CAPITOL AREA GREENBELT
LETTERBOX:
HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA
-BIKE IT OR HIKE IT-
Planted:
April 16, 2008
Length:
Capitol Area Greenbelt; 20 mile loop
Five
Senses
Garden
parking lot to Letterbox; 2.8 miles
Phoenix
Park
parking lot to
Letterbox; less then ¼ mile
Difficulty:
South & East sections. Easy. Mostly paved pathways.
North & West sections. Moderate. More hilly, with some on-road sections.
Not recommended for kids on bikes.
Directions:
The
Greenbelt
has several parking spots at trail heads. There is a trail head at the Visiting
Nurse Association of Central PA at
3315 Derry Street
in
Harrisburg
. There are also several spaces near the
Five
Senses
Garden
on Route 441 behind the Harrisburg East Mall. On
Cameron Street
, there is a parking area across the street from Quigley's Hotel and Restaurant
at
1517 S. Cameron Street
. In Penbrook, there are a couple of spaces at the end of the
Paxtang Parkway
, at the intersections of
Market Street
,
25th Street
and
Union Deposit Road
.
To start from the
Five
Senses
Garden
parking lot; From I-83
southbound take exit 45 to
Paxton Street
. Head east on
Paxton Street
past the Harrisburg Mall. Turn left on
Mall Road
and then right onto
Harrisburg Street
(Route 441). The parking lot is on your left, just after you cross over the
trail.
To start from the
Phoenix
Park
parking lot;
From I-83 take exit 43 to
Paxton Street
. Cross Paxton to
2nd Street
(one-way) and turn left down
Washington Street
, then left onto
Front Street
. Follow
Front Street
along the river to the Park.
The Capitol Area Greenbelt is actually
a linear park connecting and passing through
Riverfront
Park
,
Cameron Parkway
,
Paxtang
Park
,
Paxtang Parkway
,
Reservoir
Park
, the grounds of the
State
Hospital
, Harrisburg Area Community College,
and
Wildwood
Lake
. From this trail way you can easily access major attractions in Harrisburg such
as City Island, the State Capitol,
the State Museum of PA, the Civil
War Museum, the Whitaker Science
Center and much more. The trail varies from on-road to stone-dust to paved
and from flat easy riding to hills and valleys. The easiest section travels from
the Five Senses Garden (where I began
my trip) to all along the riverfront. I didn't bike the northern section, so I
'm not familiar with its trail conditions. For more information visit; CAPITOL
AREA GREENBELT ,
Starting from the
Five
Senses
Garden
parking lot;
Note;
If you cross over Route 422 you will come
to the Five Senses Garden.
However, I headed west past the gate and the
signboard along an old paved road. The trail is marked by triangle shaped signs
to help you navigate some of the on-road sections. There are occasional
mile markers along the trail, the 0
mile originating from the
Derry Street
parking lot. The trail follows Spring Creek through a wooded valley. At
0.6 miles you’ll pass the Martin Luther
King Memorial and after traveling under a bridge you’ll come to another
parking lot. Use Caution crossing over
S. Cameron Street
at 1.6 miles, where the trail turns to stone-dust. This could be part of the
old trolley line or rail line, as there are still some tracks as you cross over
a driveway and head back into the woods along the creek. You cross over an old
trestle bridge at 2.1 miles and then pass below a railroad bridge. This brings
you to another signboard, which also contains some interesting historical facts
about the area. At 2 ½ miles the trail crosses over an active rail line via a
bridge and you come to an intersection.
Note;
Right is a short cut to the
Phoenix
Park
parking lot.
Head left down along the tracks where the
trail loops around an old concrete structure and brings you alongside the
Susquehanna River
. A bench overlooks the river as the trail heads upstream towards
Harrisburg
. When the stone-dust meets some old pavement, look to your left to spot a 3
sister Sycamore tree (looks like a big slingshot). Continue 12 paces (2 steps =
1 pace) along the trail and look to your right at about 2.8 miles. There are
piles of concrete along the tree line. You’ll need to spot 2 trees that split
about head high along this tree line and another double tree in between them
that is farther back. Go to the concrete slabs in front of this double tree and
spot a flat slab leaning up against the concrete. (I placed a red brick on top
of the concrete, but it may not stay there). Behind the slab is the Capitol
Area Greenbelt Letterbox. If you pass by dirt path you went too far.
