Coopers Gap at Rothrock

As I'm riding more and more of Rothrock, it's becoming clear that my favorite trails are in the Coopers Gap region of the forest. These trails are on the south east side of the mountains from State College, and are the domain of the Lewistown boys. They do nice work - take a look at a this rock causeway. They move some big stones to make the rock gardens more ridable.

In general, there are less rock gardens in this area, and those you do find are less chaotic and the rocks better anchored in the soil. I'm not saying they're smooth, mind you, but I spend a lot more time riding and a lot less walking.

There are also benched trails drawing some of the ridge line trails together, several very scenic overlooks, intimate lowland trails through the rhododendrons with occasional hard bottomed stream crossings, some nice flow in places, and even a few bridges and skinnies - the first I've seen here.

It still takes some road segments to tie it all together into loops, but less so than other parts of Rothrock. And there's plenty of riding in this region - I rode about 18 miles of it in 4 hours today, and there's another 17 miles that I rode here a few weeks ago. And yes, that's about 4 miles per hour (including camera and map stops). These are not fast trails. But they are fun.

I think if I were visiting central Pennsylvania and looking for a diverse selection of riding to sample, I'd make Huntingdon my base. Huntingdon's a cute college town of 7,000 located on the banks of the Juniata River about 45 miles south of State College. It's 11 miles from the super smooth, flowing single track of the Allegrippis Trails on the shores of Raystown Lake and 22 miles from Greenwood Furnace State Park and the Coopers Gap trails where you can get your fix of rocks, roots, and gorgeous scenery. Rothrock Outfitters in Huntingdon rents canoes, kayaks, and mountain bikes, and provides shuttle services, bike parts, and repairs. I'd say Boxer's Cafe for beer and eats in the evening and Standing Stone Cafe for breakfast coffee and a lunch panini. When things get dull, you can head for the edge of town and watch the historic maximum security prison - no kidding.

And if you get the urge for some white water or a rail trail adventure, Ohiopyle State Park only 2.5 hours away has some of the best rafting in the east and is a trailhead in the heart of the most scenic segment of the Great Allegheny Passage Rail Trail. In fact, that sounds so good I think I'm going to head for Ohiopyle in a few weeks for a better sampling of the rail trail, check out the river, and search for single track there.