Stop #15 – Explore Pine Creek Rail Trail – Patterson Trailhead

The Pine Creek Rail Trail opened its first section for public recreation in 1996! The path that it follows was once used as a rail line, completed in 1883, known as the Jersey Shore, Pine Creek and Buffalo Railroad. This line would carry freight (including lumber) and passengers for many years.

Before the railroading days, Pine Creek was used by lumber workers to float timber down to sawmills and markets. Log drives and rafts filled the waters in the spring, with logs and raftsmen floating downstream. The raft crews would typically walk the return trip after selling the raft timbers. The path they walked, was even older than their time. The communities Indigenous to the land were the first humans to use the path along Pine Creek.Today, the Pine Creek Rail Trail welcomes explorers to get outdoors and experience a path that has connected people and places for centuries. The trail was awarded “2026 Trail of the Year” by the Department of Conservation & Natural Resources (DCNR), after closing a trail gap.

The LHT sign is located the Patterson Trailhead near the charming community of Wellsboro, visit https://www.tiogacountypa.us/departments/planning-commission/patterson-trailhead for more information!