What’s to love
Situated on the banks of the Skippack Creek between Norristown and Collegeville, this large natural space was set aside from suburban development in 1979. The land here was purchased from the Lenape and settled first by Mennonites. Several mill and farmhouse buildings from centuries past still scatter the area.
Today, Evansburg State Park hosts plenty of outdoor activities, including trout fishing, hunting (in season), horseback riding, cross-country skiing, camping…there’s even a golf course, if that’s your thing. There’s plenty of wildlife on display, too—my visit featured a woodpecker, many deer, and a red fox nonchalantly strolling by.
Tips and quirks
- Most of Evansburg’s trails (15 miles of them) are designated as equestrian paths, and they can be tricky. They’re often narrow, not well marked, and they’re sometimes wrong on the PA State Park map. Largely, you can trust the interactive map on this page (though even this map leaves a few connections off).
- I’ve doctored the PA State Park map to point out one important flaw: this trail marked in pink does not seem to exist. I tried. And the Eight Arch Bridge that indicates you can cross it? I really would not recommend it. The bridge has no shoulders and traffic moves quickly.
Basically, if you cross the creek at the Mill Road pedestrian bridge, prepare to return the same way. - Just off of Germantown Pike on the south side, there’s a tiny, ancient-looking graveyard of a Mennonite splinter group called the Funkites hidden in the woods. It features the grave of a Revolutionary War soldier. I found it by getting hopelessly lost, but if you were trying to get there deliberately I might park at the nearby florist.
Basically, if you cross the creek at the Mill Road pedestrian bridge, prepare to return the same way.Spotted here recently (via
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Last updated: April 16, 2021
The Skippack Loop Trail.
Henry Gotwals' grave is tucked away in the woods at the Funkite Cemetery.
Kuster Mill, built in 1702 (photo by smallbones on Wikipedia).
The Eight Arch Bridge on Germantown Pike, built in 1792.
A friendly (?) box turtle.
The Skippack Loop Trail climbs up high enough to provide scenic views of the creek.
An equestrian trail.
The Osage orange: inedible, but very cool!
Abandoned building by Germantown Pike.
Creatures great and small.
Educational signage along the Skippack Creek Loop.