valley travel plaza pennsylvania

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Cumberland Valley Travel Plaza

If you are traveling the PA Turnpike, be sure to stop by the Cumberland Valley Service Plaza. The 24-hour plaza features Roy Rogers, Starbucks, Auntie Anne's and Hershey Ice Cream, a gift shop, and A-Plus Mini Market. 

A Guide To The Abandoned Turnpike In Pennsylvania

Last Updated on January 19, 2020 by Urbex Underground

Buried deep in the forest just off of route 76 in Pennsylvania, is an abandoned stretch of highway that has been receding back into woods for over 50 years. Let’s dive into the history of the abandoned PA turnpike, and see what’s left to explore.

The Anarchist’s Guide To Exploration

If you’re looking to dive deeper into the world of urban exploration, this book is for you. Learn how to uncover more abandoned places and the techniques used to capture their beauty.

Pennsylvania Turnpike History

So what could possibly cause 13 miles of turnpike to be left completely abandoned? The answer is, a better turnpike. The highway was built back in the 1940s and played a crucial role in connecting Breezewood to smaller towns like Hustontown that were located further east. The road was state of the art at it’s time, and allowed for a straight shot through the hilly mountains of western Pennsylvania.

But soon this humble road’s popularity would be it’s downfall. By 1950 traffic had completely jammed up it’s only two lanes, and pushed the turnpike to it’s limits. The traffic jams didn’t go unnoticed, and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission stepped in to assess the congestion. After studying the traffic patterns, it was determined that an entirely new bypass would need to be built. $21 million dollars was set aside to expand the Allegheny Mountain Tunnel and create a four lane bypass at Laurel Hill. The project as completed in two short years.

Shortly after, the Sideling Hill and Rays Hill tunnels were also bypassed. This created a new route that completely cut off access to the Cove Valley Travel Plaza. Instead, the new Sideling Hill Travel Plaza was built to serve traffic in both directions.

With the new construction in place, there was no need for the old two lane highway anymore. By 1968, access was cut off to the 13 mile stretch of highway, and all traffic was diverted to the new roadways. The turnpike was left mostly forgotten, until being sold to the Southern Alleghenies Conservancy in 2001 for a whopping $1.

The property is now maintained by Pike To Bike, which aims to reuse the highway as a hiking and bike path. The trail is ‘ use at your own risk’, and spans nearly the entire length of the highway.

Rules Of The Abandoned Turnpike

There aren’t many rules on the turnpike. There is nothing that I can see that prohibits camping, and that is something I would like to do this fall. Below are the few rules that are listed:

• Officially, the turnpike is not open. You travel at your own risk.
• Wear a helmet when entering the tunnels.
• No motor vehicles are allowed on the turnpike.
• Use lights in the tunnel.
• Don’t disturb or vandalize anything.

Abandoned Turnpike Entrances

Starting off in the west, you can enter the abandoned turnpike from the town of Breezewood just off of route 30. If you’re looking for a place to park you can try the Mt Zion Lutheran Church or the Quality Inn Breeze Manor nearby. If you plan on spending the night, or a long time there I would advise parking somewhere other than the trailhead. It’s important to note that motor vehicles aren’t allowed on the turnpike. You can also explore the turnpike from Oregon Road . If you can’t walk the highway, or simply don’t want to you can drive along Oregon Road and reach certain parts of the tunnel from below.

The road runs adjacent to the turnpike and allows you to reach certain parts of the road via car. You can also drive right up to the old Cove Valley Service Plaza without walking the entirety of the turnpike. Take Pump Station Road (Route 428) towards the abandoned turnpike overpass and you’ll come a spit in the road. You can use these exact coordinates to help you find the Pump Station Road entrance way. However for the full experience I’d highly recommend starting from the entrance and biking/hiking the turnpike.

Abandoned Turnpike Tunnel Locations

There are a total of two tunnels across the 13 mile stretch of road. Despite the tunnels being abandoned and unmaintained, they are still in great structural condition.

With the absence of traffic, the tunnels have provided a new home for migratory bats who stay in tunnels from October to April. If you do visit during this time, try not shine lights on them or disturb them.

There are two main tunnels along the highway. The first is Rays Hill Tunnel which is about 1.5 miles from the start of the freeway. This is a simple bike ride or a short hike to the base of the tunnel. Rays Tunnel is the shorter of the two tunnels at about 3500 feet long. Make sure to bring a flashlight, and a helmet wouldn’t hurt in case anything falls from the ceiling of the tunnel.

The second tunnel you’ll come across is Sideling Hill. This tunnel is 1.25 miles long, and gets dark fast. If you’re biking through here watch out for debris. A strong headlamp will be your best friend in here. As you exit Sideling Hill tunnel, you’ll come to the flat concrete remains of the Cove Valley Travel Plaza. Although it seems like there’s not much left, keen hikers will find the remnants of old gas pumps and street lamps from the 1950s. In the final leg of your journey, you’ll continue east for about two miles. You’ll slowly leave the quite of the forest and begin to hear bustling cars and semi trucks. You’ll reach the very end of the old turnpike at the foot of it’s replacement, PA Turnpike 76.

Times To Visit

The turnpike is open all season, but I believe is best explored during the fall and the summer. In the fall you’re surrounded by the orange and yellow leaves that fall on the turnpike. In the summer the highway becomes thick and densely overgrown. Greenery surrounds the road in a way that makes you feel truly isolated from the rest of the world. You can also use the tunnels to shield you from the summers heat.

Places To Stay

If you’re not looking to camp but still want to spend the night, I’d highly recommend the Quality Inn Breeze Manor. It’s a 2 minute walk from the trailhead and has a 4.5 star rating at the time of this article. Alternatively, there’s a Holiday Inn that is also located in Breezewood with a 4.5 star rating. The Holiday Inn is still close to the turnpike and a solid second option.

If you love empty forgotten places surrounded by nature, you’ll love the Top 19 Ghost Towns In The USA.

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Visiting the Abandoned PA Turnpike near Breezewood, Pennsylvania

Millions of people travel along the Pennsylvania Turnpike through Bedford and Fulton Counties each year. However, few realize that just a few hundred yards away from them is one of the state’s oddest attractions : The Abandoned PA Turnpike.

The Abandoned PA Turnpike was created by the rerouting of the highway in 1968. When it was originally built, the Pennsylvania Turnpike was a four-lane highway, but only had one-lane tunnels. Eventually, this created backups that had to be resolved.

In many areas, larger tunnels were dug next to the existing tunnels. However, for a stretch of the turnpike in Bedford and Fulton Counties, the turnpike was rerouted. Instead of going through the mountains, it went over them.

This rerouting created a 13-mile stretch of road that was no longer in use. Over the years, this section of abandoned turnpike in Pennsylvania had a variety of uses, including turnpike worker training and military training exercises. It was even featured prominently in the 2009 movie, “The Road”, starring Viggo Mortensen because it looked so post-apocalyptic.

In 2001, this 13-mile stretch of abandoned PA Turnpike was given to Southern Alleghenies Conservancy by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission. Run by an organization called Pike2Bike , the ultimate goal is to turn the abandoned turnpike into an official biking and walking trail, which would make it one of the best rail trails in Pennsylvania .

Today, however, nearly 15 years after the transfer, little has been done to make this a reality.

In fact, the Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike is officially closed to visitors, as signs at the entrance tell you. However, the language on the signs lets you know that it’s not a no trespassing area, simply an area where you proceed at your own risk.

If you do opt to visit, use common sense and be respectful of the area, so that there is no reason to actually restrict access to the area.

From the parking area in Breezewood, Pennsylvania, it’s 1.5 miles to Rays Hill tunnel. The hardest section of the hike is a steep hill right at the beginning. Once at the top, it’s a level walk or bike ride along the road all the way to the tunnel.

The road has concrete barriers in place near the beginning, wide enough for a bike or stroller, to prevent motorized vehicles from accessing the abandoned turnpike. While the rest of the road is relatively wheelchair friendly, I’m not sure if one could fit through the barriers.

In many ways, the walk along the abandoned PA Turnpike to Rays Hill Tunnel reminded me of the abandoned Route 61 in Centralia, Pennsylvania .

Fortunately, though, the abandoned turnpike has a surprising lack of graffiti on the road itself, and most of what’s there is relatively tame compared to Centralia’s Graffiti Highway. Sadly, the graffiti seems to grow with each passing year.

After about 30 minutes of walking, you’ll come to Rays Hill Tunnel, shortly after crossing the bridge over Mountain Chapel Road. The view of the tunnel from the turnpike is quite impressive, and it really does make you feel like you have survived some cataclysmic event that destroyed humanity.

The tunnel itself is heavily covered in graffiti, which does take away some of the beauty. Fortunately, though, the graffiti is relatively tame, though there are still some areas that are not family-friendly, especially the further inside the tunnel you go.

Until a few years ago, it was possible to go inside Rays Hill Tunnel. Access is now blocked by large metal doors. However, it is possible to still see inside the first floor rooms, which feel very much like the set of a horror movie.

Construction began on Rays Hill Tunnel in 1881 for its use as a railroad tunnel. However, it was never used for that purpose and it was updated in 1938, opening to traffic along the Pennsylvania Turnpike in 1940. The tunnel is 3,532-feet long, making it the shortest of the original turnpike tunnels.

When walking up to the tunnel, you can actually see a sliver of light from the far end. This might make you think that it’s not that far away. However, once inside the tunnel, it seems like you walk forever and the far opening is still just as far away.

I should note here that the interiors of the tunnels are very, very dark.

While there is some ambient light from the entrance, it only lights up the first hundred yards or so. After that, you’ll definitely want to have a good flashlight or two with you.

Along the way, notice the old sewer openings, the only real points of interest in the middle of the tunnels.

Once a few hundred yards into the tunnels, make sure to give a shout.

The echoes in the tunnels of the Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike are awesome! I couldn’t believe how long my voice echoed, as it made its way through the tunnel. Really, it’s worth visiting the tunnels just for the echoes.

Once you are done checking out Rays Hill Tunnel, you have three options if you want to visit Sideling Hill Tunnel. The first is to walk through Rays Hill Tunnel and continue walking along the abandoned turnpike for another 3.8 miles until you reach the other tunnel.

Conversely, you can do what I did, and drive to the other end for either a half-mile walk or a 1.2-mile walk to the tunnel.

