Quehanna Trail
The 73.7-mile Quehanna Trail is a loop through portions of two state forests and three counties in north-central Pennsylvania. The main trailhead is at Parker Dam State Park in northern Clearfield County. The trail passes through two State Game Land districts, and for 34 miles it traverses Quehanna Wild Area. It also passes near the industrial near-ghost town of Piper and visits several areas that are still recovering from a severe tornado outbreak in 1985. The QT is the one Pennsylvania long-distance backpacking trail on which hikers are most likely to see elk in their native habitat.
The Quehanna Trail’s main loop includes three different cross-connector trails – the Cutoff Trail, the West Cross Connector, and the East Cross Connector – that can be used to form several different sub-loops. The Old Sinnemahoning Trail departs from the northeastern segment of the main trail and heads to the village of Wyside where, with less than two miles of road walking, hikers can reach the western terminus of the Donut Hole Trail.
The Quehanna Trail and its cross-connectors are described in the point-by-point Guide to the Quehanna Trail by Ben Cramer (2015), and a history of the trail and its surrounding region can be found in Foot Trails of the Moshannon and Southern Elk State Forests by Ralph Seeley (2014). Those books are both available at the KTA Bookstore. (The QT guide is currently out of print, with future availability unknown.) PDF maps are available for download from Moshannon State Forest here, and they will mail you a copy if requested.
In 2016, the northwestern segment of the Quehanna Trail was extensively rerouted to avoid a failed bridge at Medix Run, and the main trail assumed a former portion of the West Cross Connector. On the southern segment of the main trail, another relocation with a new bridge is planned for the near future at Mosquito Creek.
In 2024, KTA Trail Care volunteers coordinated with Moshannon State Forest personnel to extend the flooded Beaver Run bridge on the QT Eastern Cross Connector (pictures below).
The Quehanna Trail’s main loop includes three different cross-connector trails – the Cutoff Trail, the West Cross Connector, and the East Cross Connector – that can be used to form several different sub-loops. The Old Sinnemahoning Trail departs from the northeastern segment of the main trail and heads to the village of Wyside where, with less than two miles of road walking, hikers can reach the western terminus of the Donut Hole Trail.
The Quehanna Trail and its cross-connectors are described in the point-by-point Guide to the Quehanna Trail by Ben Cramer (2015), and a history of the trail and its surrounding region can be found in Foot Trails of the Moshannon and Southern Elk State Forests by Ralph Seeley (2014). Those books are both available at the KTA Bookstore. (The QT guide is currently out of print, with future availability unknown.) PDF maps are available for download from Moshannon State Forest here, and they will mail you a copy if requested.
In 2016, the northwestern segment of the Quehanna Trail was extensively rerouted to avoid a failed bridge at Medix Run, and the main trail assumed a former portion of the West Cross Connector. On the southern segment of the main trail, another relocation with a new bridge is planned for the near future at Mosquito Creek.
In 2024, KTA Trail Care volunteers coordinated with Moshannon State Forest personnel to extend the flooded Beaver Run bridge on the QT Eastern Cross Connector (pictures below).
