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| The trail now crosses the Salisbury Trestle over the Casselman River |
There is currently one significant gap in the trail between Washington and Pittsburgh: Cumberland to Meyersdale and one minor gap: McKeesport to Pittsburgh. These future trail segments are not yet open to the public, so through-trips need road detours.
Plans for 2002 and 2003 offer hope for trail construction in the Cumberland/Frostburg and Deal/Meyersdale areas. If this all happens, the remaining significant gap will be eliminated. We look forward to deleting sections from this cue sheet over the next year or two.
| Back to trip report overview | Back to FreeWheeling Home | |||
| 9/97: Wash DC to Pittsburgh PA | Cue sheet for gaps in DC - Pit | Trip Report McKeesport - Pittsburgh | Construction Challenges | Who knows what's next? |
The signature feature of the Allegheny Highlands Trail in Pennsylvania must surely be the Salisbury Trestle, just west of Meyersdale. To appreciate the potential, you need only look up from US219 at the trestle and imagine the views up and down the valley. We celebrate the opening of the trail on this trestle and the opportunity to delete the detour instructions from this page.
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| The trail now crosses the Salisbury Trestle over the Casselman River |
We are making this information available without charge. If you find it useful, send a donation to your favorite trail council.
Westbound Directions |
If everything comes together, the trail along the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad may be surfaced during 2002 or 2003. Until this is completed, you may take bikes on the train (warn them if you have more than a couple of bikes). We definitely recommend this alternative -- the train ride is great, and the road ride isn't. Even so, it’s useful to know the road alternative.
| 0.0 | Western Maryland Scenic RR Station in Cumberland; terminus of C&O Canal towpath (elevation 620’). Leave the parking lot by turning left on S. Mechanic St. These streets in historic Cumberland are narrow and carry a fair amount of traffic. Fortunately, the traffic isn’t moving very fast. | ||
| 0.x | Turn right on Frederick St (forced turn) | ||
| 0.3 | Turn left on Centre St. Pass Bikes N Things is at 165 Centre St | ||
| 0.5 | Follow Centre St as it crosses Queen City Rd, passes under a concrete bridge, immediately bears left, and then swings right | ||
| 1.1 | Join Mechanic St, becoming the northbound lane (elevation 630’) | ||
| 1.2 | Straight at light. At this point traffic speed picks up and the road has no shoulder (or only a single-track shoulder) | ||
| 1.5 | Cross Wills Ck. Good shoulder starts here (elevation 630’) | ||
| 1.8 | Enter "The Narrows". Shoulder diminishes to almost nothing as the road, creek, and two railroads all squeeze through a narrow gap at the end of Haystack Mountain | ||
| 2.3 | At stoplight, go straight on MD36 (marked "south", elevation 650’). Do not turn left on Cash Valley Rd | ||
| 4.4 | Sheetz on right side; you’re still on MD36 in Corriganville (elevation 720’) | ||
| 7.4 | Barrelville (elevation 960’). For this route, remain on MD36. If you want to take MD47/PA160 over the mountain (emerging on PA219 at Berlin), this is the place to turn right and get ready to climb 1600’ in 5-6 miles | ||
| 7.9 | The shoulder shrinks to nearly nothing, and the climb becomes noticeable | ||
| 8.9 | Turn left on Iron Rail Rd (actually, bear left) opposite the Mt Savage Roll of honor, a brick memorial with flag poles (elevation 1150’) | ||
| 9.5 | Turn left on Lower Bank, then immediately right on Foundry at the Mt Savage Community Park (elevation 1210’). The tennis courts will be on your left – head for the recycling drop-off. Go through a company town, climbing distinctly | ||
| 9.9 | Take the forced left, still on Foundry. Climb briskly for 1 block, then turn right on Slabtown Rd (elevation 1310’). Begin climbing. This is a 2-lane road with no shoulder but little traffic. You’re parallel to MD36 and avoiding a narrow twisty section with lots of traffic | ||
| 10.3 | Slight respite from climb here (elevation 1380’) | ||
| 10.4 | Slabtown, top of the climb (elevation 1460’). Go straight where Logsdon Lane goes right and Trimble Rd goes left | ||
| 10.8 | Steep downhill | ||
| 10.9 | Cross 1-lane bridge, then make short climb to MD36 (Mt Savage Rd, elevation 1470’) | ||
| 11.0 | Turn left on MD36 (Mt Savage Rd). This road is now freshly-paved, a generous two lanes. | ||
| 11.2 | Go straight as MD638 goes left (elevation 1480’) | ||
| 12.1 | Enter Zihlman (elevation 1560’). | ||
| 12.4 | Railroad grade enters from left. In 50’ Sugar Row Rd goes right. In 50’ more, New Hope Rd goes left. Bear left on New Hope Rd (elevation 1600’). Immediately after you turn, you’ll cross the railroad grade as it heads for the reversing switch; in another .4 miles you cross it as it returns from the reversing switch (elevation 1660’) | ||
| 13.0 | Continue on New Hope Rd as the intersection with Borden Yard Rd (elevation 1730’) marks the beginning of a steep climb | ||
| 13.2 | Pass under trestle (elevation 1810’; trail may eventually cross here) and pass intersection with Rankin Dr | ||
| 13.4 | Enter Western Md Scenic Railroad Station (elevation 1940’). Turn left then right through the station, then climb a steep 1-block hill to Alt 40 in downtown Frostburg (elevation 2020’) |
We don’t like this very much; it entails a steep climb up a busy road with scant shoulders. It would be a major attraction to many cyclists if someone in the area offered a shuttle service from, say, the Western Md RR station to the Mason-Dixon Campground at the MD/PA state line (which seems to be the only campground in the area).
