Trail Report PA: My Harrowing Experience in Rothrock State Forest and Glorious Redemption @ Raystown Lake
Ahh, Pennsylvania. How I’ve missed thee. Even your slick “Pennsylvania Shale” brings new definition to what I think when I think “slick surface.” After several weeks off the bike (brought on by necessary repairs to the bike and to the human that holds on to it for dear life), I was itching to get back into the saddle again. (Isn’t there an old country song from the 50s about that – “Back in the Saddle Again”?)
And I definitely enjoyed my other Pennsylvania adventure: Blue Mountain Resort (click here for the low down). After BMR, I felt like I was an expert in that dubious “shale” and ready for to tackle it in Round 2. As a beginner, intermediate mountain biker – my confidence is growing at what may be an alarming rate.
But therein lies the problem – because in my eagerness to feel the rush from my drug of choice (adrenaline!), I might have overestimated my ability and failed to take basic things into consideration, like, you know, the heat index… But that’s just the opening line of my Fourth Month MTB Newbie Chronicles. To the trail report!
As always, remember I write this blog from the perspective of a newbie: a beginner/intermediate still trying to feel for his pedals and happy if I simply don’t hit the pedals on rocks or end up eating dirt!
Table of Contents
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Quick Beginner/Intermediate Ride Stats And Van Life Info:
🟢 Green Trails: 12
🔵 Blue Trails: 8
⭐ Ty’s Beginner Friendly Rating: 6/10
🚐 Van Life Score: 10/10
📍 Must-Ride Trail: Rabbit Hole
🌤️ Best Season to Visit: Summer → Early Fall
🪪 Loam Pass / IMBA Epic: (mark if it’s included)
🐕 Dog-Friendly: Yes/No
🛠️ Trail Conditions Today: (link to Trailforks/MTB Project status)
Add Your Heading Text Here
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Rothrock State Forest: A Tale of Woe (Mostly)
Google “best mountain biking in Pennsylvania” or literally any derivation thereof, and I can promise you – Rothrock State Forest will be in almost every article, every post, and now – every AI-auto-generated response from the non-human world that hasn’t actually ridden it.
Because, you know, it’s a computer… It doesn’t have legs. Or go mountain biking. Just a reminder from those who take ChatGPT as though it’s actually gone to the trails it tells you to go to…
Anyhoo, rant over…
Rothrock State Forest is truly impressive. It encompasses nearly 200,000 acres in central Pennsylvania, making it a sprawling outdoor playground. It’s renowned for its rugged terrain, challenging climbs, and extensive network of multi-use trails, many of which are remnants of old logging roads and historical pathways. The forest is also home to diverse wildlife and serves as a vital watershed. It truly lives up to its “wilderness” reputation.
Rothrock has many trails – most all of which are rated as blacks – and as I found out – justifiably…
Rothrock State Forest Quick Stats.
Green Trails: 31 trails
- Blue Trails: 36 trails,
- Ty’s Beginner Friendly Rating: 3/10
- Van Life Score: 7/10
- Must-Ride Trail: I didn’t love any of them
- Best Season to Visit: Summer to early Fall
- Loam Pass / IMBA Epic: 2 IMBA Epic Trails
- Dog-Friendly: Yes (with restrictions on trails during operating hours)
- Trail Conditions Today: Click Here For Current Conditions.
IMBA Epic Certified Cooper’s Gap Loop: My Descent into Madness.
After a night at the Cracker Barrel in Muncy, PA (a great location for a van-life overnight – quiet, away from the interstate, next to a bunch of stores for restock) – I headed into Rothrock. I started downright giddy. I ended downright feeling like death… But that’s the story you came for and the fun part about being a beginner: you can openly share your failures without fear of mockery. Or at least accepting that it is inevitable… Anywho…on with the show!
Cooper’s Gap Loop is around 27 miles and about 3,000 feet of elevation gain. Sounds simple enough. Yeah, the mileage is big – but I have an e-bike to assist if I get tired. So I wasn’t really too worried. (Narrator: He should have been worried.)
Oh…Did I mention that one of my virtues is my unfailing “self-confidence”….
The “trail” itself is like many good MTB trails. It’s a bunch of trails cobbled together to form a great route. So you have to have some good directions to do it well. I found the MTB Project directions and write-up to be spot on. So I suggest you click there to get that and that you follow that if you are brave enough (or foolish enough?) to attempt it.
