Himanvi Kopuri & Samidha Sane
Plan your Trip
Overview of trails
Explore all our trails through this interactive map! Located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, all the trails in our database are within a 5 minute to 3 hour drive—perfect for a quick study break, a day trip, or a weekend getaway. On the right, filter by the state you’d like to visit, the amount of time you have on hand, or the distance you’re willing to drive. Then, hover over the points to get more information on the name and quality of the trail and the region in which it is located.
Picking the Perfect Trail for You
This comprehensive map enables you to filter based on preferences like trail length, elevation, reviews, and route type.
The takeaway: if you’re looking for an easier or shorter trail, stay close to home or head to any of our smaller green points in Delaware. For the more experienced hiker, we suggest the bigger red and orange points, located north of Philadelphia in the Poconos and Appalachian Mountains.
Take our word for it
Now that you’ve picked your trail, if you’re still skeptical, check this out. Most of our hikes are rated at 4.0-4.5 on a 5 point scale. So, you can’t really go wrong with your choice.
The takeaway: don’t discount regional treasures—the areas around the city have highly rated trails. For these high quality hikes, you don’t even have to venture out of the state, as every trail in PA was rated 3.5 and above by previous hikers.
On a time crunch? or taking it easy?
We know Penn students are busy. Decide how much time you have and filter the visualization based on the drive time and the length of the trail.
The takeaway: Prefer a quick study break or can’t find a Zipcar to drive several hours away? Focus your attention on some of the green (highly rated) points towards the bottom left hand corner of the visualization. On the other hand, if you’re craving a road trip and a longer outdoor adventure, pick a point in the upper right hand corner.
More bang for your buck
Contrary to popular belief, the best and longest hikes aren’t too far from the city itself. Evidently, the trails with the highest reviews are between 2-4 miles long and happen to be under a 1.5 hour drive from campus (within 50-75 miles of your dorm).
The takeaway: you don’t have to venture far to have a good time! Save money on gas and save time on the drive, ultimately maximizing your quality time outdoors with friends.
Planning the weekend getaway
We filtered the data by the most popular regions in which hikes are located, with bigger rectangles representing regions or state parks with more hikes. The numbers depicted on the square itself indicate drive time.
The takeaway: have a long weekend or the staple Wharton schedule with no Friday classes? Head to one of the parks pictured in this visualization and pick from multiple trails in that region to plan the ultimate outdoor experience. For a shorter drive with more trail options, we recommend Brandywine Creek State Park. On the other hand, if you are looking for a longer drive, Stokes State Forest might be for you.