The Panhandle Pathway is a 22-mile rail-trail corridor running through Pulaski and Cass counties in Indiana. The trail follows the historic rail path of the Pennsylvania Railroad Line through farmland, shady wooded areas, the beginning of the Wabash Valley, and across the Tippecanoe River.
The Panhandle also crosses Mill Creek, Mud Creek, Indian Creek, Little Indian Creek and Crooked Creek. The trail passes through the communities of Winamac, Star City, Thornhope and Royal Center on the ride south to the Kenneth (west of Logansport) cul-de-sac rest area.
A news release from the Department of the Interior noted the trail “provides wide views of farmland and a dedicated prairie preserve. The Panhandle Pathway is ideal for walking, hiking, running, biking and skating.”
The press release added the trail is “well maintained by volunteers, (and) is a lovely rural experience offering new things to see and hear on every visit.”
The National Trails System, which includes national scenic, national historic, and national recreation trails, offers an abundance of scenic, historic, and recreation trails for outdoor enjoyment on America’s public lands. The system promotes preservation, public access, travel within, and enjoyment and appreciation of the open-air, outdoor areas, and historic resources of the United States.
The National Recreation Trails program is jointly administered by the National Park Service and the U.S. Forest Service, in conjunction with a number of federal and nonprofit partners. The designation of a national recreation trail can be done by either the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture on an existing local or regional trail with the consent of the federal, state, local, nonprofit or private entity that has jurisdiction over the trail.
The trail's managing agency or organization must apply for the distinction. Each of the newly designated trails will receive a certificate of designation, a set of trail markers and a letter of recognition from Interior Secretary David Bernhardt.