Following the recommended route, the first few miles seem wonderful… Well, minus the swarm of bugs that immediately latch on to you and don’t seem to ever go away… Remember the cartoon where the black cloud of insects encapsulates the main character? Yeah, that is real. Like, never knew that could actually happen… Happened to me. My personal cloud of gnats, following my every desperate pedal stroke.
Anyway. It’s after the first few miles that things seem to go wonky. Remember that “Pennsylvania Shale” I keep mentioning? Rothrock has that – and every other type of rocky substance heretofore discovered by mankind – on its trails. If you want to know every angle and pitch your body can move on a bike because of the interaction between rock and bike – Rothrock is your playground.
My bike and I developed a new language that day, mostly involving expletives and prayers.
So, back to why I started this blog. If you read most reviews online, they accurately state that this ride, as well as most in Rothrock, are true blacks. They then go on to state, less accurately, that the trails are doable as an intermediate but that you may have to walk your bike “a few times.” Ahh, the lawyer in me should have heard his alarm bells going off….
Because their definition of “a few times” and my definition of “a few times” are way, way different. I think of a few as in “a handful,” or “a couple ah,” or even “3-4, maybe 5 times.” No… A few is like every few minutes there is a nasty rock bed for you to navigate and ascend. Like, as in, your finger will get so tired from hitting the dropper seat button so you can get off your bike and walk, that you will find it harder and harder to actually use the dropper seat button so you can get on and off to walk because your finger is too weak. Seriously, my thumb developed a cramp from all the “dismount and humble walk” maneuvers.
Aside from that, you get a few minutes of flowy descent. In the entire 27 miles. You get a few nice, pretty forested sections that feel really remarkable. And you get one nice vista view (at least in summer – can’t speak to other seasons).
So my beginner/intermediate friends, I do not recommend you go to Rothrock State Forest. Why? It’s just not any fun.
Can you technically, as an advanced beginner/intermediate, navigate the rides with some walking of the bike and minimizing of the ego? Sure. You can. But candidly – it’s not fun. You are miserable. You are swarmed by flying nuisances. So your work index is high (lots of steep, crappy ascents over rocky, crumbly terrain) to reward index (big views/flowy downhills/fun and happy jumps) simply doesn’t justify the visit. It’s like going to a party where everyone else is dancing, and you’re just trying not to trip over your own feet.
I actually ran out of water… It was scary. It was miserable. And you can read all about it in my Chronicles of a Newbie Mountain Biker: Month 4. (Self-promotion, for the win!)
Rothrock Van Life: Solace, Sort Of.
Rothrock does not allow roadside camping without a permit. There are 8 spots available and the fee is $10 a night. It can be reserved in advance by clicking here.
Candidly, it doesn’t seem like these are super in-demand spots. I stayed at Bear Meadows #4. It was huge. You can get many vehicles and people in there. No amenities but privacy and proximity. But again. The bugs. They swarmed poor Odie’s eyes (well – he only has one working eye to begin with, so the poor baby was miserable). Even Odie, my canine co-pilot, found Rothrock’s bug situation less than charming.
RothRock Photos
Allegrippis Trail System @ Raystown Lake: My Redemption Moment!
The much better, funner, cooler alternative that literally nobody talks about: The Allegrippis Trail System @ Raystown Lake.
After my meltdown experience on Cooper’s Gap Epic Loop, I decided something more tame was in order – and hopefully more fun. Some time with Google, MTB Project, and Trailsfork yielded what turned out to be a surprise to the upside and my beginner/intermediate recommendation: The Allegrippis Trail System.
The Allegrippis Trail System is a purpose-built, stacked-loop mountain bike trail system located near Raystown Lake in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. It’s widely considered a rider’s paradise, particularly for those who love flowy singletrack. Developed and maintained by the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, these trails are renowned for their smooth, fast, and undulating terrain, expertly designed berms, rollers, and gradual climbs. With over 30 miles of interconnected trails, Allegrippis offers something for every skill level, though it truly shines for intermediate riders looking for a fun, engaging, and less technically demanding experience than some of PA’s more rugged trails. It’s the kind of place where you actually feel like a mountain biker, not a mountain hiker with a bike.
Allegrippis Quick Stats.
- Green Trails: 6 trails
- Blue Trails: 17 trails
- Ty’s Beginner Friendly Rating: 7/10
- Van Life Score: 8/10
- Must-Ride Trail: HydroLoop (and have a swim)
- Best Season to Visit: Summer to early Fall
- Loam Pass / IMBA Epic: None but amazing
- Dog-Friendly: Yes (with restrictions on trails during operating hours)
- Trail Conditions Today: Click Here For Current Conditions
My Favorite Route: Raystown Deer Trails and Hydro Loop.
