmar Bridge. The former wooden train trestle has great views out over the Allegheny River, which was designated a National Wild & Scenic River, and you can see the Allegheny River Trail passing below the bridge's eastern end.

Allegheny River Trail seen from the Belmar Bridge

Allegheny River

After crossing the bridge the trail crosses over the creek three times before it passes through a 100-year-old railroad tunnel. The tunnel, known as the Mays Mill or Deep Valley Tunnel, is 967 feet long. The tunnel's crumbling ceiling was improved by the building of a smaller tunnel inside of it and filling the gap with concrete and recycled tires.

Mays Mill Tunnel

Just past the tunnel the trail crosses over the creek again on two high bridges.

Sandy Creek

Sandy Creek

From there the trail gradually climbs upward through hardwood and evergreen forests before ending just north of the community of Van.

Upon reaching the Van trailhead, we turned around and headed back again. But instead of returning to our truck after crossing over the Belmar Bridge, we continued southwest on the trail toward the western terminus at Fisherman's Cove. Here the path runs along a hillside above the Allegheny River for 4 miles. 

Eastern Rat Snake on the trail

Directional sign along the trail

We didn't ride all the way to Fisherman's Cove. The day was growing hot and we were getting hungry, so after a couple of miles we turned around and headed back to our truck, having completed about 19.5 miles for the entire trip. We enjoyed our ride on the Sandy Creek Trail. We're hoping to return to the area sometime so we can ride our bikes on some of the other trails in the area at some point in the future.

If you'd like to ride along with us on the trail, click here for our YouTube video.

* All photos and videos are the property of the blog owners unless otherwise noted. *

Maurice K Goddard State Park - Pennsylvania

 Enjoying outdoor recreation is not only good for physical health, but also for improving mental health, and I encourage everyone to explore some of the beautiful opportunities our state has to offer, particularly at those smaller, less explored state parks.

- Ned Lamont

During our 16-day camping trip visiting state parks in New York and Pennsylvania in July 2025 we visited Maurice K. Goddard State Park in the northwestern section of Pennsylvania. 

Maurice K. Goddard State Park

The 2,856-acre Maurice K. Goddard State Park is located near Sandy Lake, Pennsylvania. The state park features Lake Wilhelm, a 1,680-acre reservoir that's very popular with anglers and boaters. The large lake, abundant wetlands, fields and forests also provide a great place for wildlife watching. Birdwatchers can expect to see waterfowl, eagles and ospreys.

Although there isn't camping in the park, there are plenty of other activities to keep visitors busy. In addition to fishing and boating, there are plenty of opportunities for picnicking, hiking, and biking on the 12-mile John C. Oliver Multi-Purpose Loop Trail, which follows the shoreline of the lake. Hunting and trapping are also allowed in season. There's also a wide variety of programs offered May through September, including guided walks, and hands-on activities. And of course there are activities for visitors to enjoy in the winter, such as sledding, snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, ice fishing, ice skating and ice boating.

Great Blue Heron Canadian Geese Inlet on Lake Wilhelm

Water Lily Turtle

The park has 3 boat launches and a marina with a snack shop where visitors can rent rowboats, motorboats, kayaks and canoes. It also has a bait and tackle fishing concession. Boaters should be aware that the 240-acre portion of the lake northwest of I-79 is managed by the PA State Game Commission. As a result, only electric-powered vessels are permitted on that section of the lake. The remaining 1,440 acres is managed by the state park. This larger portion of the lake allows motored boats up to 20 horsepower.

We launched our kayaks at Launch #3, where there was a very nice handicap-accessible launch for kayaks. We didn't even get our feet wet!

Handicap accessible kayak launch

We returned to the park on another day so we could ride our bicycles on the John C. Oliver Multi-purpose Loop Trail.  But first, we got distracted by the sign for a winery just outside the park and couldn't resist stopping for a visit. The Wilhelm Winery wasn't yet open for the day when we pulled into the parking lot. But the young woman running the winery happened to see us waiting in our truck and waved for us to come inside. Even though it was a little early, we did a tasting and ended up purchasing a couple of bottles of wine. We both liked the Cranberry Splash and the Sunrise Blush.

Then we headed into the park to find the parking area for the trail. The trail is 12 miles long and fully paved. It follows along the shoreline of Lake Wilhelm and is shaded for much of the ride.

View from the trail

View from the trail

If you would like to see a video of our adventures in the park, you can view our YouTube video by clicking here.

After our bike ride we returned to the town of Mercer where we had some lunch and a cool treat at the Mercer Mercantile. We highly recommend this spot - the food was great and the prices were very reasonable. If you go there, make sure you try one of their milkshakes!

Mercer Mercantile
Milkshakes

Next we drove to the tiny village of Volant. Volant has an old-fashioned main street with a bunch of quaint shops, restaurants, wineries and a distillery. We explored an antique store and candy shop before heading back to the campground.

We had a great time exploring Maurice K. Goddard State Park and Volant. We would definitely return to both places if we visit the area again, as well as stopping for lunch at the Mercer Mercantile!

* All photos and videos are the property of the blog owners unless otherwise noted. *

Pymatuning State Park - Pennsylvania

 Because when you stop and look around, this life is pretty amazing.

