Mercer: Nature Trails, River and Outdoor Activities

In Mercer County, you’ll find nature and leisure destinations with different highlights. Shenango River Lake is a boating and recreation area; Coonie Trail winds through nature as an interpretive trail, while Maurice K. Goddard State Park includes a paved hiking and biking trail. Other options include possible wildlife sightings along the Upper Shenango River Water Trail and a view of the falls at Springfield Falls. If you’re looking for hotels in Mercer, these differences can help you plan your trip around the activities that matter to you.

Shenango River Lake: Water and Activities

Shenango River Lake is a 3,560-acre flood control project and also a popular boating and recreation area in Mercer County. The lake is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Recreational activities include hiking, camping, fishing and paddling; disc golf tournaments are also held there. Dirt biking is another option, in a 200-acre off-road vehicle park. The range of activities spans everything from waterside pursuits to trails and motorized riding. When planning, consider which of these options matters most for your stay.

Two Trails with Different Scales

Coonie Trail at Shenango River Lake is 0.5 miles long and winds through nature as a self-guided interpretive trail. Visitors can learn about habitats and the relationships between plants, animals and people. The trail focuses not only on individual species, but also on their habitats and connections.

Maurice K. Goddard State Park is a 2,856-acre outdoor destination in Mercer County. It includes a 12.2-mile paved hiking and biking trail. At 12.2 miles, this route is considerably longer than the 0.5-mile Coonie Trail. The trails also differ in character: one is a self-guided nature interpretive trail, while the other is a longer paved route for hiking and biking. When planning your outings, trail length and permitted uses can therefore be helpful points of comparison.

Wildlife Viewing and a Waterfall

Wildlife that may be spotted along the Upper Shenango River Water Trail includes white-tailed deer, muskrats, beavers and otters. The river runs through the Shenango Valley to Mercer County. The water trail offers a different focus for nature viewing than Coonie Trail: here, the emphasis is on possible encounters with specific animal species, while the interpretive trail focuses on habitats and the relationships between plants, animals and people.

Springfield Falls offers a view of a waterfall and is among Mercer County’s notable waterfall views. This makes the waterfall view and wildlife viewing additional options alongside the interpretive trail, hiking and biking routes, and recreation at the lake.

Planning a Trip to Mercer

As a regional reference point, Mercer County is about an hour’s drive north of Pittsburgh and an hour’s drive south of Erie; Cleveland is about a 90-minute drive away. These times are approximate.

Discover more destinations: Sharon, Hadley, Hermitage, West Middlesex, Mercer, Fayette County, Lawrence County, Lebanon

For the broader travel overview: Pennsylvania.