If you opt for this second route, walk the 1.5 miles back to your car in Breezewood, and drive 20 minutes to the other end of the abandoned turnpike.

There are actually two different parking areas to check out the Sideling Hill Tunnel.

The most popular is located at the end of the abandoned section of the road while the other is located in the middle between the two tunnels, though it’s much closer to the Sideling Hill Tunnel end.

I’ll talk first about the most popular area at the end of the turnpike.

Unlike the parking area in Breezewood, this side of the abandoned turnpike is in a very rural area of Fulton County. Despite this end being located in the town of Waterfall, Pennsylvania, there don’t appear to be any nearby waterfalls.

It’s pretty obvious that the 1.2 mile stretch of Abandoned PA turnpike between the parking area and Sideling Hill Tunnel is less frequented and less cared for than the section in Breezewood.

The road here is a bit more overgrown, a bit more dilapidated, and there is a bit more trash. However, the walk along the abandoned turnpike is quite pleasant, even if it is uphill most of the way to the tunnel.

Along the way to Sideling Hill Tunnel, you’ll pass a long concrete area that used to be home to the Cove Valley Travel Plaza until the turnpike’s abandonment. While it’s interesting to see the open expanse, there’s nothing remaining of the plaza except a few manhole covers.

The eastern end of Sideling Hill Tunnel is located just downhill from the current Pennsylvania Turnpike, with the tunnel running directly under the road. Like Rays Hill Tunnel, it was originally built in 1881 for trains, opened to vehicular traffic in 1940, and was bypassed in 1968.

This tunnel’s more off-the-beaten-path setting means there isn’t as much graffiti here, and it was still possible to enter the ground level rooms on the tunnel’s western end, though entering any of the buildings is not recommended as they are very unsafe from what I’ve been told.

At 6,800-feet long, Sideling Hill Tunnel is significantly longer than Rays Hill Tunnel. From inside the tunnel, it is nearly impossible to make out any light at the other end.

Should you decide to venture in more than a hundred yards or so, use extreme caution and bring a couple of flashlights with you. Of course, you might decide to turn back, as the inside of these tunnels have a very, very creepy quality to them.

The third parking area is actually the fastest route to one of the tunnel entrances. This parking area is located in Buchanan State Forest along Oregon Road, near the ruins of an abandoned World War 2 POW camp . This is also the same parking area to use to hike the Railroad Arch Trail to an abandoned aqueduct .

This dirt road is well maintained and passes within close proximity to several areas of the abandoned turnpike. In fact, for the last mile or two of the drive to the parking area, you’ll be able to see the abandoned roadway just off to your left (if coming from Breezewood).

What makes this parking area so great, other than being the closest access point to a tunnel, is that since it is between the two tunnels, there is a lot fewer people and a lot less trash and graffiti on this portion of the roadway.

Even visiting on a busy Saturday afternoon, there were never more than a couple of people within sight until I got right up to the tunnel (and even then it was fewer than 10 people despite the other parking areas being quite full).

If I only had time to visit one spot on the Abandoned PA Turnpike, I think I’d pick this third option for those reasons.

Overall, a visit to the Abandoned PA Turnpike is a fascinating look into history and one of the oddest places you’ll find in Pennsylvania . I definitely recommend taking the time to visit this amazing destination.

How to Get to the Abandoned PA Turnpike

There are two primary access points for the Abandoned PA Turnpike, as well as a third lesser-known spot to park. The first, is less than a mile from the center of Breezewood, at the intersection of Interstate 70 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

To get there, head out of town going east, past the Quality Inn. As soon as you leave town, you’ll go down a big hill. Here, Tannery Road will fork off to your left, while Route 30 continues to the right. In between, there is a large, triangular-shaped area.

This is the parking area for Rays Hill Tunnel and the southern end of the Abandoned PA Turnpike.  The coordinates for this parking area are 39.999881, -78.228380.

After parking, head up the hill along the paved path. At the top, you will see the abandoned turnpike.

Many who visit ride their bikes along the roughly 8.5 miles of road between Breezewood and Waterfall, PA. (Note: There is not a waterfall in Waterfall, PA. Go figure. ) This stretch of abandoned turnpike takes you through the two tunnels and along the old road in Bedford County and Fulton County .

However, if you are walking, I recommend not hiking the 4.5 miles to Sideling Hill Tunnel from the western side of Rays Hill Tunnel. Instead, return to your car and drive 10 miles to the northwestern end of the road. From here, it’s only 1.2 miles to Sideling Hill Tunnel.

Here, parking is on the abandoned turnpike itself, accessed via a short road. The road does seem a bit like a private drive, but about 100 yards up is a parking area and access to the path.

The parking area is located at the following coordinates: 40.048683, -78.095839. 

To access this parking area, do not take the marked road that says it is for emergency vehicles. Instead, you take another road that is about 100 yards further down the road.

There is also a little-known third parking area along a dirt road in Buchanan State Forest that shortens your hike to the western end of Sideling Hill Tunnel to only half a mile one-way.

Parking is located in a dirt lot on Oregon Road just before you pass through a tunnel under the abandoned turnpike at the following coordinates: 40.047373, -78.153258.

You can ascend the hillside to the roadway from either side of the tunnel, but the far side of the tunnel is a bit easier. It’s worth noting that both of these access points would be quite difficult with a bike, so I don’t recommend them unless you are on foot.

When you get up to the roadway, head east (to the right if your back is to your car). It’s about a half-mile flat walk to the western end of the Sideling Hill Tunnel.

While both sections of the abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike are worth visiting, if you only have time to visit one area, check out Rays Hill Tunnel in Breezewood. The walk is a few minutes longer, but this tunnel is easier to reach, the old roadway is in better shape, and the tunnel itself is cooler in my opinion.

On the other hand, if it is a busy day and you want to see the turnpike in a bit more peaceful setting or you simply want to fastest route to the tunnels, park in the third area mentioned here.

Either way, if you have the time, I highly recommend visiting both tunnels along the Abandoned PA Turnpike.

Find a great place to stay near Breezewood and the abandoned PA Turnpike on Booking.com or Airbnb .

Here are a few frequently asked questions that might be helpful on your journey to the Abandoned PA Turnpike.

The Abandoned PA Turnpike is located in Bedford and Fulton Counties. One end is just east of Breezewood, PA while the other end is near Waterfall, PA.

In 1968, the PA Turnpike was rerouted around these tunnels to improve traffic flow due to the increased usage of the highway. Instead of expanding the tunnels, the highway was rerouted along a different route through the mountains.

Yes. There are hopes of turning it into an official rail trail at some point, but for now, it’s hike or bike at your own risk. Note that while you can go through the main tunnel passageway, the other structures of the tunnel are off-limits.

The Abandoned PA Turnpike is 13 miles long and features two historic tunnels.

From the eastern end near Breezewood, the hike to the first tunnel is about 1.5 miles one-way. From the western end, the hike to Sideling Hill Tunnel is 1.2 miles or 0.5 miles one-way.

The western end by Breezewood is not handicapped accessible. To access the roadway, you have to walk up a short, but steep dirt hill before reaching the paved roadway. From the eastern end, it may be as the parking area and the roadway are paved. However, note that some wheelchairs might not be able to get through the barricades set up to keep motorized vehicles off of the roadway.

There is a third tunnel several miles west of this section of the highway. That tunnel is off-limits to visitors. Last I heard, it was being used for testing the aerodynamics of race cars.

If you are planning to go into the tunnels, I recommend bringing a very powerful flashlight (your phone isn’t strong enough). If you are biking, I recommend a light for your bicycle for inside the tunnel and a flat repair kit due to the large amount of glass. Make sure to take all of your trash with you and consider bringing a bag to pick up trash carelessly left by others.

Need a hotel near the Abandoned Turnpike? Here are a few great options:

• Holiday Inn Express – The area’s highest-rated hotel on Trip Advisor.
• Omni Bedford Springs Hotel – A nearby luxury hotel
• Budget Inn – A great value with excellent reviews
• Find more great hotels on TripAdvisor

Interested in more abandoned places in Pennsylvania ? Check out this  Abandoned Trolley Graveyard and the abandoned Cresson Tuberculosis Sanatorium .  Interested in spending more time near the abandoned PA Turnpike? Visit the Bedford County Covered Bridges  and Bedford County’s Gravity Hill . 

[ Click here for information on how to use the coordinates in this article to find your destination.] 

See map for other area attractions.

Click the map to see more nearby things to do.

More nearby places worth exploring

How to Get to Poe Paddy Tunnel in Bald Eagle State Forest

Everything You Need to Know for a Great Mount Nittany Hike

Visiting the Last Covered Bridge in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania

Exploring Athletic Excellence at the Penn State All-Sports Museum

Find more things to do in the alleghenies region.

Jim Cheney is the creator of UncoveringPA.com. Based in Carlisle near Harrisburg, Jim frequently travels around Pennsylvania and has visited, written about, and photographed all 67 counties in the state. He has also traveled to more than 30 different countries around the world.

189 thoughts on “Visiting the Abandoned PA Turnpike near Breezewood, Pennsylvania”

Jim, thanks for this very intriguing post. I drove along the Lincoln highway (in the dark) on my way to York county this past December; I think I was relatively close to this attraction? This lonely, long stretch of road, rich with history, really made a lasting impression on me. I just might have to go back and check this out!

Yes, Carolyn, the first parking area for the abandoned turnpike, the one close to Breezewood, is right next to Route 30. Definitely stop the next time you are in the area and check it out.

Just visited yesterday for the first time, thanks to your article… Thanks!

Fair warning, though… It’s about 2.5 miles from the Breezewood parking to the Rays Hill tunnel. Nice walk, just longer than we expected.

Echoes in the tunnel rock! Also, try speaking in a low voice… Carries forever!

I just double checked on Google Maps. It’s definitely only 1.5 miles from the parking area to the tunnel. Glad you had a good time.

I have through Breezewood many times on the Turnpike but never knew about this. Next time I am up that way I will have to check it out.

It’s definitely worth stopping to see. Hope you enjoy the trip, Larry!

We come from Maryland and love to explore all abandoned places, this one is truly awesome. We even took our 11 year old son to get off the video games and now he begs for us to go back. We also had parked on your mention 3rd option never knowing of the other ones for Sideling Hill so thank you for all the information. We will definitely check out Ray’s tunnel next.