- Unknown

During our 16-day camping trip visiting state parks in New York and Pennsylvania in July 2025 we visited Pymatuning State Park in the northwestern section of Pennsylvania. Below are the highlights of that trip.

Pymatuning State Park

Pymatuning State Park is huge. It stretches from Jamestown in the south, to Linesville in the north. At 16,892 acres, it's one of the largest state parks in Pennsylvania. Pymatuning Reservoir, which shares its borders with the neighboring state of Ohio, covers 17,088 acres and is the largest lake in Pennsylvania. In addition, Pymatuning State Park is one of the state’s most visited parks. There are a lot of recreational opportunities here, including boating, fishing, swimming, camping, and other recreational activities.

It's important to note here that there is also a Pymatuning State Park in Ohio on the western shore of the reservoir. Although we did drive across the causeway into Ohio so our granddaughter could add another state to the list of those she had been to, all of the places described in this post are located in Pennsylvania.

Camping

There are three campgrounds in the Pennsylvania side of the state park. The Linesville Campground is in the northern part of the park. The campground is pet-friendly and has a total of 80 electric, non-electric and full hook up sites. In addition, the campground has a sanitary dump station, a modern restroom with warm showers, a boat launch, a playground, a fish cleaning station, and laundry facilities.

The Jamestown Campground is the largest campground in the park. It's located on the south side of the reservoir. The campground is pet friendly and has a total of 318 electric, non-electric and full hookup sites, four of which are pull through sites. There's also a sanitary dump station, 6 modern bathhouses, a playground, beach, camp store, laundry facility, amphitheater, boat launch, fish cleaning station and transient boat dock.

The Tuttle Campground is located in the central part of the state park. It's pet friendly and most of the 109 sites are full hookup sites, two of which are pull through. The remaining sites have water and electric. There's one bathhouse, a modern restroom, sanitary dump station, an amphitheater, a boat launch, a fishing pier and a fish cleaning station. Unique to this campground is "A Great Gathering Friends and Family Site": a three-unit, full hookup site that accommodates a total of 15 people. There is also access to a beach, pavilion and playground along the campground entrance road.

Although we didn't stay in any of the campgrounds or drive through them to check them out, we'll definitely take them into consideration the next time we camp in the area. 

It's also important when planning to camp at Pymatuning, that there are additional campgrounds on the Ohio side of the reservoir. As mentioned previously, the information provided here only refers to the Pennsylvania State Park and Campgrounds.

Pymatuning Reservoir

Great Blue Heron

The main purpose of the Pymatuning Reservoir is to conserve the waters flowing into the Pymatuning Swamp and regulate the flow of the Shenango and Beaver Rivers. A secondary purpose is to contain flood water during periods of excessive runoff.

The reservoir is also open to boating. We could see pontoon boats, jet skis and all kinds of other boats in the reservoir. Watercraft can be rented from Espyville Boat Rental, Pymatuning Boat Rental, Jamestown Marina, and Linesville Marina.

Pymatuning Dam

The Pymatuning Dam is constructed of clay with a row of steel pilings driven into the bedrock at its center. It was constructed at a point where the surrounding hills came together to form a narrow valley. The dam extends 2,400 feet across the valley and has a maximum height of only 50 feet. The reservoir behind the dam is relatively shallow with an average depth of only 15 feet. At its deepest point near the dam, it's only about 30 to 35 feet deep. That's pretty amazing for a reservoir of this size!

The Gate House

The Gate House

The castle-like stone and concrete Gate House controls water flow through the dam. This historical structure was guarded during World War II. Today it serves as a site for weddings and wedding photography.

Spillway Area

Carp at the Linesville Spillway	Geese "walking" on the carp
Albino Carp

The Linesville Spillway has been a visitor attraction since its construction in 1934. Carp from the Shenango River gather at the spillway to feed on plant material, insect larvae, crayfish and other natural food as it's washed over the spillway bowl. Eventually, roadside vendors began to provide bread to tourists who fed the bread to the carp, which also drew ducks to the area. The tradition of feeding the fish became very popular and continues today, drawing over 400,000 visitors yearly. At times, the fish are so numerous that it looks like the ducks are walking on them to get some of the bread!

If you visit the spillway to feed the fish, it's requested that you only use bread or pellets, both of which can be purchased at the spillway concession stand. We were able to purchase our bread there, however it ran out quickly, so you might want to bring your own.

PA Fish and Boat Commission Hatchery

The Linesville State Fish Hatchery was built in1939 to raise warm water fish. The visitor center was opened in 1971. It has a two-story tall fish tank, mounts of state record fish, displays and information about reptiles and amphibians, and other exhibits. Outside on the grounds are 97 acres of ponds, raceways and a hatch house. The 2,500 acre Pymatuning Sanctuary, located behind the fish hatchery, is where brood stock is collected for spawning.

Aquarium inside the fish hatchery visitor center

Fingerling pond

We had a great time visiting Pymatuning State Park. We hope to return so we can camp in one of the campgrounds and spend some time on the lake.

To view a video of our visit to Pymatuning State Park, click here.

* All photos and videos are the property of the blog owners unless otherwise noted. *