I started off riding a combo loop of the Deer Trails (Buck and Doe) and Hydroloop. And man oh man, was this some great beginner/intermediate MTB! This was that compelling, feel-good-to-your-core kind of ride that rewarded on every front: fun flow and epic views. The kind of ride you can do over and over again especially as a beginner or intermediate mountain biker!
Here’s my favorite route, conveniently available on MTB Project with a great write-up of exactly what you should do.
While I generally favor climbing first and having fun at the end: the truth is on this one it doesn’t matter. The descent is fun, fast, flowy but also well-constructed and manicured so you always feel safe and in control. No white-knuckle descents that make you question all your life choices.
The views at the lake (there’s a natural stopping point) are calming and tranquil. The perfect spot to have a swim or enjoy a sandwich. Ahh, actual peace.
This is what good mountain biking can, and should, be. This brings me joy. You actually get a reward for your work, and the effort feels justified. This is not checking a box (like riding the IMBA epic); this is sheer joy of MTB and being in the mountains. This is why I bike.
Oh, and if Allegrippis trails sound like your speed, make sure to check out my review on Jake’s Rocks on the Allegheny National Forest by clicking here.
Ty’s Takeaways: The Verdict Is In!
Okay, so I’m not saying you should completely skip Rothrock State Forest. Well, maybe I am. Or at least skip it for your first year.
But before you go, ask yourself: why do I mountain bike? Is it for the technical challenge or the joy of a flowy downhill? Is it to check a box and say I did an IMBA Epic certified trail/big black, or to feel the exhilaration that comes with a fun ride and the communion with nature that takes us back to our inner self?
If you’re like me, you do it for joy and for fun. Can you technically ride at Rothrock? Sure. Just be prepared as a beginner/intermediate that you will walk your bike a lot! I would much rather spend 2 days (about the max amount of time) riding the Allegrippis and have some fun than to spend two days in a sado-masochistic slog testing my ability to judge rock formations vis-a-vis gear and power ratios…
If you do decide to do Rothrock, my advice centers around two things: (1) wear bug spray plentifully and be mindful of ticks. And (2) I think you can divide Cooper’s Gap Loop into a couple of smaller chunks. I would recommend this. It would make the entire experience substantially more enjoyable than trying to do the entire 27 miles (actually more) in one day. Good luck, and may your dropper post always be strong and your thumb able to operate it.
Go Well. Do Well. Travel Well.
~ Ty & Odie
Chasing great mountain biking, camping smart, and living full-time in an RV. Hard-won wisdom. Zero fluff. Live Free. Adventure Often
Quick Links.
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If you’re thinking about upgrading your trail eyewear, Good Day Optics is where it’s at. Their goggles are crazy comfortable, stay clear when I’m sweating up climbs, and hold up on dusty, rocky descents. Plus, they’ve got the best return policy in the industry — if you’re not 100% happy, they’ll even take them back scratched. So you can try them risk-free and, when you buy through the link below, it helps support this blog and the videos I make each week. Appreciate you being here. Ride. Camp. Repeat.
Other Pennsylvania Adventures.
So. I actually ended up spending longer in PA then I had planned due to a electic issue with Jack. That left me plenty of time to write (more time than I wanted – lol). Here’s some other trail reviews from PA! Also – To see all of my Pennsylvania Content – including the various Thousand Trails Resorts I stayed at – check out my PA Landing Page by Clicking Here!
Jake’s Rocks Trail Report: Where the Allegheny Forest Hugs Your Knobby Tires
Discover Jake’s Rocks mountain biking trails in the Allegheny National Forest! Get a humorous trail report, tips for nice flowy singletrack, and free boondocking spots.
Shifting Gears Rolls Into Blue Mountain Resort: A Pennsylvania Mountain Biking & Van Life Adventure
Ready for beginner/intermediate mountain biking Pennsylvania? Explore Blue Mountain Resort’s trails and van life Pennsylvania tips in this honest and humorous review. Find your next
A Little Bit About Me.
I started writing this blog as a way to capture the adventurous and free lifestyle I’m privileged to live. I’ve traveled to over 28 countries and 35 U.S States. I’ve lived aboard in multiple countries and averaged over 100 days a year of travel for work. I’ve skied and hiked all over the world – and my new obsession is mountain biking.
What I bring to you isn’t AI generated. It’s based on my feet on the ground – or sometimes conversations with locals. Click here to read more about me!