Northwest Pennsylvania’s Great Outdoors

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Pennsylvania State Parks

Oil Creek State Park, north of Franklin, consists of an historical heritage park commemorating the rather transient 1860s oil boom, a cross country ski area and a skiable rail-trail. A half-mile drive past the park office brings you to the cross country ski area and a complete change in the scenery.

The area includes a cozy hut (open weekends) warmed by a wood stove with plenty of firewood, a waxing table, outdoor restrooms and a plowed parking lot. I saw more skiers here than anywhere else on my trip. Perhaps a wood stove attracts skiers the way light attracts moths.

I arrived late, so I only had a little time to ski. I skied on the meticulously groomed and tracked Backyard East Trail. Three other loops, all beginning at the warming hut, consist of 3.5 miles of easy skiing and six miles suitable for the more experienced skier. Color-coded rectangles mark trails.

I also skied the first three miles of the Oil Creek Trail. The rail-trail parking resides next to the park office, a quarter-mile from the trailhead, so instead I found a more convenient spot down the parallel road abutting the trail.

This amazing trail starts under an old rail bridge and passes a beached oil barge, complete with barrels. Historic oil derricks rise dramatically above the creek. The flat 9.7-mile trail had a six-inch packed powder base. I was skiing in skied-in tracks. Unfortunately it appeared that most of the trailside signage explaining the historical surroundings had been removed for the winter.

Although the park office was closed for the weekend, park maps (including a cross country ski map), restrooms and a plowed parking lot were available. Nearby, Two Mile Run County Park rents skis with advance reservations.

Cook Forest State Park, notable for its history and remarkable variety of scenery and a 100-inch annual snowfall, offers numerous trails. I arrived on Friday and the park office was open. The ranger provided a park map and trail guide. She said most people ski the unplowed roads (which are also snowmobile trails), rather than the park trails.

Following the ranger’s advice, I parked at the Ridge Campground and skied up Tower Road. The beginner/intermediate three-mile loop leads to the abandoned 80–foot-tall Cook Forest Tower and nearby Seneca overlook. The observation tower and the overlook provide striking, panoramic views of the Clarion River Valley and its bridges.

Skiing on frozen snowmobile tracks has its challenges. As the day warmed, though, the March sun softened the snow.

I returned on the loop road. Halfway down, I cut over onto the connecting Mohawk trail. I followed the red rectangle tree markings carefully, as the trail detours around tornado damage. The massive eastern hemlocks and white pines, called cathedral trees because of their age (thought to be over 400 years old) and size (exceeding three feet in diameter), grow along this trail. I spent a good deal of time staring up at these awesome trees.

My next stop was the Log Cabin Inn parking lot in the Forest Cathedral Area. A fountain commemorates the conservation activities that saved these trees. I hiked a number of these trails, but with the exception of the flat Tom’s Run Trail, near the creek, these steep trails aren’t skiable. Snowshoes are appropriate. West of the road, you can ski the unplowed 3.5 mile Tom’s Run Road (a shared snowmobile trail).

Most of the trails identified on the park map as cross country trails weren’t marked as such in the park and none were groomed, so it is hard to determine the actual number of miles of skiable trails. Cooksburg Dry Goods Store rents skis.

Although each Pennsylvania state park has designated ski trails, they aren’t always groomed or marked as such. State parks do not post traditional rating system signs, but many have trail guides in addition to the park maps that can be helpful in finding appropriate ski trails. Park offices often close on weekends.