Ohiopyle State Park

In far southwest Pennsylvania along the southern reaches of the Laurel Ridge in the Allegheny Mountains is a magnificent state park. With its centerpiece of the Youghiogheny (or “Yough”) River, Ohiopyle State Park is a meca for river rafting, hiking, cycling and casual sightseeing. And plenty of beautiful sights there are to see!

We spent a few days visiting Ohiopyle State Park at the first of May and stayed in their spacious full-hookup RV park. Although the campground was one of the nicest state park sites we’ve stayed at, getting to it up a narrow, and very steep road, was a bit of a challenge… but we persevered. Setting up camp right in the park made everything we wanted to do very accessible.

The small town of Ohiopyle, at the center of the park, has plenty of rafting tour companies and bike rentals but not a lot more, so it’s a good idea to stock up before you arrive. The parks Visitor Center is also located right in town along the river with the Ohiopyle Falls sitting at center stage. There’s plenty of walking along the river and different boardwalk platforms to get a good look at the falls, including from behind the Visitor Center. The falls stretch across a wide portion of the river, so although the falls are not very tall, they are still quite impressive.

As you’re looking at the falls you might notice some people on the other side of the river and wondering how they got there. Just a bit down the road is a bridge that goes over the river to the Ferncliff Peninsula and a small parking area for the Ferncliff Trail. The Ferncliff Peninsula is a 100-acre natural area recognized for its botanical diversity and declared a National Natural Landmark in 1974. The trail encircles the peninsula and runs along the river for most of the way, making it a very nice hike. If you take the trail counterclockwise, the reward at the end is even better views of the Ohiopyle Falls. Here you’re isolated away from the crowds on the other side of the river and can enjoy the view and roar of the falls from the rocks.

Another fun and popular place to visit is the Natural Water Slides. Accessible right from a parking area, this narrow section of the Meadow Run River creates a natural water slide for those daring to risk their life in the raging waters. For those more sane, however, it’s just a really pretty place to explore.

Speaking of the Meadow Run River, my favorite hike in Ohiopyle was the Meadow Run Trail. This 3 plus mile trail, with some moderate elevation change, goes through some beautiful terrain. A dense forest leads past some very interesting rock formations on the way to The Cascades, a series of small waterfalls on the Meadow Run River. The rest of the trail traverses along the river with plenty of spots to walk out on the rocks to the river. It’s all absolutely gorgeous! The trail does have a spur that goes back to the water slides, but frankly I would skip this part of the trail with some difficult terrain and visit the water slides from its own parking area.

Cucumber Falls is another highlight area of Ohiopyle. There are several trails that lead to the falls and also a viewing platform just steps away from the parking lot. We did the latter but then continued down the trail a bit to the “Yough”. The falls are very pretty, cascading down in a small canyon with opportunities to explore around a bit on the rocks.

There’s a couple of good spots for views to consider in the park, one being Baughman Rock Overlook with a great view of the mountains from high above. The other view involves a walk across the Ohiopyle High Bridge which offers great views of the river and the possibility to watch some river rafters.

There’s one more huge bonus when visiting Ohiopyle and that’s the opportunity to tour two different Frank Lloyd Wright (FLW) houses, Kentuck Knob and Fallingwater. We did a tour of Fallingwater, which is one of FLW’s most famous designs, literally built on top of a waterfall. The house, and guest house, were constructed between 1936 and 1939 for the Edgar J. Kaufmann family, owners of Pittsburgh’s largest department store. The house is an architectural wonder and gives you a real sense of the unique styles of FLW. Your tour ticket also gives you access to the grounds (gorgeous) and the museum and visitor center where you can learn more about FLW.

We left Ohiopyle feeling like we struck gold with another amazing state park and expanded opportunities in the area beyond the park. Whether you’re passing through or traveling down from Pittsburg, an hour and twenty minutes to the north, you will certainly enjoy spending a couple of days here.

Check out the rest of our pictures from Ohiopyle and Fallingwater.