Is it strange that I am proud to live in a state perfectly structured for post-apocalypse-themed filming? I just particularly enjoy that genre. 😛

Not at all, Heather!

It was actually used for the movie “the road”

And then there’s the Laurel Hill Tunnel which is now owned by Chip Ganassi Racing and has been turned into a secret wind tunnel. Google it. I think you’ll be amazed!

Here’s one recent link. https://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports/features/a24696/racings-secret-hideout-ganassi-tunnel/

Thanks for sharing. I heard it was being used as a wind tunnel, but didn’t know anything about it. Very interesting read.

The Laurel Hill Tunnel is not owned by Chip, it is leased by the Turnpike Commission.

They do a “end of the road” half marathon now. You end up running through both tunnels, pretty cool.

Hi Jim, great article. I have been here a few times and absolutely love the place. The more the public becomes aware about it the better chance the state has at securing funding to do some upgrades and repairs and get it turned into an actual bike trail destination.

I am from Canada and it is well worth the 8hr drive to come see it!

It is a special place, Kyle. I’m guessing by your link that you’re the one behind the drone video I included in the post. It’s really well done. Keep up the great work!

The best way to visit the tunnels is on a bicycle. It’s a quick ride to experience both tunnels. Be sure to sing as you ride through the tunnels it sounds amazing. If you are going to explore other areas of the tunnels make sure you have more than one light. I was deep inside the longer tunnel’s passageways when the thought came to me “what if my flashlight bulb burned out?” There are stairways, places flooded with water (not sure how deep, I crossed on a plank someone had laid across. It would be extremely difficult to find your way back out without a light. The main passage through the tunnels (where the cars drove) is in excellent shape and no danger of getting lost just keep going and you will get through. I explored these tunnels one year at my wife’s suggestion because she thought the adventure I was planning on doing was too dangerous. Lol, if she only knew?

Most of the interior areas have been closed off now, which probably is a smart idea. I can imagine someone could get lost for a very long time inside.

I’ve been through the Sidling Hill tunnel a few times. The first time, several family members all walked through the tunnel. Nobody brought a flash light, which made it very fun! This tunnel, being so long, has a nice “dead zone” in the middle where you can’t see light from either end. I imagine it’s from the tunnel being dug from both ends to meet in the middle. There’s a slight curve where they apparently met, not to mention a little bit of an incline. These small variances give that center spot the dark spot that makes it so fun!

I didn’t make it all the way through the tunnel, but I can imagine it was very dark in the middle of Sideling Hill Tunnel. It’s 1.25 miles long!

This totally looks like the inspiration for the tunnel you have to go through in the original “Left for Dead” game. Thanks for sharing! Never knew this was near Breezewood.

You’re absolutely right, it was the inspiration for the game, also used in the apocalyptic movie “The Road”

Wow I’m gonna go check this out this weekend

I hope you have a great visit, James!

I so wish there was a website like this for Maryland! Ugh so many places in PA I want to go, but so little time.

There are a lot of great places to visit in Pennsylvania, Calvin! Glad you enjoy the site.

Great write up and review Jim.

I must admit to seeing some abandoned roads and tunnels but never thought much of them before. The history sounds fascinating and the path looks like a great day’s cycle.

Like you say it is a shame about the graffiti. It is always a big turn off for me that people can be so disrespectful to property which is not theirs.

The graffiti really is a shame, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I was expecting. Much less than Centralia, another abandoned area in Pennsylvania.

I would love to see someone organize a half-marathon run on this sight. As a avid runner, I would love to run this stretch of road from one end to the other. Being 13 miles, it would be a natural location with no traffic worries. Just may have to set up temporary lighting in the tunnels.

Someone should make it a Marathon course out & back for 26+miles

As an FYI – there is also another place where you can get on the abandoned turnpike just west of the Sideling HIll tunnel. Following US 30 east from Breezewood, go approx 3.5 miles and turn left on Valley-Hi road, then right on Oregon Road (this is a dirt road) a little over 2.5 miles where Oregon Road goes under the abandoned turnpike. There is a small parking area there, and a few steps leading up to the turnpike. Please take note that these steps are rather steep, however, from here it’s just under a mile to the western portal of the Sideling Hill tunnel. Looking west from this overpass of Oregon Road also gives a fantastic view of a long straightaway of the turnpike.

Thanks for the information. I had heard that there was a center access point, but I didn’t have a chance to check it out on this trip. Hopefully next time!

I’m a little confused. Is it possible to go through both tunnels? The way it read in one paragraph it sounded like the Rays Hill tunnel is now impassable due to large steel doors but then the author continued with his account of passing through that tunnel. Could someone please clarify? I would love to make the trek out there but would like to know what to expect. Thanks!

It is possible to go through both tunnels and walk or ride a bike from one end of the Abandoned PA Turnpike to the other. The part that is closed off is the control rooms and other interior rooms of the tunnels. The actual passages are passable, but bring a very strong light if you intend to go through them.

Thank you! The bike is loaded up and I’m heading out soon!

I’ve hiked the entire trail on foot in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, and 2015.

A long hike which will give you feet a workout.

Looking forward to learning more about travel in PA.

Interesting story about the PA Pike! Never knew that before.

Jim – Was up there a couple of weeks ago and the place is quite interesting. You should mention that you can access the turnpike in the middle by turning left out of Breezwood on Hwy 915, going under the actual Turnpike and then turn right on Oregon Road. Don’t remember how far down it was on the dirt road but there is a parking area on Oregon Road that is right next to the abandoned turnpike where you can come out on a very long section of 4 lane.

Overall awesome excursion and glad I made the trek – probably walked more than 7 miles that day.

Glad you enjoyed your trip, Gary, and thanks for including the information about the middle parking area. I was aware of it, but since I didn’t check it out, I simply didn’t know directions or coordinates. Because of that, and the easy access from either end of the roadway, I didn’t include that area. Hopefully, I can park there the next time I’m in the area.

Love this kinda stuff thanks man! So very awdome! Did u use a halicoptor? And so crazy these “taggers” tag/graffiti places others have not a clue about!?

The video isn’t mine, but one I found on Youtube and thought was worth sharing. However, the video was shot with a drone. I’d love to get one of my own some day!

Is the trail safe to ride a bicycle by yourself? I really want to ride this but not sure I can convince anyone to make the few hour drive with me.

I would say that it’s as safe as any trail. Use normal precautions, and you should be fine, Terrence. I’d be creeped out to go in the tunnels on my own, but that’s just because I’ve seen too many horror movies 🙂

Thanks, Jim.

Went up on Sunday and, like you said, too many horror movies makes the tunnels pretty creeptastic when you’re alone, albeit, it was so dang hot outside the tunnels were quite refreshing.

I’ll take the willies over the heat and humidity any day!

Can’t argue with you on that, Terrence! Glad you enjoyed your visit.

I am looking to do this as a day hike straight through and have found many different accounts on how far the distance is. I’ve seen from 7.5 all the way to 13 miles from one end to the other. My plan is to part a car at the entrance of one tunnel and another at the other end. Is this a good day hike or is it too long.

It’s closer to being 7.5-8 miles from one end to the other. You cannot get a motorized vehicle by the tunnels, you have to park in the designated areas and walk to the tunnels. Approaching from the west (Breezewood) it’s about a mile to the first tunnel. Approaching from the east (Sideling side) it’s maybe a half mile to the first tunnel, just past the old service center area (Cove Valley)

Kyle is correct. It’s around 7.5-8 miles from one end to the other (Though it’s closer to a mile to Sideling Hill. I measured it). The 13 mile listing probably includes some of the closed off parts of the Turnpike. If you plan to walk all the way through the tunnels, make sure to take a couple of very good light sources as it’s pitch black in the middle.

I can’t wait to check this out – your artice and info are easy understand and not its on my to do list….Just did Wills Mountain – the whole thing and boy was that a mess – also, does anyone do a tour of old breezewod motel ? I love old singang – too= maybe make this strech a rebulit slicce of americana

Why were these sections of the PA Turnpike abandoned and rerouted?

When it first opened all of the turnpike tunnels were one way. Meaning, they had to stop traffic to let one direction through, and then switch. This created a ton of backups. That’s why there are two tunnels instead of one big one at most of the PA Turnpike’s tunnels. At this section, it was deemed easier to reroute the Pennsylvania Turnpike along the mountainside, and they’ve been abandoned ever since.

I was a kid living in Lebanon, PA (east of Hershey) back in the 60’s. I remember when we’d be in the car & having to wait for “our time to drive through the tunnels”. It was scary if you were the first car to enter. We moved to Cumberland, MD in June of ’71. It was nice to come across this article as it brought back childhood memories. Thx!

The original tunnels were two Lane and, believe it or not, traffic was two-way. What caused the slow traffic was the transition from two to one lane in each direction. Driving from Carlisle to Pittsburgh in the old days meant that you had to drive through 7 tunnels like this and you were quite happy to have survived this ordeal. The tunnels were poorly lit, the smoke was bad and opposing traffic was uncomfortably close and of course you could not get out of the way if someone wandered into your traffic lane. I remember this all too well.

Tunnels were not one way. Were ONE LANE EACH WAY. Did cause backups as traffic was reduced from 2 lanes each way to one lane each way inside tunnels. I remember riding thru these tunnels as a kid in my parents car

This should be made into a haunted attraction during Halloween

I have quite a few photos taken when a friend and I biked the full run of this a few years ago. I’d be glad to post them if someon wants to tell me how.

(follow up as I forgot to click the sign up and notify me blocks at the end)

What is the music called?

Are you referring to the music in the video? If so, I didn’t make the video. It was just one I found on YouTube and thought was good. You might want to comment on the video there to find out.

The graffiti didn’t take anything away. In fact, it added to it. It adds to the history. Who wrote it? When did they do it? What caused them to want to do it? It’s one of the reason I love graffiti. Sure, some of it is bad. Nothing and no one is perfect. But a lot of it is beautiful in its own right.

I think you would feel differently if it were on your house, or your car. It seems to be ok if it’s on someone else’s property.

He probably would. This isn’t really anyone’s property. While I don’t like graffiti for graffitis sake, it’s not the same as on a privately owned parcel of land.

Can a motorized scooter get thru the entrance !

