Mid State Trail System
Spurs & Branches
Several spur footpaths add options to the
dayhiker and connecting long-distance backpacker
using the Mid State Trail System.
Greenwood Spur, in Huntingdon County
just south of State College, is the oldest (1974) of
the blue blazed connecting footpaths,
described
in
Section A of the
10th edition Guide. Its 10.78
km connects main MST beside the old growth
Detweiler
Run Natural Area,
with the exquisite never-cut rhododendron and virgin
hemlocks of
Alan
Seeger Natural Area, Broad Mountain (Greenwood)
Fire Tower, and the historic and scenic
Greenwood
Furnace State Park and
its connection through Link
Trail to one arm of the Great
Eastern Trail regional
footpath network. (State
College Region)
Ironstone Loop, in Huntingdon County
just southwest of State College, from main MST ascends
the mysterious "Indian Steps," traverses Stone Valley
Recreation Area of Penn
State University, and crosses Route 26 at Monroe Furnace,
on its way to Beaver Pond and a second connection to
main
MST. 17.14 km (described in Section B of the 10th
edition Guide) opened in 1979. (State
College Region)
Jackson Trail separates Jackson Township,
Huntingdon County, from Ferguson Township, Centre County,
atop the scenic and rocky ridgeline of Tussey Mountain.
Section C of the 10th edition Guide describes
this 4.61 km cutoff of main MST leading from Jo Hays
Vista on Route 26 south of Pine Grove Mills. (State
College Region)
Reeds Gap Spur in eastern Mifflin
County east of Milroy, connects Poe Paddy State Park
to Reeds Gap State Park through 22.28 km of remote
Bald Eagle State Forest. Check Trail
Alerts on this
web site as well as Section D of the 10th
edition Guide. (State
College Region)
Colerain Picnic Area on PA 45 in
western Huntingdon County was once the south end of
MST, which is why
a sign
in Bald Eagle State Forest visible from US 322 eastbound
reports the distance "40 miles" to this point in
oudated, unsanctioned, colonial units of measure. A
blue blazed spur leaves km 10.46 of Section 1
of MST
as described in the 10th
edition
Guide, to reach an
overlook in 1.10 km and this picnic area in 2.16 km.
(State College Region)
Houselander Trail in northwestern
Lycoming County is a path to several viewpoints overlooking
Tiadaghton,
the "River of Pines," and much of its eponymous State
Forest. It was once part of Tiadaghton Trail,
footpath
predating MST, then was part of MST until a 2001 relocation
to avoid roadwalking on PA 44. It is a 6 km blue blazed
route that leaves PA 44 10.4 km north of the US 220
junction at Jersey Shore. Description is km 1.66 to
km 8.02 of Section 8 of the 10th
edition Guide. (Woolrich
Region)
Bohen Trail in southwestern Tioga
County ascends the west side of Pennsylvania's
Grand
Canyon, passing two waterfalls in 3.87 km rising from
Pine Creek at Blackwell to the popular West Rim Trail.
Built as the north end of main MST in 1987, orange
blazes remain on Bohen Trail as the exception proving
the blue blazed rule. Description is in Section 10
of the 10th edition Guide.
(Woolrich Region)
Fork Hill Spur on the East Rim of
Pennsylvania's Grand Canyon leads from MST at
the head
of Stone Quarry Hollow,
first on woods roads then on footpaths old and
new,
past several vistas of Pine and Babb Creeks 2.4 km
to a view of their junction at Blackwell. Blue
blazed
and signed. Please respect the rights of private property
owners along an unmarked path down
from the last viewpoint into Blackwell village. (Tioga
Region)
Water Tank Run is a 1.1 km connection
from MST to Pine Creek rail-Trail along its namesake
stream
notched into the east
wall of PA's Grand Canyon. There is a viewpoint low
in the Canyon on the second switchback, and an
unblazed
trail leads from the opposite side of the bridge on
the west end to the lower falls of Water Tank
Run.
(Tioga Region)
Several more detour, side, and connecting trails are
described on the MST guides and maps. Buy
the map and guide set to
find them all! |