Pennsylvania has more range than its reputation suggests. The Philadelphia suburbs have legitimate trail parks. Wissahickon Gorge runs 7 miles of wooded creek valley within the city limits, Ridley Creek and Valley Forge are accessible enough that people do them before work. Push an hour west and you're in the Delaware Water Gap or the AT ridge corridor. Go north to the Poconos or the northern plateau and the terrain shifts entirely: hemlock gorges, boulder fields, and waterfall systems that rival anything in New England. With 31 trails in this collection spanning the whole state, Pennsylvania has more hiking depth than most people from outside the region expect.
The Philadelphia-area trails are the most accessible in this collection and underrated relative to their quality. Wissahickon Creek in Fairmount Park is a legitimate gorge hike. The creek runs through a steep-sided valley thick with hemlocks and the trail feels surprisingly removed from the city for how close it is. High Rocks above Point Pleasant has a cliff-edge ridgeline above the Delaware River that would get a lot more attention if it were in a more famous location. Ringing Rocks in Bucks County is hard to categorize — a field of boulders that ring when struck, genuinely strange, and worth seeing once.
The Delaware Water Gap on the New Jersey border anchors the eastern hiking. Mount Minsi on the Pennsylvania side is the quieter counterpart to New Jersey's Mount Tammany directly across the river. Dingmans Falls in the gap packs two significant waterfalls. Silverthread (80 feet, one of the most slender falls in the East) and Dingmans (130 feet) into a 1.2-mile boardwalk that's appropriate for anyone. Raymondskill Falls at 178 feet is the tallest waterfall in Pennsylvania and sits just a few miles away.
The AT ridge corridor through Berks County produces the best open ridgeline hiking in the state. The Pinnacle at 1,635 feet has a sandstone outcrop view over the Lebanon Valley that's the clearest argument for why Pennsylvania ridge hiking is worth the drive. Pulpit Rock and Bake Oven Knob to the north are similar in character. Long rocky ridge walks with wide views west over the valley. These are the hikes that should be on every Philadelphia-area hiking list but rarely are.
In the Poconos, Lehigh Gorge is the most dramatic terrain in eastern Pennsylvania. A river gorge with 400-foot walls accessible via a rail-trail along the river. Hickory Run Boulder Field is a Pleistocene relic: a flat, treeless expanse of boulders in the middle of a forest that's genuinely disorienting to stand in. Glen Onoko near Jim Thorpe has a creek gorge scramble up a series of waterfalls that earns its difficult rating. Ricketts Glen up on the northern plateau remains the waterfall centerpiece of the state — 21 named falls along a 7.2-mile loop in Luzerne County.
Best Time to Hike in Pennsylvania
Mid-October for the AT ridge views in fall color. The sandstone outcrops at the Pinnacle and Hawk Mountain with full color below are the state's best hiking experience. Spring (April-May) for waterfall volume at Dingmans, Raymondskill, and Ricketts Glen. Summer works in the Poconos but the Philadelphia-area trails are hot and humid by July. The Wissahickon is good year-round.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best hike near Philadelphia? Wissahickon Creek in Chestnut Hill for an accessible gorge walk within the city. High Rocks above the Delaware River in Bucks County for the best views within an hour of the city.
What is the best waterfall hike in Pennsylvania? Ricketts Glen for sheer volume (21 falls in a single loop). Dingmans Falls in the Delaware Water Gap for accessibility. Raymondskill Falls if you want the single biggest drop in the state.
How hard is Ricketts Glen? Moderate to hard. The Falls Trail loop is 7.2 miles with about 1,000 feet of gain. The gorge sections involve steep, rocky terrain that can be slippery when wet. Not a casual stroll but manageable for fit hikers.
Is Wissahickon really a hiking trail? Yes, more so than most urban green spaces. The main Valley Green Trail runs 7 miles through a legitimate gorge with minimal road noise. It's genuinely good trail for being inside Philadelphia city limits.
