Plainfield Township Recreation Trail

The Plainfield Township Recreation Trail offers many beautiful views along the rural scenic countryside, and there are five quaint wooden bridges crossing over the Little Bushkill Creek. The trail surface varies from a very hard packed ballast, grass, loose gravel, and smooth asphalt. All of these surface types will be encountered if you travel the trail's entire length. Users of the trail will take in scenery that varies from rustic farmland scenes (with horses and other animals – including sheep, goats and cows- grazing in the field) forested areas, wildlife, plants and the babbling waters of the Little Bushkill Creek.

The trail starts at Belfast Junction Trailhead off Sullivan Trail near Stockertown and travels north to Buss Street. Picnic areas are available at the Belfast Junction and Knitters Hill Road trail entrances. 

Once used by the railroad to transport slate from nearby quarries, the Bangor and Portland railway began operations between Bangor and Portland, Pennsylvania in 1880. The Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western railroad acquired the B and P railway as its Bangor and Portland Division in 1903 with a full merger in 1909. One of the last branches to operate steam locomotives, Bangor Engine Terminal withdrew its last engine in 1953. Conrail purchased the railroad in 1976, and later abandoned it in 1981. In 1987, Plainfield Township purchased 6.7 miles of the railroad bed and began converting it into a recreation trail utilizing Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, CDBG RIRA, PennDOT and DCNR grant funding.