There are gates set up to make sure that nothing bigger than a bicycle gets through. It’s also worth noting that motorized vehicles aren’t allowed on the road, even if you can get it through.

My boyfriend and I are thinking of doing this hike next weekend. Does anyone know if there is a water source anywhere? Also we may end up camping out? I’m assuming we won’t have trouble finding a flat spot?? Any insight would be much appreciated.

Thanks so much

Water sources? No, bring water unless you don’t mind refilling bottles from the mountain water.

Camping, no problem, LOTS of good camping spots, try above one of the tunnels like over the eastern portal of Rays or eastern portal of Sideling

Yes, no water sources along the trail. It’s worth noting that while you won’t have a problem finding somewhere to camp, it is technically against the rules as far as I know.

Thanks guys. Does anyone have any good recommendations for about a 16 mile hike in Pa where we can camp and has a water source (even a stream we have water purifiers)? I live in the Allentown pa area which is about an hr north of philly. Thanks for all of your help in advance. We’ve done quite a few spots in the Appalachian and we were trying to something a little less rocky 🙂

Shannon, I’m probably not much help here as I only do day hiking. Hopefully someone else can provide some good information.

GREAT SITE !

Made it to the Tunnels and Centralia for girls weekend this past weekend – with your guidance! Thank you for this site – it was incredibly helpful! We had a blast!

That’s great to hear, Jessica! I’m so glad you had a good time.

beginning in 1960 for several years we traveled the turnpike from the exit that take one up to Johnstown east to NY and went thru these tunnels many times. Thanks for the article, I found it to be very interesting.

I wish they would turn it into an atv trail…. there are several organizations such as ssrt snow shoe rails to trails and others that would be more than happy to restore it, clean it, and keep it up….. that would make an awesome ride…. be free to walk or bike but membership or one day ride fee would help cover the costs and special events and tours for fund raising

Would it be the much fun to ride? Seem to me that the flatness of it would make it a bit boring. To be honest, though, I think it’s better with just pedestrians and bikes. Might be a little loud in the tunnels with motorized vehicles.

Motorized vehicles are *prohibited*. So whether they are loud or not is irrelevant.

@lorax *sighs*

That it is prohibited now is irrelevant when talking about ideas for the *future* IMO of course.

Other than vehicles to maintain the trail, or sanctioned vehicles for car tours , such as when we brought the COO of the Turnpike Commission to see the trial, motorized vehicles are prohibited. That is not just our rule, it is written into the original contract with the PA Turnpike Commission. I have the combination to our gates, the PA State Forrest has keys to their gates. They patrol and I maintain, other than that any other vehicle (ATV can get in but cars are almost impossible) is breaking the law. Is a trail that takes you to a time and place that have never existed boring? You tell me. Post Apocalyptic America, where for the entire ride there is no sign of modern life, and two tunnels, dark for 48 years, not exciting? The Sidling Hill Tunnel is 1 1/3 miles long and it rises 30′ in the middle for drainage so you can’t see from one end to the other. Do you want to go through? You don’t know what is in there. Sound boring? We give tours and show the places locked off from the public, and the hidden gems. If this isn’t the most fascinating and exciting ride you have ever done, you can have your money back. Of course you can do it on your own and it will be wonderful but you won’t know how or why.

Murray Schrotenboer Chairman of the Pike2Bike.

Is it safe going through the tunnels?

I would say yes, but that’s up to your comfort level. I definitely wouldn’t go through without a flashlight or two, and I personally wouldn’t go through by myself. Never heard of any issues there.

Can you ride your horse along that trail?

It only says that motorized vehicles aren’t permitted, so I would assume it’s okay, but I honestly don’t know for sure. Keep in mind that the entire route is along an abandoned roadway. There aren’t any dirt trails.

Motorized vehicles are *not* permitted. They are *prohibited*.

Horses are ok.

I have traveled through that tunnel before they closed it and built the new Tunnel.

I traveled thru these tunnels many times during the early sixties on weekends going to DC from northwestern PA.

Looks a lot like this one….

https://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports/features/a24696/racings-secret-hideout-ganassi-tunnel/

Hi, I am the Chairman and Manager of the Pike 2 Bike trail. The signs and welding would be my work. It is great to see the interest in the trail and much is happening at this point to move the trail forward. With luck by fall it will have been transferred to a Recreational Authority so that we can obtain the grants needed to make the trail into attraction it should be. People can learn about our trail at pike2bike.com and if they want to learn EVERYTHING about the trail they can take a guided tour which takes people into the locked off portions of the tunnels and shows the remains of the original South Penn Roailroad which started the whole thing. They can make a reservation for a tour at grouseland.com Thank you for your interest in our trail Murray Schrotenboer, Chairman of the Pike 2 Bike

Is camping permitted along the trail?

is there any way at all to get more information about the entrance? I’m in a powered wheelchair and would love to travel this with a few of my friends. How steep is the hill? Are there any measurements on how much room there is between the concrete barriers?

The hills are not very steep, especially going to Ray’s Hill Tunnel. However, the concrete barriers were barely wide enough for me to push a baby stroller through. My guess is that a wheelchair would not fit, but I don’t have specific measurements, just my best guess.

The Jersey barriers were set so that you can ride a bike through but too close for an ATV. The barriers are about 200 yards from the very start of the trail just off Rt. 30 at Tannary Rd. Getting up to the top of the hill would be a much bigger problem. Until we can put in an access road and use the 1st 200 yards as a parking lot as it was intended, it will be difficult to get your wheel chair up the 30 %+ hill. We would recommend that you go to the Fulton Trail head on Pump station Rd. and park on the end of the trial there. Getting through the barriers is no problem and it is essentially flat to the Sidling Hill Tunnel, the distance would be about the same at close to a mile. Murray Schrotenboer Chairman of the Pike2Bike.

Thanks for the extra information, Murray. I completely forgot about that initial hill when I replied.

You would be hard pressed to get a wheel chair up the entrance at Breezewood and it is another mile on broken pavement to the 1st tunnel. A better option would be to go to the far entrance off Pump Station Rd. You can see it on our maps. Here you can wheel for about 3/4 mile to the Sidling Hill Tunnel. You don’t have any grade and the barriers are plenty far apart for your chair. http://www.pike2bike.com

I grew up in Fulton County PA and my bus Went past the one entrance of the tunnel every day so growing up i didn’t think much of them. I went there a few times as a teen we could just bike there from our farm and we knew the people that owned the land leading down to the one entrance (which from what i read is the back entrance because it was the farthest away from Breezwood) I myself have never been through the tunnels they were just too dark for me and i have not been back since 2000 when i was 16.

If you want to know what the tunnels look like and the history behind them contact us at Grouseland Tours, the official tour leaders on the Pike 2 Bike. http://WWW.pike2bike.com

Are you able to use an ATV to the tunnels?

No. Motorized vehicles are not allowed on the abandoned turnpike. There are barriers to keep them out at either end.

Our original contract with the Turnpike Commission prohibits motorized vehicles. It is one of our biggest problems.

I would be interested in any other abandoned roads or sites you know about in the PA, WV, MD and VA radius. I am a photographer and I am doing a series on abandoned areas in my area.

After reading a couple other articles about the tunnels, theres one thing I haven’t been able to find an answer to. Is camping prohibited?

No, camping is not permitted there.

Camping is prohibited. The trail’s contract from the Turnpike Commission is for bike travel and not for camping. There are also liability issues. There are a number of camp sites in Bedford County.

For someone who spent a lot of time as a child, in the back of my parent’s station wagon, traveling the turnpike, this is very interesting, bringing back lots of memories of “turnpike stories”. Like the time my Mom was pulled over by a state cop who thought she was drunk, or falling asleep at the wheel, because she was trying to drive and twist around to smack some unruly kids at the same time. Or the time a young fellow waved me down to the shoulder in a real panic because he thought his friend had fallen off the back of his motorcycle. Before the days of cell phones, he followed me to the next plaza where I called the PSP for him. Turned out he had pulled out of the last plaza before his friend could mount the bike, leaving him standing there. I had never heard of this trail until, ironically, just last night, my wife told me a friend at work had visited. So in fact, the real reason for this lengthy post, is to pass on, in third hand, that some sections of the trail are littered with sharp trash that can puncture bicycle tires. Out of this friend’s group of seven, two had punctured tires. Highly advisable to come prepared for repairs.

That’s good to know about trash. I haven’t ridden a bike there, but it’s a shame that people litter and make it more dangerous and less enjoyable for the rest.

I cleaned the tunnels only 2 weeks ago, brooming out the entrances. The signs we post say that bottles are prohibited, but the people who break bottles don’t care what we want. I will be going to the trail on Monday, Channel 11 out of Pittsburgh is doing some filming there and I need to do some welding on the Rays Hill door. I’ll do what I can to clean then.

Thanks for all your work, Murray. It’s a shame that people can be respectful and enjoy their time when visiting the abandoned PA Turnpike.

As a true fan of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, I discovered the abandoned section in 1973 while I was still in college. Over the years I have visited the site, and it, as well as the entire turnpike, and is documented in Images of America: The Pennsylvania Turnpike, written by Mitchell Dakelman and Neal Schorr. Published in 2004 by Arcadia, the book was so popular, that Arcadia convinced us to write a second book, which will be called The Glory Years of the Pennsylvania Turnpike and should be available later in 2016. Yes, Sideling and Rays will be in the book, plus many newly discovered and unpublished pictures.

Mitchell, we hope that your book contains up to date information on the Trail. Many people stumble on it and don’t know that it is a maintained trail and in the process of becoming a true and open trail. The book Weird PA has a lot of misinformation. Our trail was featured in the State Museum of PA’s display for the 75th anniversary of the opening of the Turnpike. We supplied missing pieces for their toll booth and they created a display about us. You can see up to date information at our Facebook page Pike 2 Bike. As the Chairman and manager of the trail I can give you further information if you wish. Murray Schrotenboer

Thats way koool. Loved it and brought back memories. Use to travel every weekend in the winters to go ski at Blue Knob. Also watched as the they built the by pass. It was a scary venture thru those tunnels, lighting was very poor. Thanks for a great revisit Bob Rohr

I have tried to find more detailed information Was there a WW 2 POW camp by Sideling Hill Tunnel?

