Palmer Township Recreation Trail (Towpath Bike Trail)

Pennsylvania

15 Reviews

The Palmer Township Recreation Trail (a.k.a. the Towpath Bike Trail) is a terrific community asset for Palmer and Bethlehem township residents and a great destination for visitors as well. Three modes of transportation once operated on this corridor: Lehigh Canal, the Central Railroad of New Jersey and the Lehigh Valley Transit (LVT) interurban.

Chartered in 1818, the privately owned canal remained in operation for 113 years, hauling anthracite coal from Mauch Chunk to the Delaware Canal at Easton. The Easton and Western branch was built in 1914 and fell into disuse in 1972. The LVT Easton line was part of a larger electric railways system that stretched from the Delaware Water Gap to near Philadelphia.

Today a smooth, 8-foot-wide asphalt trail traverses the corridor in a partial loop running nearly 8 miles from Easton High School to Riverview Park. The loop is the heart of the trail. The small spur section running south from Easton Area High School in Palmer Township makes a nice connection for locals to access the trail.

Heading north from the high school, is a spur known as the Tatamy Trail, which stretches north for several miles, connecting a few small parks and reaching the community of Tatamy.

Mostly tree-shaded, the trail is pretty and well maintained, with mile markers, benches and flowerbeds sprinkled throughout. Starting at the high school, you cruise down a gentle grade to Riverview Park, which lines the banks of the Lehigh River. The first mile of trail passes through neighborhoods and parks, but the path quickly becomes secluded and serene as it weaves through farmland and woodland.

Around mile 5 the trail starts to loop back and runs along the river, although at this point the distance and tree cover make river views hard to see. Close to mile 6 the trail intersects with another rail-trail the D & L Trail: Lehigh Canal South, which heads south to Allentown. To stay on the towpath trail and complete the loop, bear left. At this point, you start to see the river off to your right, and as you glide along the next to the river, stop and enjoy the gorgeous Chain Dam overlook. As the trail comes to a close you wind back from the water's edge through Riverview Park, with its picnic areas, ball fields, pavilions, restrooms and parking. Fishing is also available at this park.

To extend your sightseeing, take the short distance (on road) out of the parking lot down Lehigh Drive, and turn right to go over the Glendon Bridge into Hugh Moore Park. This great recreational park offers canal rides on boats drawn by horses plying the old towpath, historical markers sharing the canal's history and open green space to picnic, play soccer or relax.

Parking and Trail Access

To reach the Riverview Park trailhead from Allentown, take US Route 22 East to 25th Street South. Stay on 25th Street South for about 2 miles and turn right on Lehigh Drive. Turn right into the parking lot.

To reach the northern trailhead from Allentown, take US 22 East to 25th Street South. Turn right onto William Penn Highway (Easton Avenue). Almost immediately you will see a shopping center on your right and Easton High just beyond it. Turn left onto 27th Street, which dead-ends at the entrance to the trail. A small gravel area here does not have posted parking restrictions.

Rail Trail Passes Through Diverse Landscapes

September 2024 jmcginnis12@gmail.com

Just short of 8 miles in length, the horseshoe shaped Palmer Twp. Recreation Trail crosses several different environments and forms a crucial part of the network of greenways being built between the numerous communities in the Easton/Bethlehem/Allentown conurbation.
The multi-use, asphalt rail trail follows the route of an old RR that connected various industries on the west side of Easton, looping around the city and its western suburbs. Despite its name, part of the trail extends west into neighboring Bethlehem Twp., then curves back into Palmer Twp.
Starting from its junction with the Tatamy Trail near West Easton, the first couple miles of the greenway have a distinct suburban character. Numerous single family homes as well as apartment buildings and condo complexes line this segment of the trail and many residents have decorated adjacent parts of their yards with various ornaments, artworks or landscaped vegetation, enhancing the beauty. This section of the trail also connects to Fairview Park and the small Chetwin Terrace Park and gets frequent use.
The trail turns southwest after crossing into Bethlehem Twp. and crosses Freemansburg Ave. on a repurposed RR bridge. From here, the homes give way to open space as the trail follows a wooded corridor paralleling Hope Road, passing beneath Route 33 for the first time and heading toward the banks of the Lehigh River. Trail users should stop and take note of several rock cuts on this section that were created when the RR was built.
After rounding a sharp bend, the trail winds back east and passes beneath the bridge that carries Route 33 high above the Lehigh River as well as the D&L Trail and an access road that links Hope Road to a nearby boat ramp. The intricate steel superstructure of the bridge is visible above the trail, while an adjacent stone retaining wall harkens back to the days of the RR. This section offers breathtaking, panoramic views of the Lehigh River and nearby lands when the trees are bare in late autumn, winter and early spring.
The trail descends down the old RR grade east of the Route 33 Bridge, reentering Palmer Twp. and joining with the longer D&L Trail at a point just east of the boat access. One of the longest multi-use paths in PA, the D&L Trail will connect Wilkes Barre with Bristol when completed, primarily following the towpaths of the old Lehigh and Delaware canals. The trail forms the backbone of greenway network across the Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton conurbation and indirectly connects the Palmer Twp. Rec. Trail to all three cities. The two trails form a concurrency from here east to the intersection of Glendon Hill Road and Lehigh Drive., known as the Towpath Bike Trail. The corridor that this section of the trail follows was first used as a towpath for the canal, then as a RR, and old structures from both eras of transportation are still visible. Bike riders should also be on the lookout for the herds of deer that live in the surrounding woods and are often seen along the trail. Other highlights include the roaring waters of the Lehigh River Chain Dam, cliffs of abandoned quarries visible from Riverview Park and the picnic and recreation facilities of the park itself. Although the Palmer Twp. Rec. Trail portion of the greenway officially ends just northeast of Riverview Park, the D&L Trail continues across the iron truss bridge on the opposite side of Lehigh Drive, connecting to the National Canal Museum and the south side of Easton.
The only liability of the trail is the relative lack of amenities. There are only a few benches along the nearly 8 mile path, the asphalt surface is rough in a few places and cyclists need to watch for downed tree branches on the wooded segments. However, this is more than offset by the diverse environments the trail passes through, the wildlife that lives along it and the connections it provides between communities in the region. A loop could easily be constructed if sidewalks and/or bike lanes could be built along either 25th Street or Glendon Hill Road, which would connect the southern terminus of the Tatamy Trail to the southeast terminus of the Palmer Twp. Rec. Trail.

