Raystown Lake Recreation Area
Managed by United States Army Corp of Engineers
11,819 acres36.4 mi of trail
Terrace Mountain TrailOld Logger's TrailAllegheny TrailBarrel Bay Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Generic1139 · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Penn Township
More than half of Penn Township’s land is conserved: 68%
68% of Penn Township’s land is conserved, about 12,401 acres. 39 miles of mapped trail cross Penn Township, 1.4 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Raystown Lake Recreation Area (36.4 mi), Trough Creek Wild Area (1.9 mi), State Game Lands Number 73 (0.7 mi).
Ahead of 65% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
68%
12,401 acres · of 28.6 sq mi of land
Trails
39 mi
1.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
12 ac
12 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.6 mi
3.6 mi paths
Highest peak
1,949 ft
Horse Knob
Lakes & rivers
2
2 boat launches
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 65% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Penn Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land68% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%A+Trails1.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (39 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4APark land12 acres of park per 1,000 residents (12 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home0% of residents within a half mile of a park · PA 73% · U.S. 72%D−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 65%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Penn Township’s 68% is ahead of 100% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 86% of them.
Water is 17% of Penn Township’s area (6 of 35 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 56%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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 Raystown Lake Recreation Area, with 36.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Trough Creek Wild Area
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
412 acres1.9 mi of trail
Terrace Mountain TrailHorse Knob Fire TrailBrumbaugh Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
State Game Lands Number 73
Managed by Pennsylvania Game Commission
238 acres0.7 mi of trail
Mid-State Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Rothrock State Forest
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
413 acres0.1 mi of trail
Horse Knob Fire Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 6 parks & preserves
Raystown Lake Recreation Area11,819 acres · 36.4 mi of trail · United States Army Corp of Engineers
DirectionsTrough Creek Wild Area412 acres · 1.9 mi of trail · Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
State Game Lands Number 73238 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Pennsylvania Game Commission
Trough Creek State Park12 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Pennsylvania Bureau of State Parks
Rothrock State Forest413 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
State Game Lands Number 11876 acres · Pennsylvania Game Commission
Who protects it
12,401 conserved acres
68% of Penn Township’s land. Water is left out: Penn Township has 28.6 square miles of land and 5.9 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Penn Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Army Corps of Engineers11,869 ac
State natural resources413 ac
State fish & wildlife159 ac
State parks12 ac
Not recorded1 ac
Recreation Management Area · 11,869 acState Wilderness · 412 acState Resource Management Area · 160 acState Park · 12 acLocal Park · 1 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raystown Recreation Area Recreation Management Area | Army Corps of Engineers | 11,869 | Open |
| Trough Creek Wild Area State Wilderness | State natural resources | 412 | Open |
| State Game Land 118 State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 158 | Open |
| Trough Creek State Park State Park | State parks | 12 | Open |
| State Game Land 073 State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 1 | Open |
| Rothrock State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 1 | Open |
| Pine Shelter Playground Local Park | Not recorded | 1 | Open |
Things to do
5 places to go in Penn Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Boat launches in Penn Township
2 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Penn Township
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Penn Township
Horse Knob1,949 ft elevation · In Trough Creek Wild Area
DirectionsCampgrounds in Penn Township
Pleasant Hills CampgroundFee
DirectionsTrails & water
20 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 23.8 miHorses · 2.6 miUnpaved · 31.3 mi
Terrace Mountain Trail8.5 mi
Old Logger's Trail5.5 mi
Allegheny Trail3.9 mi
Barrel Bay Trail2.4 mi
Stony Trail2.3 mi
Sleek Dog Trail2.0 mi
Eagle Trail1.1 mi
Vee Cee1.1 mi
Shade Trail0.9 mi
Dark Hollow Trail0.8 mi
10 more trails
Doe Trail
0.8 miMid-State Trail
0.7 miHorse Knob Fire Trail
0.6 miHillside Nature Trail
0.5 miBuck Trail
0.4 miDirt Surfer Trail
0.4 miFawn Trail
0.3 miBrumbaugh Trail
0.2 miQuick Drink Trail
0.1 miPath to Viewing Platform
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
3.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.6 mi
off-road bike paths
Allegheny TrailBike route
3.9 miBarrel Bay TrailBike route
2.4 miStony TrailBike route
2.3 miSleek Dog TrailBike route
2 miHistory along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Brumbaugh HomesteadBuilding · listed 1979
About itWhen 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 40 | 49 | 63 | 73 | 80 | 85 | 83 | 76 | 64 | 52 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 2.6 | 2.3 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 3.3 | 2.9 | 3.0 |
February is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.0 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Penn Township →
Next door
Penn Township and its neighbors
Penn Township has the most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Penn Township39 miTodd Township25 miCass Township17 miWoodbury Township11 miLincoln Township9.9 miUnion Township8.6 miWalker Township1.5 miMarklesburg0.8 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penn Township | 68% | 1.4 | 12 | under 1% | B+ |
| Union Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Marklesburg | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Woodbury Township | 30% | 0.3 | 34 | 11% | B |
| Lincoln Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Cass Township | 20% | 0.5 | 29 | under 1% | B |
| Todd Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Walker Township | 3% | 0.1 | 9 | 22% | C |
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: Raystown Lake Recreation Area, 36.4 miles; Trough Creek Wild Area, 1.9 miles; State Game Lands Number 73, 0.7 miles; Rothrock State Forest, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Penn Township is conserved land?
68% 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?
Raystown Lake Recreation Area and Trough Creek Wild Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Penn Township?
3.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.6 of off-road paths. Named routes: Allegheny Trail, Barrel Bay Trail and Stony Trail.
Is there public land near Penn Township?
90,510 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Penn Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 8,800 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Penn Township have?
Ahead of 65% 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 →