The National Pike Trail in Washington County is a great way to get outside and stretch your legs!
Disclaimer - This is a sponsored blog post by the Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency. As always, my opinions are unbiased and my own. I want to thank Washington County for their generosity!
About the National Pike Trail
Opened in 2022, the National Pike Trail is an exciting trail option for a hike in Washington County. This trail follows a pre Civil War railroad line that existed in the 1850’s. The route went from Washington, PA to the Ohio River along the original National Pike (Route 40).
As someone who loves to see expanded use of outdoor space, seeing the partnerships between different organizations to make this trail official is awesome. The National Pike Trail Council has big goals for the trail too, including potentially expanding as far as the West Virginia border and one day connecting with the Montour Trail.
This trail is perfect for a walk on a nice day and has a lot to offer visitors. Read on for more information about the National Pike Trail, include trail features and how to plan your visit!
As always, follow the principles of leave no trace when you're out exploring! Pack out all trash, leave wildlife alone, and generally leave it better than you found it - for more information visit the Leave No Trace Center.
Highlights of the National Pike Trail
While the National Pike Trail is short, there’s a lot to enjoy about this trail.
Tunnels
The tunnels on the National Pike Trail are the most unique feature of the trail. The longest is 750 feet long and I recommend bringing a light or headlamp to make sure you can see where you’re going. The detailed brick work on the outside of the tunnel is very cool and I was glad I had my zoom lens to take some photos close up. The tunnels stay cool on a hot day so it was a nice way to get out of the sun!
Note, as of summer 2025, tunnel #2 is closed. Please respect all trail closures and signage for your own safety. For the tunnels you can go through, walk your bike and watch your footing, especially in winter as the tunnel floor could be slick.
Fitness Station
For those who want to break more of a sweat, the trail offers a fitness station. We had a good time challenging each other to pull ups (I can do zero) and playing on the balance beam. This Eagle Scout project is really well done and it was a fun little stop along the way.
Flowers
During spring and summer months, this trail has amazing flowers. I was a little surprised, because it is so close to some industry and highways, but the bright flowers attracted tons of butterflies and other pollinators that were beautiful to watch.
Visiting the National Pike Trail
To visit the National Pike Trail, put these coordinates in your GPS: 40.11849, -80.40793
This will lead you to a parking lot with about 30 spaces right outside of downtown Claysville. On a holiday weekend, we were the first car in the lot around 10a but when we came back it had filled up more. I don’t think the parking lot will run out of spaces, as this trail is not that popular.
From the parking lot, cross Valley View road and head up the trails to reach the trail. From there, it’s relatively easy to follow the trail. There are not many blazes, but there also aren’t any confusing connectors or offshoots.
At this time, I would not recommend biking this trail (no matter what the sign shows!) You will have to carry your bike up a set of thirty-ish stairs to get to the trail from the trail head. Then the terrain is mostly grass or chunky gravel. I think that only a mountain bike could handle it, so hiking is your better option.
At first, the trail travels behind some stores and private property so be sure to stay on trail. Then it gets to a quieter, more scenic section after about half a mile, where you’ll start to be surrounded by flowers. We clocked 3.7 miles out and back from the parking lot before we hit the trail closure at Tunnel #2.
Overall, it was a great walk and an unexpectedly pretty trail. For more information on visiting the National Pike Trail, visit the official website here. This trail is a great investment in the outdoor community in Washington County and I can’t wait to see what happens with it next!
Updated September 20, 2025