Tunnel rehab, pathway upgrades planned for National Pike Trail near Claysville
Work is about to begin to rehabilitate two pre-Civil War arch tunnels on the National Pike Trail near Claysville, along with eventual upgrades to make the nearly two-mile path easier to navigate.
The Washington County commissioners last week approved a $547,489 contract with Frank Gavlik & Sons Inc. to make drainage improvements and perform some masonry work on the trail’s Tunnel No. 4 that runs below Route 40 in Buffalo Township.
Water from the highway above typically drains down the hillside and around or in the tunnel, making the drainage work necessary to keep the trail accessible.
The county is using a federal infrastructure grant funneled through the state Department of Transportation to pay for the improvement project. The county owns Tunnel No. 4, along with another tunnel that burrows below West Alexander – which is closed to the public – about six miles from the trail’s western terminus near Claysville.
“We’re just trying to do our part,” county Planning Director Jason Theakston said.
The trail, which officially opened to the public in May 2022, starts near a parking lot on the eastern edge of Claysville and runs nearly two miles before terminating in a picnic area just past Tunnel No. 4 not far from Timber Lake Road near Sunset Beach. The rail line between Washington and Wheeling, W.Va., was built in the 1850s and known as the Hempfield Railroad before being retired from service in 1999 when CSX discontinued the route.
The National Pike Trail Council, which owns Tunnel No. 3 about a half-mile away from the starting point, is also planning to make upgrades to that tunnel if it can secure grant funding soon. Some bricks inside the tunnel have become loose, prompting its recent closure, but the installation of scaffolding to protect trail users will allow it to reopen in early August.
“It really is in great shape for being nearly 200 years old,” said Joe Baker, who is president of the National Pike Trail Council. “It’s not dangerous. We just need to do some work on it. … We have a temporary (solution) on that.”
Eventually, the council wants to find a permanent fix for Tunnel No. 3 as they plan to apply for the county’s Local Share Account gambling money to hopefully secure a grant to make repairs.
“We’ve been walking a fine balance generating support,” Baker said. “These tunnels are a huge attraction, but they’re a big liability, too.”
It took more than two decades, but the trail eventually opened to the public three years ago, navigating a path in Donegal and Buffalo townships between Route 40 and Interstate 70 that periodically changes from grass to dirt to gravel, depending on the section. Baker said they want to make improvements so the pathway has a uniform surface and is easier to use.
The council is working on two additional state grant applications, one of which would perform a brand new feasibility study on the trail – the last one had been done in 1999 – and another grant to make 7,000 feet of surface improvements with a crushed limestone mix material to make it ADA compliant and better accessible for bicycles and strollers. An additional statewide Local Share Account grant could help improve accessibility elsewhere, Baker said.
Baker said the trail council has been working closely with a grant writer from the National Road Corridor to help generate funds to make improvements.
There are additional studies being performed to see if the trail could one day connect to the Westland spur of the Montour Trail, which ends only about seven miles away from the National Pike Trail’s eastern terminus. Baker, who is a retired airline pilot living in Taylorstown, hopes the trail could also eventually stretch to West Alexander and maybe even beyond one day.
“My dining room table looks like we’re gearing up for the D-Day invasion,” Baker said of all the paperwork between grants and studies. “But it’s been great to keep me engaged.”