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Kings Gap environmental Education Center Map (.pdf)

Kings Gap is well known for the four-mile road that winds through its 1,454 acres to the historic stone mansion atop South Mountain. The Kings Gap Environmental Education and Training Center focuses on natural and cultural interpretation and education. Lifelong learners will appreciate both self-guided interpretive trails and guided hikes. Travel directly to the Mansion Day Use Area where center offices and an adjacent education center are located. While at the mansion, be sure to take in the view from the patio, wander through the herb plant gardens, or hike the Ridge Overlook Trail to the sweeping vista of the Cumberland Valley. Traveling back down the mountain, the pond Day Use Area offers trails that explore this habitat for songbirds, wildflowers, reptiles and amphibians, created by the presence of Kings Gap Hollow Run. Continuing down the road, the Pine Plantation Day Use Area is the site of another trailhead, a half-century old conifer forest, and is also a haven for many resident bird species, including owls. The center is free and open year-round, from dawn to dusk. The center offices are open from 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., Monday–Friday.

Sixteen miles of trails provide ample opportunities to explore chestnut oak forests, blueberry patches, and trickling streams, and to encounter wildlife such as the Baltimore Oriole, White-breasted Nuthatch, Great Horned Owl, Eastern Phoebe, Scarlet Tanager, Wild Turkey, white-tailed deer, and eastern box turtle.

Park contains 11 trails, a total of 16 miles in length. Pine Plantation Trail: .6 miles loop, self-guided nature trail. Whispering Pines Trail: .3 miles loop, paved self-guided nature trail within the pine plantation day use area. Rock Scree Trail: 1.9 miles out and back, leaves the mansion area and travels along the vista and down to the pine plantation. Ridge Overlook: .8 mile loop, path gives you a beautiful photo opportunity of the valley below. Forest Heritage Trial: 1.6 miles. Maple Hollow Trail: 1.3 miles loop. Scenic Vista Trail: 2.5 miles out & back. White Oaks Trail: .3 mile loop, paved path, self-guided trail. Watershed Trail: 1.8 miles loop. Boundary Trail: 1.5 miles out & back. Kings Gap Hollow Trail: 1.7 miles out & back trail.

Open to hunting, trapping and training of dogs during established seasons.

Orienteering: A permanent orienteering course is located at Kings Gap. Orienteering is a sport that involves using a map and compass to negotiate a designated course. Additional information on orienteering and copies of the course map are available at the center office.

The center offers programs on orienteering for beginners in the fall and spring.

The Environmental Center is also avialble for meetings.

60 On-Site Parking Spaces | Full-Service Catering | Total of 1,835 Sq. Ft. Meeting Space | 840 Sq. Ft. Largest Meeting Room | 2 Breakout Rooms | Seating for 40 Theatre Style | Seating for 30  Banquet Style | Seating for 30 Classroom Style | Seating for 200 Outdoor | Handicapped Accessible | Business Center | Guest Rooms Available | Internet Access