The Rachel Carson Trail is a

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or a small paved road (though it can also be a route along a navigable waterways) generally not intended for usage by motorized vehicles, usually passing through a natural area. Ho ...

Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Allegheny County ( ) is a County (United States), county in Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,250,578, making it the List of counties in Pennsylvania, state's second-most populous county, after Philadelp ...

, United States. Its western terminus is in the suburban North Park district in the

Pittsburgh metropolitan area Greater Pittsburgh is the metropolitan area surrounding the city of Pittsburgh in Western Pennsylvania, United States. The region includes Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County, Pittsburgh's urban core county and economic hub, and s ...

, and its eastern terminus is in Harrison Hills Park along the

Allegheny River The Allegheny River ( ; ; ) is a tributary of the Ohio River that is located in western Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. It runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border, nor ...

, near the town of

Freeport Freeport, a variant of free port, may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Freeport, name of several space stations in the video game ''Freelancer'' (2003) * Freeport, a fictional town in the video game ''SiN'' (1998) * ''Freeport: The Cit ...

. The trail is maintained by the Rachel Carson Trails Conservancy.

History and route

The Rachel Carson Trail was built by volunteers beginning in 1972 and was christened in 1975. It was named after the influential conservationist, who was born and raised in the area. Most of the trail follows gravel park paths and

rights-of-way A right of way (also right-of-way) is a specific route that people, animals, vehicles, watercraft, or utility lines travel, or the legal status that gives them the right to do so. Rights-of-way in the physical sense include controlled-access h ...

for power lines or pipelines, though some of the terrain is very rugged, and there are several significant climbs and bridgeless stream crossings. Most of the route is on private land, on which passage for hikers has been arranged with owners. Due to occasional changes in land ownership, the route of the trail may change with little notice, so hikers are advised to have the most up-to-date information. Hiking from west to east, the trail traverses North Park and Hampton Community Park. East of that park, a spur trail heads south to Hartwood Acres Park. Back on the Rachel Carson Trail, the hiker briefly follows PA Route 910 and uses that road to cross the

Pennsylvania Turnpike The Pennsylvania Turnpike, sometimes shortened to Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike, is a controlled-access toll road which is operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in Pennsylvania. It runs for across the southern part of the st ...

near Dorseyville. Continuing to the east, the trail passes through Emmerling Park, and continues to the town of Harwick, where it uses a local street to pass under the PA Route 28 expressway. The trail then walks through the town of Springdale on local streets, and passes the Rachel Carson Homestead on Marion Avenue. After exiting Springdale, the trail turns generally to the north, first through Agon Park and mostly parallel to the

. In this area, the Rachel Carson Trail follows a former segment of the

Baker Trail The Baker Trail is a hiking trail in western Pennsylvania in the United States. The trail's southern terminus is across the Allegheny River from the borough of Freeport in Armstrong County. Its northern terminus is in State Game Lands No. 24, ...

, which had been cut off from the rest of that trail by development. Near Creighton, the trail again crosses the PA Route 28 expressway via a local street, and continues to the northeast and parallel to the highway for the next several miles. The trail passes below the expressway via a local street for a third time, and heads east toward Harrison Hills Park, following a circuitous route through that park and ending near the corner of Freeport Road and Bakerstown Road. Every year since 1996, the Rachel Carson Trails Conservancy has hosted the Rachel Carson Trail Challenge. Participants attempt a 34-mile long, one-day, sunrise to sunset endurance hike along the trail. The stated challenge is simply to finish the entire stretch before sunset, after approximately 15 hours. Two shorter challenge routes of 18 miles and 8 miles are offered as well. The trail has also been part of the 100 Mile Quest, a challenge to hike 100 miles on the region's trails in one year.

References

{{coord, 40.662127, -79.699203, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-PA, display=title Hiking trails in Pennsylvania

Trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or a small paved road (though it can also be a route along a navigable waterways) generally not intended for usage by motorized vehicles, usually passing through a natural area. Ho ...

1975 establishments in Pennsylvania Long-distance trails in the United States