That would be the CCC camp on Oregon Rd. You can access it from the trail either by getting off the trail at the Oregon bridge on the North side and taking the road 1/4 mile north, or 1/4 mile west of the west end of the Sidling hill tunnel is a service road to the north, 1/4 mile down this road is the Director’s cabin, now leased to a group of hunters. The CCC camp and later POW camp would be on the west side of Oregon Rd, and is no longer there.

Roger, I have no knowledge of a POW camp near Sideling Hill Tunnel, but just east of the tunnel and along Oregon Road which passes under the closed Turnpike in Buchanan Forest, was the site of an old camp site. Regarding Murray\’s question if we have information about the road/bike/trail in the book that Neal and I are publishing through Arcadia Press, I don\’t recall if we had anything on it, but we do indeed have pictures of the Sideling Hill Tunnel sparkling and brand new in 1940.

I live in AZ, but am originally from eastern PA. I made many road-trips from the Harrisburg toll entry booth to the exit which enabled us to find our way to Exit 41, Belle/Vernon/ to Monessen, my mom’s hometown. As recently as 2010 my DH and I traveled the “present” turnpike on a drive from AZ to PA, and I missed seeing the Sideling and Ray’s Hill tunnels. I thought I had lost it! Indeed, I was thinking in terms of a 50+ years trip taken about 1957. My 2010 trip was “strange,” since I navigated by landmarks and those tunnels were indeed that. Bottom line, I never even knew of the abandonment of that section of the turnpike because I wasn’t in PA for too many years. I found your informational site on Pinterest and say thanks for allowing me to realize what I had missed and that it wasn’t a part of my mind. Wish I could visit those tunnels, but not now; not now! In September 2016 we will be repeating our 2010 trip from AZ to PA, and then back to AZ. An adventure for one septuagenarian and one octogenarian. Wish us luck!

JB, I never had the chance to drive any of the mainline 2 lanes on the Turnpike since most of our vacations took our family to New England. I discovered the Rays and Sideling Tunnels in 1973 and would go out there annually. It was a lonely forgotten place until the internet came about. That old highway and tunnels have so many recreational opportunities such as the hypothetical “Pennsylvania Turnpike Tunnel Road Race.” I do have many pictures of tunnels how they appeared from South Penn structures to today, and some will be published in a book coming out Dec 5.

Mitchell, you may want to contact us about the book. We can provide you with the latest information, and photos regarding the Pike 2 Bike. I assume you are aware of the work Russell Love has done on the SPRR and his two DVDs.

Hi Murray, Yes I know Russ well, saw him in December. Quite an eccentric guy. Mitch Plan to come to Sideling Hill Tunnel at the end of July.

I recall riding through Sideling Hill Tunnel on our trips to Pittsburgh from Allentown as a kid. Years later, I kept looking to remember all the tunnel names and couldn’t figure out which was missing from the trip. I didn’t realize Sideling had been abandoned. I do remember the traffic back ups going to one lane to go through the tunnel and how scary it was with the cars coming towards us so close. It was before they build the 2nd tunnel at Blue Mountain, so all of them were one lane each way, and there were only little yellowish lights at intervals on the dark concrete walls. It’s very different with 2 lanes, tiled walls and lighting.

Is it possible to ride a street bike on this trail or is it better for a mountain bike?

Definitely a mountain bike

The entire path is paved, but it can be rough in places. A street bike might be okay, but you’d have to be a bit careful.

This is my happy place. I love love love walking and taking pictures there. Definitely worth seeing. Trees growing up and around guardrails, weeds peeking up though the cracked roads… nature is an awesome thing! I am usually there every other weekend for a morning walk in the summer.

I ran the whole thing and it was a blast. I am training for a marathon in October . Part of the marathon is on the abandon turnpike.

I did the bike tour a few years ago with friends. The guys who do the PIKE TO BIKE tour do an amazing job, you get a history lesson and see parts of the tunnels you had no idea were there. There were 6 of us, 2 had our own bikes, but the guys who do the tour have rental bikes also, and they provide everyone with lanterns. It’s a great ride.

Linda, we enjoyed having you and your group for a tour. We agree, it is the best way to see and understand everything.

Linda, The old Turnpike is a fascinating facility which I discovered in 1973, only 5 years after the new bypass closed. Over the years I have collected many pictures of that section of the Turnpike when it was still in service and can be seen in two Turnpike books I coauthored with Neal Schorr, the recent is The Glory Years of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Wow..I am really behind the times. I didn’t even know the tunnels were abandoned. As a child (many moons ago) we would travel to and from York County and always went through the tunnels. It is kind of sad, but I am happy that they are being used for recreational purposes.

The Turnpike was built with initially with 7, sone bore, two lane tunnels. There were always the plan to double tunnel them but economics and expansion of the Turnpike prevented all of this. By 1951 traffic backups were common at the Laurel Hill Tunnel, on the west end of the original turnpike. Studies were made and finally the plan was to build 4 new tunnels at 4 sites, and replace Laurel Hill with a bypass in 1964, and the rays/sideling, which were 3.8 miles apart, in 1968. The Lehigh Tunnel, on the Northeast Extension was double tunneled circa 1990. For many years the abandoned turnpike between Breezewood and Fulton County was stull the property of the PTC and was considered trespassing if you went on it. There were time I understand that state troopers would patrol it and issue trespassing tickets to explorers. But at the same time the tunnels were also vandalized.

This is from the Pike 2 Bike web site, and explains how the trail came to be in the late 90s. While scouting the nearby BicyclePA Route-S, Joe Stafford was hoping to avoid the traditional challenges of Sidling Hill on Rt. 30, but was unable to find a reasonable alternative on existing roads.

Announcing this to the BicyclePA chairman, John Schubert in a meeting of volunteers, John joked that “What Joe needs is a couple of holes in the mountains.”

Western Pennsylvania trail guru Bill Metzger who was also at that meeting and who is a railroad history buff responded, “They are already there.” Noting that the abandoned Turnpike bypassed this mountain pass with a flat easy road section, a task force including PennDOT and the Turnpike Commission explored this new opportunity for re-use.

The Turnpike Commission was looking to dispose of the liability and it was eventually agreed that The Southern Alleghenies Conservancy (SAC) would purchase the land with intentions to have another entity manage the trail.

On November 2001 with TV cameras and dignitaries watching, the Turnpike Commission handed over the trail for $1.

Murray, how is funding coming along? I spoke with Carl Defebo some time ago and that was the issue. It would be nice to repair the joints, every 77 feet, and then repave one side of the Turnpike. The tunnels were never repaved. I still have that lengthy report that the late John Bibber furnished me. Also, repair spalling concrete at the tunnels and put back the steel letters that spell out the names, and do some detreeing at the tunnel sites.

Last year the Bedford Co. commissioners put together a steering committee to look into an update on the 2005 Gannett Flemming study that said fixing the tunnels, paving (or just grinding down to the original 10″ of concrete), putting in trail heads, lighting the tunnels etc. would run about $4 million. The committee looked at all of the issues and last month chose Navarro & Wright to produce a new study. The estimate would be about 5 million. The $80,000 to pay for the study comes from a fracking tax that goes to each county and can only be used for recreational purposes. The county is now looking to assemble an authority comprised with people from both Bedford and Fulton Co. to buy the trail from SAC. The $5 million will come from state or federal grants for recreational trails. DCNR has been excited by this trail since 2000 when I took the head of the agency for a bike tour. Last fall Cindy Dunn the current DCNR Secretary along with Leslie Richards Transportation Secretary went for a bike tour and I took them up into the upper portions of the tunnels. There is a great deal of excitement to move the trail forward. SAC is out of money and needs to take the liability of the trail off its books. The counties are reluctant to take on the liability, despite the tremendous business opportunities that developing the trail will open.

If I can be of any help, please let me know. I have many color and black and white photos of this section of highway which would be great for a brochure or promotions, or kiasks with interpretive message boards. Also, the famous shot with Carnegie at Rays Hill during 1885 SP construction.

I see that you have numerous photos in the “Memories of the Turnpike” book that I picked up at the State Museum of PA’s Grand Opening of the 75th anniversary display. The Museum was missing a few pieces of their toll booth and during a tour with the Turnpike officers I mentioned that I was in possession of several toll booths worth of parts. The museum curator came to our place, looked over the parts and pulled out 4 or 5. In exchange I was invited to the Gala, and they put up a display regarding the P2B including a photo of which I was credited.

I’ve met with Carl several time, the latest, this time last year when a Pittsburgh TV station did an article about the Turnpike and the abandoned section. Carl stood in front of the Sideling Hill tunnel to talk about it. I pointed out that our contract with the Turnpike Commission gave us all of the land above the tunnel and did not exempt the live Turnpike that crosses over it. I suggested we put in a toll booth to fund the project. Carl said, “No, don’t bother, just put in a pinger to pull money from the EZ pass, people won’t even notice”. It sounded like a good idea to me.

Murray, I live in NJ so now to access the beginning of the Pennsylvania Turnpike at the eastern end, they added a $5 toll at the Delaware River Bridge, to make sure people pay for the small part of the Turnpike if they exit at the new I95 interchange under construction. They take in a lot of money at that bridge + the high tolls now charged to use the Penn Turnpike, far above any long distance toll road facility!~

So does bedford county own part of the tunnels now?

Murray would know that. The entire Sideling Hill Tunnel is located in Fulton County. The Bedford and Fulton county line is in the halfway point of Rays Hill Tunnel.

Could you please tell me what musical group played along with the video? Thanks

The video isn’t mine. The best thing to do is to click on it so that it’ll send you to the video on YouTube, and then ask in the comments section there.

Sure is a shame they don’t want to have an ATV club for those trails. We ATV riders pay a registration fee and carry insurance. ATV riders share our trails with hikers, bikers, and horses all the time with no problems. Seems like such a waste as the ATV clubs do so much for trail maintenance and clean up of trails. SSRT and Central mountain ATV club sure do a lot of good. Pa should take a lesson from Hatfield and McCoy and bring some revenue to the state. Many of us Americans are older now and our ATV and SXS allow us to enjoy and explore the great outdoors. Seems a bit selfish to me, when this could be connected with an existing state ATV trail.

