French Creek State Park-Six Penny Trail

This trail is accessed from either walking from the campground (if you staying) or parking in the family campground area. You will enter the main entrance of the park make a right when you see a sign for the family camping area. Park as far down as possible. To access this trail, you will need to walk about 0.6 miles pass the gate barrier across from the Lot C sign. The trailhead will be on your right. This trail is pretty rocky so it is challenging for older kids. According to the French Creek State Park’s site you can see the ruins of the old recreation area. We saw a small rectangular area where picnic tables must have been but it was not impressive. There are a few vernal pools along the way that offer a chance to find frogs and salamanders. Although there is no viewpoint on this trail, besides the vernal pools, my boys loved hiking over big rocks and the constantly changing elevation. The hike itself is very serene and it feels like you are deep into the woods, even though at the beginning you are a stone’s throw from the campground. Also at the halfway point, there is a rock wall that my kids loved to climb on and it is a great spot to eat a snack or lunch. Although this hike is awesome in all seasons, I would not recommend doing it in icy conditions because of the abundance of rocks. Click the link below for a better description of the trail and directions to access it from the campground: https://www.dcnr.pa.gov/StateParks/FindAPark/FrenchCreekStatePark/Pages/Hiking.aspx There are many ranger led and most recently LL Bean hosted hikes here if you would rather go with a guide.