connects to other trails

October 2020 joelkring

We started by driving over an hour to get to the trailhead at Riverview Park. There is plenty of parking here but the indoor rest rooms were already closed for the season and the portable toilets we usable but not very well kept. We started our ride on the trail that leads to Chain Dam Road Trail. There is a VERY steep climb just after passing the dam. The Road section is interesting in that they converted a two lane road into a one way street and a bike lane. On the Thursday morning that we rode it there was almost no traffic so that was nice. The Chain Dam Road Trail merges into the Palmer Township Trail, which is still quite bumpy at times for long stretches. The scenery varies from woodland to urban with lots of suburban back yards and the occasional park or playground. At the north end of the trail we turned right to ride the West Easton Bike Trail, a short trail highlighted (?) by a graffiti covered underpass. From there we rode to the Wilson Bike Path, a very urban trail that passes by the former home of Dixie Cups to Wood Avenue where we took roads to the Karl Stirner Arts Trail and then the trail along the Delaware River in Easton to pick up the D&L Canal Trail back to Riverview Park. The 16.15 mile loop took us about 2 hours. One important note, looking at the TrailLink map it appeared that there is an intersection of the Chain Dam Road Trail and the Palmer Trail, there is not, the Palmer trail passes over the Chain Dam Road Trail so if you want to ride the Chain Dam Road Trail you need to get on right by the river in Riverview Park.

July Ride

July 2018 sk537224

The path is nice, a bit bumpy with roots in the first couple miles, starting from the Home Depot parking lot area. The trail description indicates 7.8 miles but my gps logged about a mile less. The path is graded downhill from the Home Depot and then levels out slightly when it merges with the D&L.

Foggy Sunday

December 2015 cindy.gerner.5

I actually started in the town of Tatamy. We connected a few trails to arrive at the Palmer TRT. It started out easy and smooth but came to a very steep uphill from Englewood St. to the next connection. After riding a short distance on Gruver St. we crossed over to a steep downhill that lead to a bridge over route 22 thruway. There were plenty of street crossovers but doing my homework and studying the trail kept me going in the right direction. When we got to the Palmer TRT there were lots of bumps and cracks in the asphalt but still good for our soggy ride. We turned around at Riverview Community park I think it's called and went back. What an uphill workout. Overall it was good been on worse. I would have wanted to make a loop out of the ride but would have needed to ride some roads and my partner didn't want to do it. Total length of my journey was close to 26 miles

Palmer Township Recreation Trail (Towpath Bike Trail) Reviews

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osborn2ride

August 2015 laretha

I parked at 725 south 27th St and had a very nice ride on a great late summer day. The pavement on the East Easton end is not in the best of shape as there are a lot of tree routes and lots of cracks in the pavement, it was a bumpy ride. The trail was very busy as there was a 1/2 marathon just finishing up. From Fairview Park down to the river the pavement is newer and in great shape. From the river back to Fairview Park, about 3 miles you pick up over 300 ft elevation. It was a great ride down and a good work out on the way back.

Very Nice, But Road Bikes Beware

August 2015 malinconico

This is a great shaded trail. A little tricky picking up the right turn 200 yards south of William Penn Highway.
Additionally, there are lots of seams in the macadam between Wm. Penn Hwy and where the trail intersects the Towpath trail along the river. Very jarring for bikes with narrow road tires. Once onto the Towpath along the river, it is absolutely spectacular with excellent macadam.