Honestly, I’m glad ATVs aren’t allowed on the trail. I’m sure that many riders are responsible, and it’s the responsible ones (not the irresponsible ones) that these rules keep away. However, I can’t imagine how noisy it would be in those tunnels if ATVs could go through them. Plus, allowing motorized vehicles on there would make it less safe for the bikers and walkers that use the trails regularly. I honestly can’t think of any trails that has frequent ATVs that hikers can feel comfortable walking on.

Hi Jim, Back in the early 70’s, I was an automotive test driver. I don’t know if it was on the up and up, but we met someone that gave us the keys to get in at the Breezewood entrance. I forget which stretch was the longest, but I do remember going through at least one of the tunnels to get to the stretch we were going to test on. We manufactured brake lining for Ford. We were running system system failures..fronts only, then rears, etc. at up to 80 MPH. Running a rears only at 80, we had a lockup and the car came around and took out two guardrails. We didn’t get hurt, but all I could think of was if we had been hurt, how long would it take for someone to find the bodies ! I wish I had brought a camera with me, as there is such a difference between what it looked like then and the great pictures you have posted. Great article !

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This looks fascinating. My birthday is coming up and that is what I am choosing to do with my husband.

The fall season is good since its not hot or cold and one can walk easily. Pick up one Turnpike book’s I wrote with Neal Schorr from Amazon and you can see what it looked like during the operation of the highway. Mitch

Visited this place and Gravity Hill because of this blog. Thanks for sharing the great information!

Glad I stumbled across your blog on a PennLive ad – we just moved to H’burg from Maine and are looking forward to exploring. Your blog is chock full of great ideas – I just can’t decide which to do first! Come-on weekend, I’ve got places to go now!

This looks like it might be quite a fun day hike to go see, or possibly an overnight hike. ARe you able to hike the full length of the turnpike through both tunnels?

You can start at Route 30, Breezewood, and walk east on the old Turnpike. You can pass through both the Rays Hill and Sideling Hill Tunnels. At Pump Station Road, the trail ends. So you have about 8 miles each way. The Turnpike bridges where it crossed Route 30 and Pump Station Road were removed to prevent hikers and bikers to go onto Turnpike owned right-of-way. East of Sideling Hill Tunnel is the site of the Cove Valley Service Plaza.

I discovered the abandoned turnpike while staying at the Quality Inn. I shot some video back in the 1990’s. I’ll have to dig it up and put it on YouTube. That view to the West from Sideling Hill is beautiful! My buddy was a charter bus driver back in the 1960’s. and distinctly remembers the back ups preceding the tunnel entrances.

Thanks for this article! The information here helped us plan our trip. Our relatively out-of-shape family of 5 (ages 11-54) biked this from Breezewood through to the end of Sideling tunnel (and back!!) in August 2018. We were too wiped out to finish the 1.2 miles to the end of the trail. This was such a unique and unforgettable experience for the entire family. There were points biking between the two tunnels that several of us thought we would pass out from exhaustion, (there were low grade hills that we struggled through) but my word, was it worth it. In hindsight, we’d have brought more water bottles, and given every one a mounted flash light for the tunnels, instead of sharing three. I have been reading much about the bike2pike organization, and my only hope is that they can make it safer for more people to have access to, without taking away some of the raw wilderness. Yes, some stretches of the road are Not biker friendly, but that gave it some of its charm. Despite some of the obscene graffiti, this was an excellent family day trip. And to think we almost did Hershey Park instead.

Janet, please realize that the trail you biked was designed as a highway, so those grades up to the tunnels were no problem with autos. Bikes? Yep, I had to walk my bike up the long upgrades. Regarding the roadway, the Pennsylvania Turnpike was paved with 9 inch Portland cement, with joint lines every 72 feet. The pavement was prone to cracking due to the nature of the process the way the highway was paved. In 1955, the 3.8 miles was repaved, the section west of Rays Hill in 1956, and east of Sideling, in 1960. Since the highway closed in 1968, only a short piece was repaved for experimenting with the “singing shoulder.” The tunnels retain their original concrete surface.

Mitchell, thanks so much for sharing that tidbit of information. What you shared does seem to match up with the conditions of the various stretches of road we encountered. I was under the impression that it was a flat stretch of road, so I made the comment as a heads up for those who made the same assumption. You are indeed right, though. A hill for a car is not at all the same for someone on a bike. All in all, we took the hills, the potholes, the dripping water in the tunnels and everything in between as part of the whole package. I am so glad our family did it. Thanks again for the additional information.

Janet, I discovered that old highway in 1973 and at the time, it had only been closed for 5 years. I did get to drive it several times. When the highway went to SAC, some of the bridges were removed so hikers would not go onto Turnpike property. I have many pictures when the highway was new including the section you biked on, and coauthored two turnpike books with Neal Schorr and we have many pictures in the books.

Mitchell, it turns out that your book “The Pennsylvania Turnpike” was sitting on my husband’s book shelf. You were not kidding about the great photos, and I enjoyed reading it from cover to cover. Thanks for sharing your passion.

Janet, on behalf of myself and my coauthor, Neal A Schorr, we are pleased you enjoyed our book and it had some influence on both you and your husband. There’s a second book we have called The Glory Years of the Pennsylvania Turnpike that focuses on the original section, including the tunnels you visited. For me, I will be seeing a lot of Turnpike the next few weeks, Mitch

Mitch, I went out and bought your second book. Read it in 24 hours. It read like an adult picture book, packed with information. Very well done. I travel the turnpike quite a bit, between Bedford and King of Prussia, and your books have given me a deeper respect for it. Thanks again for sharing your passion.

Janet, we are glad you liked our second book. I just want to make a correction of a photo caption, which was corrected by the bridge engineer on the Turnpike. I don’t have the book in front on me, but there is a picture of the highway on a straight-away showing the highway in terrible condition. We say its east of Blue Mountain Tunnel, but actually MP 118, Brotherton, with Horse Track Road which is the steel girder bridge. This section was rebuilt about 20 years ago, with new overpasses, but still two lanes each way. Enjoy!

10/23/18: I spoke with the PA Game Commission, Huntington office, regarding the bats. They confirm there are hibernating bats, and due to the white nose disease that has decimated bat populations, it is best for the bats if people stay out of the tunnels when the weather gets colder. There’s nothing for bats to eat in the winter, so if the bats are disturbed and fly away, they burn up too much of their energy so they can’t safely hibernate the rest of the year.

That said, I suspect the bats are hibernating in the ventilation shafts above the main tunnels. Hence, if you feel you must go through the tunnels during colder months, it is best to minimize noise and of course, don’t shine bright lights at all, and no lights upward through the ventilation holes and/or holes for the light fixtures in the ceiling. I’m thinking the best way to go through the tunnels during the colder months, if one feels they absolutely have to do so, is to walk through with only a flashlight bright enough to be able to safely see. Riding a bike can make more noise than walking, so push bikes through the tunnels, and avoid talking.

As someone said about ATV’s, it is often the ones not following rules that cause problems. So if we can spread the word to ideally stay out of the tunnels during colder months, but be as quiet as possible with the minimum amount of light possible if passing through the tunnels during colder months, hopefully we can help the bat population.

Thanks for the updated information.

Great post! When I was a kid one of the vacations we went on one road we traveled was the Blue Ridge Parkway and the other was the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Both back then were the future of highway travel. How things have changed! Somewhere in my archives I have a book about the PA Turnpike. Maybe some day I’ll get to the bottom of it and find it!

Outstanding post! Pictures, detailed directions, can’t wait to take the bike out there! Thank you.

Is it possible to access from Mountain Chapel Road. Just want to see Ray’s Hill tunnel at this point and looking for the shortest trip from the car.

I’d be wary of saying yes because the land along the turnpike is all private property. It’s possible there might be someway to do so, but I think you’d have to have permission to do it.

Hi Jim, I went thru the turnpike just after it was completed, I seem to remember tile inside on the wall. I was 13 at the time, an just came across souvenir hankie with a ink imprint of the turn pike. I hope it can come to life once more. thanks Patricia

We have a house in Bedford and visited this during a girls weekend. It was great! But we did not think to bring flashlights for the tunnel (silly girls)… we got a 100ft or so in, was incredibly dark and spooky…turned around without making to the other side. The next year, 3 of us ventured again only this time prepared! Beautiful with some thrills 🙂 This year, I’m hoping to talk them into the Coral Caverns I read about on your site!! Thank you so much.

In this article, Jim mentioned to give a shout and hear the echo. In 2015 while cycling through Sideling Hill Tunnel I came across a group of Mennonite singers singing acapella. I was able to video record the sounds. Have a listen to how beautiful they sound while inside the tunnel…Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2oWDDJMSTs

That’s pretty amazing! Thanks for sharing.

Went with my parents every August to Chambersburg for peaches that my mother canned.We lived on a farm,and I thought going in a tunnel was the neatest think.Can’t believe they are closed. Violet Blankley

Is Ray Hills tunnel open. To bike through? Info in article seems contradictory, closed, but talks about travelling to sideloing hill from Ray’s tunnel

Not sure which part is confusing, but yes.

Jim, I’m probably one of the few remaining people still alive that has traveled more through the old tunnels on the Pa. Turnpike over the years. My father was the Commanding Officer of the Pa. State Police and was in charge of the Pa. State Police assigned to patrol the Pa. Turnpike. They were a separate division of the State Police and funded by the turnpike commission to patrol and control the roads and tunnels and service areas and toll booths on the Pike. He was stationed at Bedford and the pike only ran from Pittsburg to Harrisburg. Our home was just outside Carlisle Pa. but we lived in Bedford and each week we would make the trip from Bedford to Carlisle to look after our home there. We would make the trip on Saturday afternoon and come back to Bedford on Sunday evening. This went on for about 18 years and I can’t remember missing a weekly trip in all that time. In later years I went on to become The Sheriff of Bedford Co. I still have many found memories of being part of the Pa. Turnpike family as I like to call them, because everyone that worked for the pike in those early days, acted like they were all related. Some good and some not so good, but just like a normal family. Thank you for bringing back some very special memories.

Kudos to you, Jim, for posting such a thorough review of the attraction. I was part of a small group that traveled there last weekend (5/16/2021) from Pittsburgh. It was a pleasant 64°F after a rainstorm had just passed. We had two bikes, an electric scooter, an electric unicycle, and a Onewheel (look them up). The road is uneven in a lot of areas but we didn’t have any difficulty. According to my phone app, we were riding about 1.5 hours but the trip took us 4.5 hours because of the stops we made. It was neat seeing the variety of graffiti though much of it was not family friendly. This may be a hot ride in the summer because there is no shade. There are no bathrooms, water, or power outlets, even at the trailheads. On our way back we started looking for Geocaches and found most of them.

