Delaware & Lehigh Trail latest update
 

Does anyone know if the Delaware & Lehigh Trail is open for the whole 140 mile distance? I am trying to find the latest info on it.

Mike Adams

Don’t know why it wouldn’t be. Don’t think it ever closed. Last month I rode Weissport to White Haven during two separate rides, and I know some who rode a lower section north of New Hope.

Thank you for your response. I was thinking more on the lines of construction...incomplete parts of the path....is that well marked if you have to go in to the streets to ride...

There is a website for the trail that shows the gaps. There is a multi-mile one in the N. Catawissa/Allentown area. You have to plot your own route.

Go find Delawareandlehigh.org and study all that first. Very helpful info and current. No, there are still trail sections not completed and the stretch from Allentown to Northamption is on road and, I hear, not fun. Sections north of White Haven are rocky single track or just conceptual.

I rode the D&L on Tuesday from Cementon to White Haven and it was really great. My first Century on a mtn bike. I actually rode about 3 miles north of White Haven, into the woods, to reach the 50 mile point before I turned for home. I hear the trail continues to be rough single track north of that. Study their website. AFAIK, none of the trail is closed due to COVID though many of the rest rooms n out houses and water supplies are still closed. Best to ride self supported. I carried 60ml of water (drank it all) and stashed another quart in my car, which I guzzled when I got back there.

Thank you for your response. I was not sure if updates about the trail were current since the Corona Virus mess. I have ridden many trail that kind of just disappear for a while and you have to try to figure out how to get to the next section....

Mike A

I must say that the signage on that section from Cementon to White Haven is excellent. As with any trail, the D&L has to leave the woods from time to time and I had no trouble staying on course. They've done a good job. I've not been on the road section between Northampton and Allentown. But I'd be surprised if that was not well signed too.

I also would not be surprised if the signage north of White Haven gets sketchy as those sections are less developed. Hopefully someone else has been up there recently. My barber, who is almost 90, said he had been as far as Moosehead Lake and had no trouble.

FYI, I was surprised to discover that there is camping near mile 95, Bowmanstown in Riverview park. It appears to be operated by the borough of Bowmanstown. Find their website for info, phone number and a wee bit of info.

Update on the D&L trail maps: the trail connection across the Lehigh river at Jim Thorpe was opened last fall - the Mansion House Bridge. Beautifully done! No road sections from Weissport to JT. All trail, along the old Lehigh canal. Yahoo.

I didn’t see any signs in Northampton/Allentown 3 years ago when I rode from White Haven to Easton during a week long tour across PA. In fact, I believe the website said you are on your own. Probably a liability issue. Not the most pleasant area to ride through. There is a thread in the Mid-Atlantic forum where I describe the route I took and the route I should have taken that would have required a bit of riding the wrong way on a one-way street that looks like it would be safe.

At least the new bridge in Jim Thorpe is open. It wasn’t back in 2017. Added a lot more climbing to that day to pick up the trail again in Bowmanstown.

And I believe the restrooms at the Rockport trailhead south of White Haven were open last month. Lots of people assemble there for rafting, etc. Thought I saw people coming out of them, though maybe they had just checked the doors.

There is a grocery store and a RiteAid in White Haven for water. There is also a c-store/gas station up the hill to the west and one on U.S. 209 near the old CNJ train station in Jim Thorpe.

Edit: Just checked the web site. You should click on the individual trail sections, especially starting at Northampton and heading south, for updates.