Details
Features
About this place
This trail follows a ridge with great views both east and west along the way. The trail is best to hiked in Fall and Winter to get more unobstructed views.
This trails starts at a small park in Woodbury called Gonzaga Park. Closed from mid-November to April, you are still able to park just outside the gate if that is the time of year you are hiking. Three different trail names share this path. The Jessup trail starts/end at Gonzaga Park and travels through all of Schunemunk State Park. The Highlands Trail and the Long Path also share this trail so along the way you will see these three individual markers.
The trail follows the Schunemunk Ridge the entire way, most of which is via a easement trail through private property. The ridge is rather narrow at times and in winter you can have views east and west unobstructed. Once you gain the ridge, there is not much elevation gain.
This section ends when you reach the trail junction with the Western Ridge Trail in Schunemunk State Park. The Long Path also breaks off here, descending off the ridge to the east. This is a good place to turn back but if you have time you can hike a 3 mile loop of the Western Ridge Trail - Ridge to Ridge Trail and back on the Jessup/Highlands Trail.
If you add that loop, the total distance is 10.8 miles. and an additional 700 feet of elevation gain. I hiked this in early December and didn't see a single person.