| 0.0 | After climbing from Western Md Scenic RR station, turn right on Main St, Alt US40 (elevation 2020’) | ||
| 0.x | You’ll eventually leave Frostburg on Alt US40, so you can just follow Main St. However, you can avoid a lot of traffic by taking the first right (Uhl St), then the first left (First St). Continue nearly a mile on First St to Shaw St, turn left on Shaw and then right on US40, emerging at Charlie’s Motel (elevation 2200’) | ||
| 1.0 | After passing Charlie’s Motel, climb briskly on Alt US40. There’s a good shoulder for 2.5 miles except for an occasional narrow patch or some debris | ||
| 2.9 | Top of Big Savage Mountain (elevation 2850’). Unfortunately, you have to descend (to elevation 2620’) and climb again | ||
| 3.5 | Left on the ramp to go to MD 946 (elevation 2700’). The ramp has a marginal shoulder and a steep climb (to elevation 2790’) | ||
| 4.1 | Turn left, then right on Finzel Rd (elevation 2760’). You’re now actually on MD946. The shoulder is narrow but well-paved, and you continue climbing for 0.7 mile (to elevation 2820’) | ||
| 6.0 | Go straight where Sampson Rock Rd enters from right (elevation 2600’). Descend to Finzel (elevation 2520’) and climb again. If you want to get out of traffic, Sampson Rock Rd is paved and makes a crescent parallel to MD946, re-entering just north of the MD/PA state line (and just past campground entrance). Note, though, that it climbs to 2780’ | ||
| 6.9 | MD/PA state line (elevation 2620’). For Mason-Dixon Campground, turn left in 0.1 mile |
This is almost entirely downhill on paved roads, except for one short steep climb at Sand Patch. Best of all, there is virtually no traffic on the roads. It’s a quite acceptable alternative.
| 0.0 | MD/PA state line (elevation 2620’) | ||
| 0.1 | Turn right on Flaugherty Run Rd [SR2011] (elevation 2600’), but not sharp right on Sampson Rock Rd (yes the other end) | ||
| 2.7 | Remain on SR2011, bearing left at the intersection where Shirley Hollow Rd goes right (elevation 2410). The embankment here fills the cut of the old railroad; the trail will eventually cross here | ||
| 3.3 | Make a sharp left on SR2006 toward Deal (elevation 2380’). The street sign for this road is marked "Deal Rd, TR 829"; the SR2006 marker may be missing. | ||
| 3.9 | Turn right to continue on SR2006 in Deal, taking care not to be distracted by the road that crosses the railroad grade (elevation 2340’) | ||
| 4.1 | Bear left to remain on SR2006 at the Oak Ridge Rd (TR 712) intersection | ||
| 5.8 | Bear left at end of Deal Rd (TR829), staying on SR2006/SR2009 | ||
| 7.7 | Sand Patch (elevation 2280’). Continue on SR2006, which curves right, crosses a bridge over the active rail line, and climbs 60’ to a T intersection | ||
| 8.0 | Turn left at the T, still on SR2006 (elevation 2340’) | ||
| 9.0 | Pass under the high Keystone Trestle. The trail will eventually cross overhead | ||
| 11.9 | Enter Meyersdale, take fourth right onto Main St (elevation 2040'), climb past the active RR tracks to the restored Western Maryland RR station (still on Main St, about two blocks beyond the active tracks). Turn left onto the unimproved trail towards the Salisbury Viaduct (elevation 2110') |
This section of trail was completed in the spring of 2001, There is no longer a gap.
Eastbound Directions |
From Confluence (elevation 1330') take PA281 about 6.0 miles to SR3001 (elevation 1890'). Turn right toward Ft Hill on SR3001, following this road a little over a mile to the Casselman River. Cross the Casselman River (elevation 1480') and follow SR3001 up the hill to the trail crossing (elevation 1540'). Turn left on the trail.
