This story originally appeared in the June 2025 issue of Town&Gown magazine.
For those seeking outdoor adventure in Happy Valley, the hardest part is really deciding what you want to do and where you want to do it. Hiking, paddling, fishing, mountain biking, rock climbing, birdwatching, camping, nature photography, guided experiences — they’re all options. Once you’ve picked an activity, you likely have at the very least a handful of places in Centre County where you can try it on for size. All the while, outfitters, guides and other resources are available to help make sure you have the most approachable, enjoyable, safest experience possible.
Geoff Brugler founded one of these resources half a century ago. The owner of Appalachian Outdoors in downtown State College notes that, yes, the store sells a variety of maps, books and similar physical guides, but also employs a staff with a wealth of knowledge related to the area’s outdoor recreation.
“We can tell people where to go, and what to take to be safe and comfortable,” he says.
One of the most valuable resources the store stocks was developed right in Central Pennsylvania: Purple Lizard Maps.
“The whole idea with Purple Lizard Maps is that they’re designed to show all the recreation in a certain area,” explains founder Michael Hermann. “It’s not just a hiking map or just a mountain biking map. It shows opportunities for hiking, camping, backpacking, mountain biking, boating, motorized trails, equestrian trails. It’s really to showcase all the public land in an area.”
These maps are designed to be extremely user-friendly — even easier and more reliable, Hermann says, than some app-based and digital maps. Currently, Purple Lizard Maps offers four maps that cover Centre County lands, including maps for Bald Eagle State Forest, Rothrock State Forest, the Scotia Game Lands and Moshannon State Forest.
“The neat thing about State College is, within 30 miles of downtown, you can access six different state parks across three state forests, and there are over half a million acres of public land available,” says Hermann. “It’s extremely rare to have that level of access and that much public land that close to a community … [and] one of the unique parts about Central Pennsylvania is that virtually every aspect of outdoor recreation is represented.”
Gearing up
For some would-be adventurers, though, the barrier to entry isn’t so much knowledge as it is gear. As such, during the summer, Appalachian Outdoors rents out equipment for hiking, camping, and rock-climbing, perfect for those who don’t want to make a large upfront investment in their own gear just yet. Offerings include tents and backpacks.
Gear rentals like these make a large variety of activities throughout the area more accessible. As another example, for those interested in heading out onto one of the many streams, creeks or lakes, Tussey Mountain Outfitters has you covered with a full-service rental experience that couldn’t make paddling any easier.
Paddlers can rent a kayak or canoe, along with all necessary accessories, such as life jackets and dry bags, and then a member of the team will transport renters and their equipment to Spring Creek or Bald Eagle Creek. You park your car at the take-out point, a driver drops you and your watercraft at the access point and then, when you’ve paddled down the creek to where your car is waiting, you’re able to leave easily and go about your day.
Centred Outdoors, a program of ClearWater Conservancy, puts accessibility at the forefront of its operations, offering guided excursions complete with a gear library and transportation — and all of its excursions are free.
Bridget Whyte, adventure coordinator, explains, “Our mission is to connect community members to conservation stories and natural spaces around our area … and we do that through these guided adventures. We want to make it as accessible as possible. We have our guided walks, which are more educational and interpretive. We have our longer hikes, which are more challenging and adventurous [in terms of] elevation or terrain. We have our wellness programs, which are activity-based sessions like yoga or forest therapy. We have some fresh air walks, which are just daytime walks — mid-day, mid-week, a bit of a lunch break.
“On top of all those different events and time offerings,” she adds, “we have other elements of the program that make it so, hopefully, there are fewer barriers to being able to join us. … We have free shuttles going out to select events throughout the summer season … so that folks who perhaps don’t have a vehicle themselves or are hesitant about making that drive can sign up for a free spot on the van shuttle and make it there and back without that hesitation. We have our gear library as well. We have day packs, trekking poles, rain jackets, child carriers — items that folks can borrow and request for us to bring to an event if that’s something that they’d like to use during our programming.”
Those interested in joining Centred Outdoors for an upcoming event are encouraged to pick up a Centred Outdoors passport, which lists all the locations the organization visits during the year. Digital passports are available on the organization’s website, while physical passports are available at events, as well as at spots around downtown State College, such as at Appalachian Outdoors.
Where to go
Have an idea of what kind of outdoor adventure you’d like to try, maybe have an idea of the outfitters or resources that can help you along the way — but just not sure where you should go? Our experts above offer a few recommendations for the best natural spaces to head to, to get a real taste for the best that Centre County offers.
Hikers, trail runners and mountain bikers can visit a very popular local favorite: Rothrock State Forest. Black Moshannon State Park likewise frequently pops up as a recommendation, as it offers an abundance of activities and amenities. Take to the trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding. Book a tent site or cabin for camping. Stop by for the beach or one of the regularly scheduled guided events. Rent a canoe, kayak or paddleboard from the on-site concessionaire, Sleepy Hollow Outpost.
Mathias Weinzen, park manager, says the park’s bog trail is the best place for first-time visitors to start. “It’s about a one-mile trail. It’s fully accessible. Most of it is on a boardwalk and it is just gorgeous. It really encapsulates [the park]. It gives you everything that the park is about and shows you the bog, which is something that is very unique to our area, something you don’t find unless you go up to Maine or Canada. You get to see the waterfowl and, if you’re lucky, you’ll get to see a nice sunrise or sunset out there. It’s just very peaceful.”
The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources likewise recommends checking out other state parks and forests throughout Centre County, including opportunities for water recreation at the nearly 2,000-acre lake at Bald Eagle State Park, trout fishing at Poe Paddy State Park and the beach at Poe Valley State Park.
For more water recreation, while Tussey Mountain Outfitters facilitates easy paddling excursions on Spring Creek and Bald Eagle Creek, it also rents kayaks, canoes and paddleboards for those with means to transport them to other bodies of water around the county. Co-owner Bart Beck recommends checking out the lakes at the various state parks in the region, including Black Moshannon, Whipple Dam and Bald Eagle. The Little Juniata River and Penns Creek are good picks for moving water.
Prefer something with more creature comforts, or perhaps somewhere with abundant educational programming? Whyte recommends that families with children check out Millbrook Marsh Nature Center in State College or Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center in Petersburg.
“It’s a great resource for the community,” she says of the latter. “They have wonderful trails. They also have an aviary. They have reptiles, amphibians and animal ambassadors to learn about. Those are [both] great options for exploring outdoors, but also learning from the educators at those organizations.” She also recommends Tom Tudek Memorial Park and Lederer Park in State College.
Outdoor adventure close to home
Whatever outdoor recreation you have in mind, the benefits of being in Centre County are clear.
As Brugler says, “The advantage of living here is you can drive 15 minutes and get to some really, really good terrain for mountain biking, for hiking, for cross-country skiing, for fishing. You don’t have to get in your car and drive 45 minutes to get somewhere. …There is a phenomenal amount of outdoor opportunities here, within 10 minutes of downtown. Where do you live that you can do that? Some of the best fly fishing in the country, some of the best cross-country skiing and mountain biking you’ll find anywhere. … There’s almost a lifetime of things to do.” T&G
Holly Riddle is a freelance writer for Town&Gown.