Hello all, I recall bombing 70 mph against oncoming traffic through the tunnels in a 1964 station wagon. Talk about a hair raising experience. I always thought they we working on the other tunnel but now I know there was only one. Thanks for the memories Jay

Thank you so much for this page. My son and I are both into urbex so we stopped at the Sideling Hill tunnel on our way home from Somerset this past weekend. Your coordinates and directions were spot on; we parked on Oregon Rd and walked partway through the tunnel and had a blast. Much better than Centralia turned out to be.

Now I have to see what else you have written up for our next trip…

Great! Glad to hear you had a fun visit.

I read through all the comments and didn’t see an answer to this: friends and I are planning to go check the tunnels out. Are two cars a must or is there any way to do the whole hike and get a ride back to the starting point? Like Uber or something? Not familiar with the area at all so just wondered if anyone has attempted this with just one vehicle. Looks like a pretty rural area so I’m doubting there is any type of car service, but thought it was worth asking!

I wouldn’t count on being able to get a car (though I’d think you’d have much better luck if you ended on the western end in Breezewood if you wanted to try). That being said, I’d definitely take a second car if you don’t want to ride/walk back to your first car.

Thanks Jim!

I’m confused; you seem to indicate that Rays Hill tunnel is no longer accessible and cut off with metal gates, but you also talk about how long it takes to go through it and how to get to Sidling Hill once you walked out of Ray’s Hill tunnel. Is it possible to walk through Ray’s Hill tunnel today (2022), or is it closed off? And if it’s closed off, is it even worth hiking to any more? I’m planning on hiking it next weekend with my wife and want to know what the best place to park and walk from is that will allow us to walk through a tunnel. Thanks!

You can absolutely walk through the main passageway. Only the upper areas of the tunnel are off-limits.

Thanks so much for the clarification! We’re looking forward to the hike, and definitely bringing flashlights 🙂 Scott

Thank you very much for this wonderful page! When the PA Turnpike updated their webpage (ages ago), they removed any reference to the turnpike history that included these tunnels – their history, commissioning and decommissioning. I thought is was a real shame because while not everyone has an interest in major roadways and their history, some do. You have filled the gap with this information and I appreciate it.

I rode through these tunnels on the greyhound bus in the early to mid . 60s I so remember the backups many do to the narrowing of 2 lanes into one but also the speed limit in the tunnels was 25 miles an hour, which also helped to back up the traffic. I have visited the abandoned tunnels and found that there was a way too much broken glass in the tunnels to ride a bike through. I wonder if somehow you could collect money ( go fund me) to get a street cleaner to run through the tunnels and clean them up if possible. The inside of the tunnels was so much cooler than the outside air when I went in the summer.

Mr. Cheney: Last weekend, a friend of mine and I visited the west portal of the Ray’s Hill Tunnel and the east portal of the Sideling Hill Tunnel (definitely worth the effort to find). Because of the excellent information (especially photos and GPS coordinates) you took the time to share, the only surprises we encountered were pleasant ones. I actually got to ride through these tunnels several times during the mid 1960s, on our way to and from family vacations in Wildwood, NJ. My Dad, who’s now 91, really enjoyed seeing the videos and photos we took. Thanks again.

I’m glad you had a wonderful visit.

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The Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike

Pennsylvania is one of the oddest states I have ever visited. Every venture I take through the state ends up reminding me even more of just how strange it is no matter where I end up. I love it. While I say it’s “odd,” The state holds lots of rich and interesting history, that’s for sure. From beautiful parks and historic cities, to largely abandoned towns, churches and collapsed bridges, Pennsylvania has a bit of everything for everyone. Of course we can’t forget one of the more notable abandoned places that Pennsylvania has to offer – the old turnpike.

Spanning 13 miles, a former Pennsylvania turnpike now sits abandoned. Pavement cracks and crumbles as overgrowth takes over what was once a main route of travel for people wanting to quickly pass through 7 different mountains. The road had a tunnel for each mountain: from east to west, Blue Mountain, Kittatinny Mountain, Tuscarora Mountain, Sideling Hill, Rays Hill, Allegheny Mountain and Laurel Hill. The turnpike was opened in 1940, and because of these seven tunnels, it quickly became known as the “Tunnel Highway.” Traffic had become incredibly heavy by the late 1950s. The turnpike was being so heavily used that traffic congestion warranted the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission to conduct studies on either expanding or bypassing the tunnels. In 1959, studies were conducted on ways to ease the traffic congestion at tunnels, which became even worse during summer months. By the end of their studies, it was concluded that they would make the entire turnpike four lanes by either adding a second tube at the tunnels or bypassing them. It would be a few years before any changes would take place. Eventually, the turnpike commission worked on construction of new and upgraded tunnel tubes, featuring white tiles, fluorescent lighting, and upgraded ventilation.

In 1960, there were plans to build a second bore at the Allegheny Mountain tunnel, and a four-lane bypass of the Laurel Hill tunnel. The bypass was agreed upon rather than another bore due to ease of costs. The two projects were approved in 1962, and that August, $21 million in bonds were sold to finance the projects. The Laurel Hill bypass was opened to traffic on October 30, 1964 at a cost of $7.5 million. Not long after, on March 15, 1965 the new tube was opened, and had cost $12 million. On November 26, 1968 a 13-mile highway was opened, bypassing the Sideling Hill and Rays tunnels, as well as the Cove Valley Travel Plaza. A new Sideling Hill Travel Plaza was built to cater to travelers. This bypass left the former turnpike unusable, and it has sat abandoned since

Today, the eerie and overgrown turnpike remains a popular tourist attraction, as well as a public bike path managed by Friends of the Pike 2 Bike. Bikers may use the turnpike at their own risk. While abandoned since 1968, and despite any bit of maintenance being done, the tunnels still remain structurally sound, other than bits of vandalism caused at their entranceways.

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Abandoned PA Turnpike

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Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike

49 Washington St, Wells , Pennsylvania 17228 USA

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“Filming location for 'The Road'”

This place is on private property. Listing for informational purposes only. Please do not visit without express permission from the land owner. The Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike is the common name of a 13-mile (21 km) stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike that was bypassed in 1968 when a modern stretch opened to ease traffic congestion in the tunnels. In this case, the Sideling Hill Tunnel andRays Hill Tunnel were bypassed, as was one of the Turnpike's travel plazas. The bypass is located just east of the heavily congested Breezewood interchange for Interstate 70 (I-70) eastbound at what is now I-76 exit 161. There are three access points to the public section of the abandoned highway: The intersection of Tannery Road and US 30 in Breezewood sits near the western end of the turnpike, which can be reached by climbing a small hill. Parking is available in front of the orangesnow fence at the bottom of the hill. Rays Hill Tunnel lies about two miles east of this point. A parking lot exists on the trail at the eastern end of the turnpike off Pump Station Road north of US 30; the entrance is a service road just south of where a turnpike overpass was removed in 2005. This access point lies near the site of the former Cove Valley Travel Plaza and about one mile east of the Sideling Hill Tunnel. A forest service path called Oregon Road leaves US Route 30 at that highway's intersection withPennsylvania Route 915 in the village of Crystal Spring and runs north for several miles before reconnecting with PA 915 near Valley-Hi. Oregon Road runs parallel and adjacent to the abandoned highway for much of its length, and several clearings in the forest allow for parking and access to the road. These access points lie between the two tunnels: Rays Hill is about three miles west and Sideling Hill is about two miles east.

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Reviewed by nathan.hill.199

and also who ever runs this site you are my hero this place is amzing and i wanna go to almost all these places you have on here. i love it and keep up the good work.

Reviewed by joshua.c.baer

nathan.hill.199 .....this site IS a map. Just click "map" in the top left and you will get a VERY clear map on how to get there.

Reviewed by brandon.myers.31521

Very awesome place to go. Been there several times myself. Walked the entire service shaft end to end in the Sideling Hill Tunnel. Very cool place to check out

Reviewed by SMZipnock

I've been here, it's pretty neat. Didn't get to fully explore it but found some baby birds and there's a lot of graffiti everywhere. The tunnel feels like it never ends when walking it.

yea but for some reason when i put that in Google it brings up maryland

Reviewed by YourPoopZ

Dude... The address was at the bottom of the descriptions of the place

Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike 49 Washington St Wells, PA 17228 US

how do i get there? if some would email me with a address or directions from pittsburgh i would be more then happy to go but kinda confused on where it is. [email protected]

Reviewed by aubsomg

Wonderful place to get a bit of a work-out while experiencing Pennsylvania history. I recommend you take mountain bikes if you want to make it from the entrance point to the service plaza and back in one day. Service shafts are still open above Sideling hill tunnel, and stairs/floors are very solid and climb-able. Access doors to interior tunnel ceiling are open, and ceiling is walkable (at least for the first few dozen feet). Underground drainage shafts still have ladders and are enterable if you're feeling super frisky. Rays hill tunnel has staircase completely torn out of one side but other side is accessible to service shaft if I remember correctly. The huge power turbines are still in service shafts of both tunnels. Bring flashlights or bike-lights for Rays hill tunnel as it's nearly a mile long and very dark!

Reviewed by Misty Hightower

Easy 1.50 walk... spooky dark inside the tunnel LOL... July 22-23 The coordinates for this parking area are 39.999881, -78.228380. We just used Google maps, though..

Reviewed by deannatrusty

Very creepy but worth the visit!

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Cumberland Valley

Cumberland Valley Travel Plaza Pennsylvania Turnpike Plainfield , PA 17081 United States

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Travel that meets your needs, comfortably.

We strive to make traveling Pennsylvania safe and simple. There are 17 service plazas located along the PA Turnpike to meet travelers' needs. These easy-on, easy-off plazas are open 24 hours a day and offer fuel, restrooms, a variety of food options, and other amenities to make travel comfortable and efficient.

Dining vendors maintain their own service hours. Click here to view hours.

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Sideling Hill Trailhead

Learn more about the Sideling Hill Service Plaza Trailhead.

