The Five Star Trail runs nearly 8 miles through Westmoreland County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. The trail is alongside an active railroad track, Southwestern Pennsylvania Railroad, that stretches between Lynch Field, a Greensburg city park and Youngwood. The trail then spurs off eastward to connect with the campus of

Westmoreland County Community College Westmoreland County Community College is a public community college in Youngwood, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1970 during an era of community college proliferation within the state. Its location on the suburban fringe was designed to attract ...

and continues on to

Armbrust Armbrust (German: ''Crossbow'') is a lightweight unguided anti-tank weapon designed and developed by Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm of Germany, who later sold its manufacturing rights to Chartered Industries of Singapore (the predecessor of ST Kin ...

Background

In 1995, the trail corridor was purchased from

Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busin ...

by The Westmoreland County Industrial Development Corporation. The municipalities of Greensburg,

South Greensburg South Greensburg is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,117 at the 2010 census. History Early history In 1780, Michael Rugh acquired title to , which he operated as a farm. The land was passed o ...

, Southwest Greensburg,

Youngwood Youngwood is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. History The community was established in 1899 and was built on land owned by John Y. Woods, a farmer. In creating the name Youngwood, John Y. Woods took his own family na ...

, and Hempfield, along with The Westmoreland County Parks and Recreation Department are all partners in the trail project. The trail is named in honor of these five towns. The trail is kept clean by PA Cleanways. There are volunteers that help maintain the trail and there is a Poker Run held annually along the trail.

Points of interest

The trail accommodates walking, hiking, jogging, bicycling, and cross country skiing. Other points of interest include: *Park at Lynch Field **(Park with pool, playground, a few war relics - including an Apache helicopter) *Sports complex in Greensburg *Youngwood Train Station (museum focused on local railroad history) *Depot Street, (a 1.5-mile paved walkway with old rail cars, including a converted caboose) *Youngwood Campus of Westmoreland County Community College

Parking and trail access

The trailhead is located at the Westmoreland County Community College, on College Avenue across from the baseball field. The trail is accessible to the handicapped and is pet friendly. Additionally, there are multiple access points located off Route 119: *Lynch Field (Greensburg) *Huff Avenue (South Greensburg) *Willow Crossing Road/Shady Lane (Hempfield) *Trolley Line Avenue (Youngwood) *Depot Street (Youngwood)

References

External links

City of Greensburg Pennsylvania
(Five Star Trail)
Reviews at Local HikesHistory of a predecessor to parts of the trail

{{Pennsylvania rail trails Protected areas of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania Rail trails in Pennsylvania

Background

Points of interest

Parking and trail access

See also

References

External links