What is now known as Lebanon is the ancestral homelands of the Lenape people.
Only a couple generations ago, Pennsylvania was still the country’s leader in railroading. With the consolidation of the railroads into Amtrak and Conrail (now part of Norfolk & Southern), and even before that as communities ebbed and flowed, many tracks were abandoned.
Now, Pennsylvania is one of the leaders in rail trails, old railroad beds that have been converted into recreation trails.
The Lebanon Valley Rail Trail is one of those corridors that has been repurposed into an off-road haven for walkers, runners, and cyclists.
The full trail runs south from downtown Lebanon to the county’s border with Lancaster south of the village of Lawn for a total of about 20 miles. (In Lancaster County, the trail continues for an additional five miles as the Conewago Recreation Trail).
We took advantage of a mild September afternoon to explore a four-mile section of the trail between Cornwall and Mt. Gretna.
If you’re traveling along Route 419 south in Cornwall, you can’t miss the trailhead. It’s the parking lot with the giant barrel-shaped building. Known as the Root Beer Barrel, the building is a snack, drink, and merchandise that serves not only as a local landmark, but as a primary fundraiser for the trail.
From the Root Beer Barrel, we headed southwest, crossing over Cornwall Road and through the borough of Cornwall. The town grew up around the former Cornwall Iron Furnace, now a state historic site just one-half mile east of the trail. The furnace ceased operations before the railroad, closing in 1883, but many of the town’s buildings date to the time when the furnace was in operation.
One of the signature architectural pieces of the trail can be found in Cornwall. That’s where the trail passes over a 130-year-old iron truss bridge. The bridge provides cool views of the valley below, including the picturesque Cornwall Inn.
The trail is shaded for much of the ride, and for the first two miles, we are slowly gaining altitude. One of the best parts of riding rail trails is the hills are gradual, and our uphill road doesn’t feel daunting.
As we ride, we pass the junction of the Horse-Shoe Trail, the 140-mile hiking and equestrian trail that connects Valley Forge to the Appalachian Trail.
There are also side trails where we see trail runners and mountain bikers taking a tougher track up and down little hills and over small streams that trickle into the nearby Conewago Creek.
On the approach to Mt. Gretna, we are riding downhill. On the left are the grounds of the former Mt. Gretna Amusement Park, which has several trails to explore.
Past here, we hang a left onto the Mt. Gretna Spur Trail. It’s a sharp downhill to Timber Road, where we take a short quarter-mile of on-road cycling before crossing Route 117 (Mt. Gretna Road) into the public parking for the Mt. Gretna Playhouse, Porch & Pantry Restaurant, and our destination, the Jigger Shop.
After a break of about an hour to order and eat our well-deserved ice cream treats, we were back on the trail and headed north. The hardest part was the first mile as we made the climb back to the LVRT, but once we crested the hill, it was smooth sailing back to Cornwall.
We will be back to explore the rest of the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail soon, I’m sure.
When You Go
- There are plenty of parking spaces a the Cornwall trailhead, but know that parking can be tricky on busy days, especially as trailgoers are loading and unloading their bikes.
- The ride south is slightly uphill to start followed by a steeper downhill section. The return trip has a steeper climb before two miles of downhill.
- There is a parking lot near Mt. Gretna that has a walking path to town. Riding through this lot and trail cuts the on-road portion in half leaving only a 100 yards or so of on-road riding before town.
- There is ample bike parking in Mt. Gretna near the Jigger Shop.
More Bike Trails in PA
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