Pennsylvania trails · Standing Stone Trail
Standing Stone Trail
A 75.9-mile point-to-point in Pennsylvania, with 1,765 ft of climbing. Reaches Butler Knob and other lake/summit/viewpoint destinations. Managed by Pennsylvania DCNR.
Elevation profile
The climbing leans toward the middle third: 52% of the ascent falls between mile 40.7 and mile 81.5. It gives back about 11,812 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Butler Knob (summit)
- Cowans Gap Lake (lake)
- Mapleton Overlook (viewpoint)
- Stone Mountain Hawk Watch Platform (viewpoint)
- Stone Valley Vista (viewpoint)
- Cowans Gap Overlook (viewpoint)
- Power Line Vista (viewpoint)
Heads up
Getting there
Cowans Gap State Park Trails access. 39.99404, -77.92827 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:10 a.m., the sun rises at 6:38 a.m. and sets at 7:45 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 8:12 p.m. (EDT) — 13 h 07 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 75.9-mile route works out to roughly 28 h 59 min of walking — more than a single day of daylight here, so plan it as an overnight or hike it in sections.
Loop options
- Standing Stone Trail + Jack's Mt Rd — 12.4 mi loop, 2,603 ft gain
- Sharpe Trail + Standing Stone Trail + Cowans Gap State Park Trails — 15.6 mi loop, 3,505 ft gain
- Cowans Gap State Park Trails + Standing Stone Trail — 1.4 mi loop, 116 ft gain
Nearby trails
- Sideling Hill Snowmobile Trails — 18.2 mi
- Tuscarora Trail — 19.1 mi
- Michaux State Forest – Snowmobile Trail System (Southern) — 24.4 mi
- Michaux State Forest – Snowmobile Trail System (Northern) — 25.5 mi