Guide to the Quehanna Trail: Second Edition: 5 (Keystone Trails Series) - Softcover

Cramer, Ben

Softcover

ISBN 13: 9798888194508

Publisher: Catamount Press, 2026

Synopsis

Master the wild beauty of Pennsylvania’s most remote landscapes with this definitive, point-by-point guide to the 73-mile Quehanna Trail loop.

• Definitive Navigational Authority: This comprehensive guide provides meticulously verified, point-by-point navigation for the entire 73.73-mile Quehanna Trail loop, including 14 recent relocations and updated mileage to ensure hikers have the most accurate data available.
• Unrivaled Regional Depth: Beyond the main loop, the book offers detailed logistics for five affiliated trails—the Cut Off, West Cross Connector, East Cross Connector, Old Sinnemahoning, and Bear Run Trails—enabling hikers to customize everything from short day trips to ambitious multi-day expeditions.
• Essential Wilderness Logistics: Every critical detail is covered, from reliable water source evaluations and primitive camping regulations to precise GPS coordinates for official parking access points across Clearfield, Cameron, and Elk Counties.
• Immersive Natural History: Readers gain a deeper connection to the landscape through expert commentary on the region’s unique ecosystems, including its rare high-plateau meadows, the history of the "Corporation Dam," and insights into local wildlife like the Pennsylvania elk herd.
• Safety Considerations: The guide prioritizes hiker safety with specific warnings regarding challenging wet crossings, seasonal hunting considerations, and practical advice for navigating the remote Quehanna Wild Area.

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 the 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.

About this title

About the Author

Ben Cramer has hiked more than 6,000 miles on Pennsylvania's hiking trails and has completed many of the state's long-distance backpacking trails multiple times. He is a longtime member of Keystone Trails Association and was a member of its board of directors from 2018 to 2023. He is also a member of several Pennsylvania conservation groups and hiking clubs; and was formerly an executive committee member for Sierra Club at both the local and state levels. Cramer is the author of seven guidebooks for Pennsylvania backpacking trails, including two previous editions for the Allegheny Front Trail. With one exception, none of those long-distance trails had dedicated guidebooks previously. Cramer was also the editor of Pennsylvania Hiking Trails (13th edition, 2008). For several years he wrote regularly on outdoor adventure and environmental issues for the Centre Daily Times, and for a variety of Pennsylvania volunteer publications. Under his professional name Benjamin W. Cramer, he is the author of the book Freedom of Environmental Information (2011). He is a longtime resident of State College, PA and teaches for the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications at Penn State University, where one of his research specialties is the environmental impacts of modern telecommunications services.

Edition details

• Publisher: Catamount Press
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 13: 9798888194508
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 133