Riding with my Grandson

April 2015 1976sixers

We did trail with a shuttle driver and did the downhill section from High school to boat ramp. Nice ride on asphalt, easy. Next time we will have to do the other direction. See pic from boat access area.

Nice Trail-No Parking on North End

October 2014 quality1

I did this trail for the first time today. After I finally found a place to park on the north end (the description on this page is wrong-there is no small unpaved area on 27th Street at the trail plus the address in the 'Get Directions' screen on the map takes you to a different parking lot that does border the trail, but no signs) it was a nice ride. The first few miles are rough due to the many cracks in the asphalt. My main complaint is the lack on signs. Did someone steal them? The junction with the D&L-South Trail is unsigned and could just as well be a spur to a parking lot. The RTT book labels this trail as D&L North!

Great Trail for a Morning Workout!!!!

March 2014 paraglidermx

I ran the trail from West Easton(bottom)up to around the high school,,about 6.5 miles,,it was a slight incline from Easton but the way back was a great reward as I was averaging 13 MPH on my MTB,,I would recommend this trail to a friend.

Tom from P-burg

Palmer twp bike trail

March 2014 cbfinley1

Expansion cracks , nice scenery, not well marked, should be even better in spring and fall , little hilly

Another great ride in PA

July 2011 barry0225

My friend and I tried this trail recently and found it to be a very relaxing and scenic trail. We parked at the River View Park trailhead and started the trail heading west. The entire trail is paved and very easy to ride. There is a multitude of scenery along the trail from tree-covered areas along the Lehigh River to beautifully landscaped yards where the trail wanders through parts of the Eastyon suburbs. Since the trail is not a loop, getting back to River View Park was a bit of a challenge. As you near the northern end of the trail it splits at a "Y". We tried the left fork first but ended up at the back of a shopping center. Retracing our tracks, we took the right fork which wanders along the back of another shopping center then abruptly ends at 25th street. This is the end of the trail! To get back to River View Park, all you have to do is turn right onto 25th street for less than 1/2 mile, this section of 25th street is narrow and does have some traffic on it, but it is all down hill. The entrance to River View Park on the right at the bottom of the hill. It wasn't as bad as we originally thought it would be getting back. Since the trail was shorter than we expected, we decided to do some sightseeing. Taking the lower road out of River View Park towards Easton, we crossed the bridge to the Canal Boat landing. After working our way around this park area, we returned over the park bridge, turned right and rode along this road to Easton, Approx. 1 1/2 miles. We found a park overlooking the Lehigh River Dam where the Lehigh and Delaware Rivers meet. Quite scenic. If you try the Palmer Township Trail, consider these side trips as well. You will not be disappointed. BTW. At many street crossings there are signs that say "This is the end of the bike trail", however, the trail does not end until 25th street. These signs just ask you to walk your bike across the street.

Tow Path Bike Trail - Palmer TWP Rail Trail - Extended

September 2010 dsallen

- This Trail Head begins in Palmer TWP, PA 18045 (Easton), at S 25th St., and is called by three names; 1) Tow Path Bike Trail, 2) Palmer TWP Rail Trail, 3) D&L Trail - Lehigh Canal South, because it merges with the D&L Trail - Lehigh Canal South, which runs along the Lehigh River. Approximatley 2.3 miles west, it branches north and is called by two names; Tow Path Bike Trail / Palmer TWP Rail Trail.
- The Trail End for the Tow Path Bike Trail / Palmer TWP Rail Trail, has been extended from S 27th St. (near William Penn/Easton Ave.), southward paralleling S 25th St., then crossing Freemansburg Ave., and ending on S 25th St. across from Hillside Ave.
- From the point across from Hillside Ave., one can return to the Trail Head via Hillside Ave., to Iron St., to Glendon Hill Rd., to Lehigh Dr., and back to 25th St. Trail Head.

Fun Ride

July 2006 Anonymous

Really liked this trail. Some challenging spots due to recent flooding and overgrown brush. Helped to keep it from getting boring! Hope to ride it again soon.

One of the best!

September 2004 Anonymous

"This is one of the best trails I have been on. It is mostly level and paved. And it is extended by being connected to other paths. On the east, the path connects to the Easton Canal path (most of which is also paved), then south to the Delaware canal path and its 60+ mile length. On the west, following the river, it connects to the canal trail that goes all the way to Bethlehem, then Allentown, and then north to Jim Thorpe.

You can spend days riding segments of these paths. I recommend riding to Bethlehem up the hill to downtown for ice cream, or on to Easton, cross the bridge to town , then the free bridge to NJ, and grab a Hot Dog at one of the food establishments."

Very nice ride

August 2003 dave

"At first I wasn't sure what to expect. However, after seeing how smooth the ride was and how beautiful the scenery was I was very pleased.

I'm not sure how far the path goes. I went from Easton to somewhere near Bethlehem. A must for any bike fan.

Good Luck."