This is almost entirely a steady but not steep climb on paved roads, except for one short downhill at Sand Patch. The good news is that there is virtually no traffic on the roads.
| 0.0 | At the train station (elevation 2110'), turn right onto Main St. Descend past the active tracks to SR2006 and turn left (elevation 2040') | ||
| 2.9 | Pass under the high Keystone Trestle. The trail will eventually cross overhead | ||
| 3.9 | Turn right toward Sand Patch to remain on SR2006 (elevation 2340’) | ||
| 4.2 | Sand Patch (elevation 2280’). Continue on SR2006. | ||
| 6.1 | Bear left at end of Deal Rd (TR829), staying on SR2006/SR2009 | ||
| 8.0 | Turn left to continue on SR2006 in Deal, taking care not to be distracted by the road that crosses the railroad grade (elevation 2340’) | ||
| 8.6 | Make a sharp right on SR2011 (elevation 2380’). The marker may be missing. | ||
| 9.2 | Remain on SR2011, bearing right across the embankment at the intersection where Shirley Hollow Rd goes left (elevation 2410). The embankment here fills the cut of the old railroad; the trail will eventually cross here | ||
| 11.8 | At the five-way intersection, turn left on SR2010 (elevation 2600’), but not sharp right on Sampson Rock Rd | ||
| 11.9 | MD/PA state line (elevation 2620’) |
We don’t like this very much; it entails a steep climb up a busy road with scant shoulders. It would be a major attraction to many cyclists if someone in the area offered a shuttle service from, say, the Mason-Dixon Campground at the MD/PA state line (which seems to be the only campground in the area) to the Western Md RR station.
| 0.0 | MD/PA state line (elevation 2620’). For Mason-Dixon Campground, turn right into the driveway. You're now on Finzel Rd, MD946. Climb to Finzel (elevation 2520’) and descend again. | ||
| 0.9 | Go straight where Sampson Rock Rd enters from left (elevation 2600’) (yes the other end). The shoulder is narrow but well-paved. | ||
| 2.8 | Turn right, then left to stay on on MD946. You're headed for the top of the ramp to Alt US40 (elevation 2790’). | ||
| 3.4 | Descend the ramp to go to Alt US40 (elevation 2700’). The ramp has a marginal shoulder and a steep descent. Descend (to elevation 2620’) and climb again | ||
| 4.0 | Top of Big Savage Mountain (elevation 2850’) and descend briskly, still on Alt US40 .There’s a good shoulder for 2.5 miles except for an occasional narrow patch or some debris | ||
| 5.9 | Pass Charlie’s Motel. You can jog left for a block to get out of traffic for a while. | ||
| 6.8 | Turn down steep hill to Western Md Scenic RR station (elevation 2020’) | ||
| 6.9 | Western Md Scenic RR station (elevation 1940’) |
If everything comes together, the trail along the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad may be surfaced during 2002 or 2003. Until this is completed, you may take bikes on the train (warn them if you have more than a couple of bikes, and ask about special arrangements for starting the trip in Frostburg). Eastbound, though, many cyclists will find the downhill run on the road an attractive alternative..
| 0.0 | Western Md Scenic Railroad Station (elevation 1940’). Leave the station on New Hope Rd headed briskly downhill. | ||
| 0.2 | Pass intersection with Rankin Dr and pass under trestle (elevation 1810’; trail may eventually cross here) | ||
| 1.0 | Turn right on MD36 (Mt Savage Rd, elevation 1600’). There's not much shoulder here | ||
| 5.5 | The shoulder becomes generous and the road levels out | ||
| 6.9 | Barrelville (elevation 960’) | ||
| 9.4 | Sheetz on left side; you’re still on MD36 in Corriganville (elevation 720’) | ||
| 11.1 | At stoplight, go straight on MD36. Do not turn right on Cash Valley Rd | ||
| 11.4 | Enter "The Narrows". Shoulder diminishes to almost nothing as the road, creek, and two railroads all squeeze through a narrow gap at the end of Haystack Mountain | ||
| 11.9 | Cross Wills Ck. Good shoulder ends here (elevation 630’) | ||
| 12.2 | Straight at light. At this point traffic speed picks up and the road has no shoulder (or only a single-track shoulder). This becomes Mechanic St; follow this road through town (elevation 630’) | ||
| 13.4 | Western Maryland Scenic RR Station in Cumberland; terminus of C&O Canal towpath (elevation 620’). Enter the parking lot by turning right from S. Mechanic St. These streets in historic Cumberland are narrow and carry a fair amount of traffic. Fortunately, the traffic isn’t moving very fast. |
Thanks to Joe Knapick for checking and elaborating these instructions.
You are visiting FreeWheeling Easy in Western Pennsylvania, copyright © 1998,1999,2000,2001 by Mary Shaw and Roy Weil. We encourage you to link to these pages or print copies for personal use. However, if you want to copy the material for any other use, you must ask us first. Other outdoor publications by the authors. Page updated 01/21/06 by Mary Shaw Comments to maintainer.
As always we have made a serious effort to present accurate descriptions. However we are human, trails change with time, and we occasionally receive incorrect information. Therefore we can not be responsible for discrepancies between these descriptions and actual trail conditions. Use common sense, judgment and be careful out there.