Continuing along the trail, a telescope overlooking the river is on your left
next to some benches. You then come to the
Phoenix
Park
parking lot at about 3 miles.
Note;
Right loops you back to the bridge over the railroad tracks.
Continue straight through the lot and you’ll
pick up the stone-dust trail along the river. They named it “Ollie’s Way”
and there are many flowering tress planted here. When you reach
South
Bridge
(I-83) at 3 ½ miles there is a parking area under the bridge.
Note;
A paved trail heads down along the waters edge, paralleling the river, but the
pavement is in very bad shape.
Instead, you should be able to reach the upper
paved trail that follows along
Front Street
, by traveling through the parking lot. I realized this too late and took the
lower trail. The upper trail gives you great views of the river as well as views
of all the historic buildings along
Front Street
. There are many interpretive signs located along the trail as well. Two
railroad bridges cross the river, followed by the
Market
Street
Bridge
and then at 4 ¼ miles, the
Walnut
Street
Bridge
.
Note;
Built in 1890, this bridge is now a pedestrian bridge over to City Island
Park. I would suggest a detour over this bridge to check out the island.
Lots to do.
Visit
CITY ISLAND PARK
for more information.
Continuing along the trail, you’ll come to
State Street
at 5 miles and a large promenade overlooking the river.
Note;
Another detour worth taking is to head up
State Street
along its wide, brick lined boulevard to check out the State Capitol.
You’ll also pass by the green domed Saint Patrick’s Cathedral
and many old historic buildings. It’s only 0.3 miles to the Capitol. Other
areas of interest close by are the State Museum of Pennsylvania and the
Whitaker
Science
Center
.
Continuing
along the trail, you’ll pass by the Peace Garden and Holocaust
Monument and eventually come to Maclay Street at 5 ¾ miles. The lower trail
ends here, across from the
Governors
Mansion
.
Note;
The trail continues along the river and then over to Wildwood Lake where
it loops back, passing through Harrisburg Community College and the
Harrisburg
State
Hospital
grounds.
We decided to shorten the trip and take a 1
mile on-road detour up
Maclay Street
(partly uphill). Note; This detour not recommended for kids on bikes
because of the many on-road sections and hills. After crossing over the
tracks you’ll come to
N. Cameron Street
. Turn left in front of the State Farm Show Arena and you’ll come to a
pedestrian tunnel that will take you safely underneath
N. Cameron Street
. This brings you onto the grounds of the Harrisburg State Hospital. A
paved trail heads right through the grounds and takes you alongside a small
creek. At 7 ½ miles you come to an intersection.
Note;
Left is a spur trail up to
Veterans
Park
.
Turn right and head up the hill alongside
Pine Drive
. A short on-road section along
Stanley Drive
brings you back to the paved trail as it takes you up to East Harrisburg
Cemetery. Turn right in the cemetery and follow the road out to
Edgemont Road
, where you head right at 8 ½ miles. Cross over
Herr Street
and travel on-road along N. Parkway Drive up to
State Street
. A cross-light will take you over
State Street
and into
Reservoir
Park
. Head left uphill on
Camp Curtin Drive
, passing by the amphitheater and up the road to the National Civil War
Museum. For information visit; NATIONAL
CIVIL WAR MUSEUM . Continue past
the "Do Not Enter" sign (one-way road) and you'll come to a Y
in the road. Turn left and pass through the orange gate. This will bring you to
Parkway Blvd. Travel downhill along Parkway Blvd until you come to a stop
sign. Use Caution crossing over
25th Street
and
Market Street
where you’ll spot another orange gate. The paved trail picks back up here at
9 ¾ miles and takes you down
Cameron Parkway
, which is not open to traffic. This is a peaceful section that follows a small
brook through
Penbrook
Park
. You come to the
Derry Street
parking lot at 11.2 miles. A signboard is located here, as well a mile
post 0 .Continue out to Derry Street
and turn left to find a crosswalk over this busy street. Continue left until you
come to S. Paxtang Ave. Turn right and travel under the railroad tracks where
you’ll pick up a stone-dust/boardwalk trail that brings you under I-83
and up to the Rutherford Farm Spring House. Follow the driveway out to
Parkview Lane
and turn right. Go on-road until you come to
Paxton Street
. Use the cross-light to reach the paved trail on the other side of
Paxton Street
. This will take you down to the Five Senses Garden and then across Route
422 and back to the parking lot at 12 ¼ miles.
HH
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