Bald Eagle State Forest
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
4,876 acres20 mi of trail
Tower TrailPlantation TrailThorpe TrailLittle Poe Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
AOutdoors
Outdoors in Penn Township
Penn Township has 609 acres of parks, 563 for every 1,000 residents
32% of Penn Township’s land is conserved, about 5,792 acres. 25 miles of mapped trail cross Penn Township, 0.9 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Bald Eagle State Forest (20 mi), Poe Valley State Park (2.1 mi).
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
32%
5,792 acres · of 28.2 sq mi of land
Trails
25 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
609 ac
563 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
24%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,926 ft
Second Mountain
Lakes & rivers
3
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Penn Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Penn Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Penn Township is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Penn Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land32% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%A+Trails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (25 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land563 acres of park per 1,000 residents (609 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home24% of residents within a half mile of a park · PA 73% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 86%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Penn Township’s 32% is ahead of 92% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 73% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Bald Eagle State Forest, with 20 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Poe Valley State Park
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of State Parks
601 acres2.1 mi of trail
Nature TrailThorpe TrailDeep Low Place TrailHunters Path
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Penns Creek Wild Area
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
194 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
5,792 conserved acres
32% of Penn Township’s land. Who manages Penn Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources4,876 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits1,191 ac
State parks703 ac
State fish & wildlife30 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government4 ac
Not recorded131 ac
State Resource Management Area · 4,876 acState Park · 726 acAgricultural Easement · 573 acForest Stewardship Easement · 463 acConservation Easement · 154 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 282 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bald Eagle State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 4,768 | Open |
| Poe Valley State Park State Park | State parks | 726 | Open |
| Bald Eagle State Forest - Penns Creek Wild Area State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 108 | Open |
| Penns Creek Wild Area State Wilderness | State natural resources | 108 | Open |
| Coburn Stream Access State Other or Unknown | State fish & wildlife | 30 | Open |
| Coburn Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 4 | Open |
Things to do
16 places to go in Penn Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Penn Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Swimming spots in Penn Township
1 swimming spot without a name on the map.
Playgrounds in Penn Township
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Penn Township
Bells Majestic ViewIn Bald Eagle State Forest
DirectionsChocolate Drop VistaIn Bald Eagle State Forest
DirectionsPenns ViewIn Penns Creek Wild Area
DirectionsPeaks in Penn Township
Second Mountain1,926 ft elevation · In Bald Eagle State Forest
DirectionsLittle Poe Mountain1,696 ft elevation · In Bald Eagle State Forest
DirectionsTunnel Mountain1,634 ft elevation
DirectionsStillhouse Knob1,421 ft elevation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Penn Township
041 Poe Paddy DriveIn Bald Eagle State Forest · PA DCNR
Directions042 Pine Swamp RoadIn Bald Eagle State Forest · PA DCNR
Directions044 Siglerville Millheim PikeIn Bald Eagle State Forest · PA DCNR
DirectionsPoe Valley State Park CampgroundHours: Apr-Dec · In Poe Valley State Park · Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
DirectionsTrails & water
17 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 7.0 miHorses · 11.1 miUnpaved · 17.7 mi
Thorpe Trail1.7 mi
Tower Trail1.5 mi
Plantation Trail1.5 mi
Little Poe Trail1.3 mi
Musser Trail1.2 mi
Loggers Path1.1 mi
North Sand Mountain Trail0.9 mi
Old Trail0.9 mi
Nature Trail0.8 mi
Deep Low Place Trail0.7 mi
7 more trails
Hunters Path
0.5 miKerstetter Trail
0.5 miPenns Creek Path
0.4 miPhone Line Trail
0.4 miDry Hollow Trail
0.3 miGums Trail
0.2 miTunnel Mountain tunnel
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
4Tennis
2Softball
2Baseball
1Football
1Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Penn Township: April to August
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 34 | 38 | 47 | 60 | 71 | 78 | 82 | 81 | 74 | 62 | 49 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.3 | 3.4 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 4.1 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 3.3 |
February is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.5 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Penn Township →
Next door
Penn Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penn Township | 32% | 0.9 | 563 | 24% | A |
| Millheim | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Gregg Township | 11% | 0.5 | 3 | 13% | C+ |
| Haines Township | 52% | 0.9 | 475 | 40% | A |
| Miles Township | 38% | 0.8 | 6 | 21% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Penn Township
Where can I hike in Penn Township?
The longest trail networks: Bald Eagle State Forest, 20 miles; Poe Valley State Park, 2.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Penn Township is conserved land?
32% of its land, against a typical 8% for a Pennsylvania town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Penn Township’s trails?
Bald Eagle State Forest and Poe Valley State Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Penn Township?
112,757 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Penn Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 5,526 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Penn Township have?
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Penn Township neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →