National Pike Trail near Claysville ready to open
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
Jay Dutton stands in front of the portal to Tunnel No. 3 along the new National Pike Trail near Claysville.
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
The portal of Tunnel No. 3 along the new National Pike Trail near Claysville.
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
The new National Pike Trail in Buffalo Township is expected to open to the public following a special ceremony May 14.
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
The entrance to the new National Pike Trail is located along Route 40 on the eastern edge of Claysville.
Courtesy of Larry Maggi
Workers construct a stairway earlier this month at the entrance to the National Pike Trail near Claysville.
After spending more than two decades of planning and working on the National Pike Trail near Claysville, the project’s leaders can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.
The nearly 2-mile nature trail follows a pre-Civil War railroad line and takes people through two arch tunnels along scenic terrain from the eastern edge of Claysville to Timber Lake Road near Sunset Beach.
Two years after CSX discontinued the rail line in 1999, Washington County officials performed a feasibility study on what it would take to turn it into a recreational trail. The project appeared to have momentum at first, but deteriorating tunnels and the complexity of acquiring the rights-of-way for land deeds that dated back to before the Hempfield Railroad line was completed in 1857 made it cumbersome.
Jay Dutton, who previously served as the National Pike Trail Council’s secretary and is still helping to construct the trail, said they originally hoped to take it from West Alexander to Washington, but the project has been delayed and scaled back over the years.
“They had quite a good group of people, but it lost fire,” Dutton said. “Just couldn’t catch the right breaks or get the right combination of people, but now I think we’ve got a pretty good handle on the people who are interested in it.”
What also changed recently was the COVID-19 pandemic and people’s renewed interest in exploring the outdoors, said Judy Nemeth, who currently serves as vice president of the trail council. As people searched for outdoor entertainment, the push to finish the trail became heightened over the past two years.
“There’s been a lot more enthusiasm and energy for the trail. It’s a combination of you can’t build anything of value without a good foundation. It has taken quite a while to get that foundation going,” Nemeth said. “It’s something nice and fun and pretty and outside. COVID definitely helped people learn about it and want to participate in the trail.”
One roadblock was that the railroad line was not considered a federal rail bank like most rails-to-trails projects. County Planning Director Lisa Cessna said other rail-trails in the area, such as the Panhandle and Montour, fall under the government’s rail bank provision that are basically gifted to nonprofits interested in using them. If it’s later determined the rail line should reopen, the land usage rights would revert back to the railroad company and it would be put back into service.
But that wasn’t the case with the National Pike Trail, meaning its council had to either get permission to use portions of land from current property owners or purchase parcels after searching for the heirs of mid-19th century deeds before the railroad went through.
“It’s been a long process, but that’s the nature of these trails. … This one’s a little more complicated because it was not rail bank,” Cessna said. “You could see it was an uphill battle and would take a long time to build momentum and purchase the land you needed to establish the trail.”
There are also three aging tunnels to repair and maintain, along with a fourth one in West Alexander that will eventually be filled due to its poor condition. The council maintains two of the tunnels, while the county has responsibility for the other two.
Cessna said it would be too costly to salvage the tunnel in West Alexander, so that is the farthest west the trail could ever expand if the council eventually decides to go in that direction. The other tunnel the county owns runs below Route 40 and was originally repaired in 2005, but it needs some repointing inside and drainage upgrades near the portals due to water runoff from the highway. To help with the work, the county recently received a $900,000 federal infrastructure grant disbursed through the state Department of Transportation.
“Once this gets going it’ll get some momentum for expansion,” Cessna said. “The trail council has been very busy acquiring land. Now, there is still a lot of land that needs to be acquired to build the entire section of it.”
A portion of the trail is now in good enough condition to allow visitors to explore. To celebrate, the council is holding a grand opening ceremony from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 14 at the trailhead at Valley View Road in Claysville.
In addition to government grants and funding, Nemeth said the council has used various financial donations from local residents and businesses, along with royalties from natural gas production on one parcel, to make the trail a reality. But more importantly, the project finally came to fruition due to the countless volunteer hours converting an old railroad bed into a walking trail.
Nemeth praised Dutton, a retired district magistrate from the Claysville area, for his dedication in getting the trail opened to the public.
“He has put his heart and soul into it,” she said. “He’s got bloody knuckles in the place.”
On a tour of the trail in his pickup truck Friday morning, Dutton showed off the various ditches and drains volunteers installed to help with rain runoff, while also pointing out the massive amount of gravel and slag the group is laying down to make the trail passable.
The trail is quiet and serene, despite navigating a path in Donegal and Buffalo townships between Route 40 and Interstate 70. The walking path periodically changes from grass to dirt to gravel, depending on the section. The eastern terminus leads to a picnic area with a grassy field for people to relax and enjoy the wilderness, although the council hopes to eventually expand another half-mile eastward to the third tunnel near Timber Lakes Road.
Dutton still sees the trail as a work in progress as they look to continue making improvements to the existing section while also expanding it.
“It’s kind of a passion of mine,” Dutton said. “A bucket list item.”
For more information on the project and the grand opening event, search for the National Pike Trail Council on Facebook.