Imagine what’s possible with a trail that connects the country
Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, the Great American route is hosted by trails that showcase the state’s history and heritage, from its days before the country formally came into being to its heyday as an industrial powerhouse. Beginning at the Maryland–Pennsylvania border on the 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage (gaptrail.org), the route travels to Pittsburgh and through downtown on the Three Rivers Heritage Trail.
Plans to complete the Great American through Pittsburgh also align with the vision of the Industrial Heartland Trails Coalition—one of RTC’s TrailNation™ projects—to connect Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and New York via a developing 1,500-mile trail network.
The “Great American” Route Through Pennsylvania
RTC’s route analysis defines the preferred route of the Great American Rail-Trail through Pennsylvania as 172 miles and nearly 95 percent complete. Click the links below to view full trail descriptions on TrailLink.com.
Trails Along the Route
Route Reveal Celebration
Live from McDonald, Pennsylvania, along the Panhandle Trail
Be a Part of the Movement to Complete the Great American
Like you, we can’t wait to see the Great American Rail-Trail vision come to life—but we can’t do it alone. Help us reach 1 million pledges for the Great American, showing the strength and solidarity of the trails community.
The Great American Rail-Trail is a signature project of Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, the nation’s largest trails organization—with a grassroots community more than 1 million strong—dedicated to connecting people and communities through a nationwide network of public trails, many from former rail lines. The “Great American” is the most ambitious project in its TrailNation™ portfolio—the organization’s initiative to encourage the rapid replication of regional trail networks across the country. Follow @greatamericanrailtrail on Facebook and Instagram.