Notable Amenities

The PA Turnpike offers specialized amenities at select service plazas to accommodate travelers, including E-85 fuel, Electric Vehicle Charging, Compressed Natural Gas, and RV Sanitary Stations. 

The Art Sparks program brings unexpected excitement to travels on the PA Turnpike, while putting young artists on the road to success.

Rest. Stop. Imagine...

Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

Blink Level II electric vehicle charging stations are installed and ready for customers to use at five turnpike service plazas: Oakmont Plum ,  Bowmansville ,  Peter J. Camiel ,  King of Prussia,  and  New Stanton . The charging stations are located in the car parking lots. A fee is charged. Customers can pay using a credit card through the Blink App, or by contacting Blink at 1-888-998-2546. See the Blink Network website for current charges: https://www.blinkcharging.com/ .

In addition, Tesla Electric Superchargers are available at North and South Somerset , Bowmansville , Hickory Run , and Peter J. Camiel  plazas.

E-85 fuel is available at the Oakmont Plum  service plaza.

Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)

Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is a readily available alternative to gasoline that’s made by compressing natural gas to less than 1% of its volume at standard atmospheric pressure. Consisting mostly of methane, CNG is odorless, colorless and tasteless. It’s drawn from domestically drilled natural gas wells or in conjunction with crude oil production.

CNG is available at the New Stanton  service plaza.

RV Sanitary Stations

RV Sanitary Stations are available at the Sideling Hill , Allentown , Lawn and Valley Forge service plazas. A fee is charged for use of these stations.

Service Plaza Locations

The 17 24-hour service plazas are located along the more than 550 miles of the PA Turnpike at convenient intervals. Additionally, The Traveler Information Welcome Center is located at the King of Prussia Service Plaza in eastern Pennsylvania. This center provides directions and travel advice including information on accommodations and reservation service for participating properties, and is operated by PennDOT .

We know stopping at the best service plaza for your needs along your route is important. Whether you’re craving a certain restaurant or need to charge an electric vehicle, we want to help you find the provisions that allow you to focus on traveling without worry. See the dining options, amenities, contact information, and local tourism resources for each service plaza below.

Cumberland Valley

Milemarker 219.10 East

Available Eastbound Only. 31 miles to next Service Area.

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Applegreen   (717) 229-8737 13 Burgners Mill Road Carlisle, PA 17015

7-Eleven   (717) 258-4397 13 Burgners Mill Road Carlisle, PA 17015

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Common Amenities

Making travel efficient, comfortable, and simple means providing opportunities to fulfill needs along the way. Our service plazas feature facilities, services, and resources that make traveling less stressful. All service plazas offer Sunoco fuel and 7-Eleven Convenience Stores.

Additional, varied amenities are available at each service plaza for travelers needs:

• 7-Eleven MTO Food
• Picnic Area

Vendor Operating Hours

Find out when each dining option is open at our Service Plazas. Fuel and Convenience are always open.

Farmers' Markets

Apply to be a vendor at our service plaza farmers' markets.

Pine Knoll Lodge & Cabins

Cove Valley Travel Plaza

Cove Valley Travel Plaza is a truck stop located in Cove Valley, Pennsylvania. It features a convenience store, a restaurant, a gas station, and a truck wash.

The convenience store offers a variety of snacks, drinks, and cigarettes. The restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It offers a variety of sandwiches, burgers, and salads. The gas station offers regular, mid-grade, and high-octane gasoline. The truck wash offers a variety of services, including a complete wash, a brush wash, and a power wash.

Cove Valley Travel Plaza is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

• 1 Can you drive on the Abandoned PA Turnpike?
• 2 How do you get on the Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike?
• 3 How long is Sideling Hill tunnel?
• 4 When was the PA Turnpike abandoned?
• 5 How many tunnels are on the abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike?
• 6 How many years did it take to build the Pennsylvania Turnpike?
• 7 How many tunnels are on the abandoned PA Turnpike?

Can you drive on the Abandoned PA Turnpike?

The answer to that question is a resounding yes, you can drive on the abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike. In fact, the turnpike is open to the public and is a great place to go for a drive.

The abandoned turnpike is located in western Pennsylvania, and it was originally opened in 1940. The turnpike was closed in 1968, and it was later reopened to the public in 1991.

The abandoned turnpike is a great place to go for a drive, and it’s also a great place to go for a walk or a bike ride. The turnpike is a mile and a half long, and it’s a great place to explore.

The turnpike is a great place to go for a drive, and it’s also a great place to go for a walk or a bike ride. The turnpike is a mile and a half long, and it’s a great place to explore.

How do you get on the Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike?

The abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike is a relic of the past, a long forgotten highway that sits unused and abandoned. But how do you get on it?

The abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike is located in the state of Pennsylvania, and it’s a little tricky to find. The best way to get on it is to take the Turnpike exit from I-80 in Carlisle. From there, you’ll want to take the exit for the abandoned Turnpike, and then follow the old road as it winds its way through the mountains.

The abandoned Turnpike is a fascinating relic of the past, and it’s a great place to explore. But be careful – it can be dangerous, and there are no services available. So make sure you take plenty of water and snacks, and be prepared for an adventure.

How long is Sideling Hill tunnel?

Sideling Hill tunnel is located in Pennsylvania and it is about 9 miles long. It is a part of the Interstate 70. The tunnel was built in the 1960s and it took about two years to build it. The tunnel is a part of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

When was the PA Turnpike abandoned?

The Pennsylvania Turnpike was abandoned in 1968. The turnpike was originally built in 1940 as a way to provide a faster route between the east and west coasts of the United States. The turnpike was heavily used during World War II, but its popularity declined after the war. The turnpike was also expensive to maintain, and its tolls were unpopular. In 1968, the turnpike was abandoned and replaced by the Pennsylvania Route 66.

How many tunnels are on the abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike?

There are eleven tunnels on the abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike. These tunnels are a part of the original turnpike, which was built in the 1940s. The turnpike was abandoned in the early 1990s, and the tunnels are now in a state of disrepair. Many of the tunnels are in need of repairs, and some have even been closed to the public.

How many years did it take to build the Pennsylvania Turnpike?

The Pennsylvania Turnpike is a toll road that stretches across the state of Pennsylvania. Construction on the road began in the early 1940s and wasn’t completed until the late 1940s. The road was built in several stages, with the final stage being the construction of the tunnels. The total cost of the project was about $700 million.

How many tunnels are on the abandoned PA Turnpike?

There are eleven tunnels on the abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike. The turnpike was originally built with eleven tunnels, although two of them have since been destroyed. The tunnels are a major tourist attraction for the turnpike, and they have become known for their dark and eerie atmosphere.

The oldest tunnel on the turnpike is the Ray’s Hill Tunnel, which was completed in 1940. The tunnel is named after Ray C. Shafer, who was the governor of Pennsylvania at the time of its construction. The tunnel is 1,609 feet long and is located in Bedford County.

The next oldest tunnel is the Sideling Hill Tunnel, which was completed in 1940. The tunnel is named after the Sideling Hill Creek, which runs along its side. The tunnel is 8,099 feet long and is located in Fulton County.

The third oldest tunnel is the Kittatinny Mountain Tunnel, which was completed in 1941. The tunnel is named after the Kittatinny Mountain, which it runs under. The tunnel is 5,525 feet long and is located in Warren County.

The fourth oldest tunnel is the Blue Mountain Tunnel, which was completed in 1942. The tunnel is named after the Blue Mountain, which it runs under. The tunnel is 6,442 feet long and is located in Schuylkill County.

The fifth oldest tunnel is the Tuscarora Mountain Tunnel, which was completed in 1943. The tunnel is named after the Tuscarora Mountain, which it runs under. The tunnel is 5,362 feet long and is located in Juniata County.

The sixth oldest tunnel is the Sinking Spring Tunnel, which was completed in 1943. The tunnel is named after the Sinking Spring, which it runs under. The tunnel is 1,640 feet long and is located in Berks County.

The seventh oldest tunnel is the Carlisle Tunnel, which was completed in 1944. The tunnel is named after the town of Carlisle, which it runs under. The tunnel is 1,609 feet long and is located in Cumberland County.

The eighth oldest tunnel is the New Cumberland Tunnel, which was completed in 1944. The tunnel is named after the town of New Cumberland, which it runs under. The tunnel is 1,609 feet long and is located in Cumberland County.

The ninth oldest tunnel is the Mechanicsburg Tunnel, which was completed in 1945. The tunnel is named after the town of Mechanicsburg, which it runs under. The tunnel is 1,609 feet long and is located in Cumberland County.

The tenth oldest tunnel is the Norristown Tunnel, which was completed in 1945. The tunnel is named after the town of Norristown, which it runs under. The tunnel is 1,609 feet long and is located in Montgomery County.

The eleventh and final tunnel is the Philadelphia Tunnel, which was completed in 1945. The tunnel is named after the city of Philadelphia, which it runs under. The tunnel is 1,609 feet long and is located in Philadelphia County.

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Auntie Anne's Cumberland Valley Travel Plaza

Welcome to the auntie anne's at cumberland valley travel plaza.

Auntie Anne's Cumberland Valley Travel Plaza is located at Milepost 219.1 Eastbound in Plainfield, PA.

Our fresh, hot-out-of-the-oven pretzel snacks paired with refreshing drinks are the next-level snack you deserve, anywhere. Unmistakably butter-brushed and baked golden brown, our pretzels are formed into twists & bite-sized nuggets that are easy to eat for on-the-go lives.

Store Features

Have a question ask us today, easy to order. easy to earn..

Join Pretzel Perks to order online, earn points towards free pretzels, and get exclusive offers. Download the app to get started!

Feature Menu Items

Pepperoni nuggets bucket, personal pepperoni pizza meal, about auntie anne's cumberland valley travel plaza.

Our golden-brown soft pretzel snacks are baked fresh and served hot-out-of-the-oven for that next-level snack you deserve, anywhere. Pair these sweet or salty treats with our tart, fruity and frozen Lemonades and a variety of dips. Stop by our store at Milepost 219.1 Eastbound to experience that heaven scent, the mixing, twisting, and baking perfection in full view. Craving convenience? Order ahead in the Pretzel Perks rewards app to skip the line and pick up at your local Plainfield store or order for delivery straight to your door.

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Nearby Locations

Blue mountain travel plaza, capital city mall, strawberry square mall, etters walmart subway.