JONESTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA
I was returning home from Allentown, Pennsylvania, and had not yet ridden today. With only a little research, too little, I came here looking for the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail. I didn’t have much luck.
The Lebanon Valley Rail Trail looks like a nice 18-mile trail but it isn’t here (mostly). According to TrailLink.com “Two short, isolated sections of trail totaling 3 miles have also been constructed north of the main segment. The first segment in Lebanon begins at Union Canal Tunnel Park, where parking and picnic benches are available, and extends north just less than 2 miles to Long Lane. The second segment begins in Bunker Hill near PA 72 and Swatara Creek and extends through Jonestown to US 22.“
So I came to Jonestown seeking a one-mile rail trail. That’s not quite a destination but it was on my way home.
It was cold. It was April. It was spring and it was only 43º. The windchill was 36º. There were snow flurries in the air.
I found the sign for the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail and parked in a small lot. I started down the trail and went 1.2 miles when it abruptly ended. And that was it. I went over to Ebenezer Road and took it back to Jonestown.
I rode through Jonestown looking for some nice streets. It’s a small town. I was leaving on Old U.S. 22 and turned back to town. I went to the large cemetery and found the gravesite of my great-great-great-great-great-grandparents, John William and Regina Kurtz. John (1732-1799) was a German Lutheran pastor and served the church well in Eastern Pennsylvania. He served the Zion Lutheran Church in town and I visited it as well.
I headed back to the car then decided to follow the trail in the opposite direction. A power line pole was leaning precariously over the trail. I had to ride through the field to get around it. The trail was only extended for a half-mile when it ended. So end to end the trail in Jonestown is less than two miles long.
It will be great if this segment connects with the main segment of the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail. But it wasn’t a wasted trip. This is also one of my ancestral homes.
