Pine Creek Rail Trail

I was looking for a place to go cycling on a defined bicycle trail – I went online, Googled and found out it was an hour away. So why not?
The reviews from the site I looked at all rated this trail very highly. I only traversed ~10 miles into the trail before turning around and going back to the trailhead. There are restrooms dotted along the trail, saw most people on bicycles but a few on foot.
It’s a great experience and you only have to travel across a highway a few times. If you ride a bicycle, I don’t recommend using road tires since it’s loose gravel almost the entire trail.
Overall a great experience and will be going back in the future.

The Pine Creek Rail Trail was one of the first rails-​to-​trails in the area, having been completed in 1996. As its name implies, this was once a rail line and it was built in 1883 to haul timber products and coal. Throughout the years it was operated by various rail companies, the last being Conrail Railroad, which shut it down in 1988. The present trail starts in Jersey Shore, PA and ends just north of Wellsboro, PA. The entire trail is crushed limestone and is an easy ride. The steepest grade is only about 2%.
Rick and I began our trip in Jersey Shore at the trailhead. Please note that the address I show above is the approximate address of the trailhead. Some parking is available at the trailhead as are restrooms. We headed west for a few blocks then turned and proceeded northwest while paralleling PA #44. Just northwest of Torbert we crossed the creek for the first time. This was the first of a few creek crossings we did. We passed a portion of WatervilleVillage before skirting the edge of Upper Pine Bottom State Park. You won’t find any facilities in the state park, however just beyond is Dry Run Comfort Station. If you need to take a facilities break, here’s the place to do it. Now these ‘Comfort Stations’ are really pit toilets, but they are really clean. The southern portion of the trail has facilities every few miles.
We didn’t stop at Dry Run Comfort Station, however just north of there we saw the first of several canoe launches. Canoeing and kayaking are very popular here. Once past Jersey Mills Village we began paralleling PA #414. The trail passes through a part of Tiadaghton State Forest here. Tiadaghton State Forest has well over fifty miles of hiking trails in it plus a portion of the 306 mile Mid State Trail, which crosses the state and connects the Maryland border to the West Rim Trail in Tioga county. If we wever get really serious about hiking, me and my girlfriends should come here.
We made a rest stop at Cammal Village Comfort Station. I’m a tyoe-​1 diabetic and when I do rides like this I have to pay really close attention to my sugars and soemtimes I need a snack break. I should mention that a lot of the geographic names are just points on a map. While this trail has ample pit stops and water pumps, there are almost no places along the trail to obtain food. Just to the east of Cammal Village Comfort Station is Little Pine State Park which also has canoeing, hiking and also camping. Most of the Pine Creek Rail Trail is located in a valley with some pretty good bluffs and slopes on either side.
We pressed on and we eventually made our way to Hillborn Hills Comfort Station. This portion of the trail has campsites available for those doing the length. We decided to have our lunch break here. Gotta love good olé PB&J when biking or hiking – especially after it gets warm. And no Skippy for me either! I love the good ol’ fashioned stuff where the oil rises to the top and you’ve gotta stir it before making your sandwich. This was our turnaround point too, being approximately the half way point. The entire trail is 60 miles in length and a one day round trip would have been impossible. And for this portion of the ride, we missed out on the most spectacular part – the remaining miles to Wellsboro. O’ but stay tuned my friends, for we did tackle the remainder on another date.