The Countryside Conservancy Trolley Trail

While I’m in Pennsylvania for the next two months, I thought I’d try as many walking trails as I could as I wind through the Keystone state. Trail number four is the Countryside Conservancy Trolley Trail.

This beautiful walking path exists on the old railbed of the Scranton Railway Company’s Northern Electric Spur. Opened in 1907, the spur provided trolley service to those living in the area, and funneled goods and people into the city of Scranton.

The majority of the trail is shaded

The railway went insolvent at the start of the Great Depression, but this 2.5 mile stretch of the railbed was eventually turned into a beautiful walking tail. The majority of the trail is shaded and made of crushed shale gravel, so very little mud. There are several informational signs along the trail, of which, I found the one that told of “cattle underpasses” as one of the more enjoyable. The original area was full of small dairies which the trolley line bisected. The underpasses allowed cattle in the affected fields, access to the milking barn.

Cattle Underpass - filled with 100 years of silt

Apparently, there have been some very heavy rains in the area, because the trail was “closed” due to some damage caused by water runoff. Still a very beautiful and enjoyable trail.

Just a little water damage