Abandoned PA Turnpike Tunnel, Breezewood, Pennsylvania

Thirteen miles of interstate highway, complete with tunnels, simply left behind. When the Pennsylvania Turnpike was rerouted in 1968 the old alignment through Rays Hill and Sideling Hill was abandoned where it stood, and it has been quietly falling apart ever since. It is one of the strangest days out in the state, and a charter bus to the Abandoned PA Turnpike is the sensible way to reach a trailhead with almost no parking.

What is actually there

About 8.5 miles of cracked four-lane highway running between two long tunnels, now known to cyclists as the Pike 2 Bike trail. Sideling Hill Tunnel runs roughly 6,800 feet and Rays Hill about 3,500. Both are completely unlit. Trees are pushing through the pavement, the lane markings are still faintly visible, and the whole thing has the specific atmosphere of infrastructure that outlived its purpose.

It draws a particular kind of group: history and engineering enthusiasts, photographers, urban explorers, cycling clubs and hiking groups. It is not a conventional sightseeing stop and it rewards people who find that interesting rather than people expecting an attraction.

The three things your group must bring

• A real flashlight or headlamp per person. Phone flashlights are not adequate for a mile of unlit tunnel, and the middle of Sideling Hill is genuinely, completely dark.
• Proper footwear. The surface is broken asphalt with standing water, loose gravel and debris. It is flat, but it is not smooth.
• Layers. The tunnels stay cold year-round and are markedly colder than the trail outside, even in August.
• Water and everything else you need. There are no facilities of any kind at either end — no restrooms, no water, no shelter.

Which charter bus suits the trip

The access roads to the trailheads are narrow rural lanes and the parking areas are small gravel lots that were never designed for coaches. This is the constraint that shapes the whole booking.

• Twenty to thirty-two: a mini bus is the right vehicle here. It reaches the trailheads, turns around at the end, and does not commit you to a drop-and-return arrangement.
• Forty to fifty-six: a full-size charter bus is comfortable for the drive from Pittsburgh or Harrisburg, but confirm the specific trailhead and turning space before booking — plan on a drop-off with the coach waiting in Breezewood rather than at the trail.
• Ten to fourteen: a sprinter van suits a photography group working around the light at either tunnel mouth.

The on-board restroom matters more than usual on this trip, precisely because the destination has none.

Getting there and how long to allow

The site sits just off Interstate 70/76 near Breezewood, which puts it roughly two hours from Pittsburgh and about two and a half from Harrisburg. We run pickups from Bedford, Somerset, Johnstown and Altoona, all within an hour.

Allow four hours on the trail if you want to walk both tunnels and return, or two if you are only doing Sideling Hill from the northern end. Groups searching for charter bus rental near me for this trip should say clearly that the destination is an unmarked trailhead rather than a visitor attraction — the parking constraint is the whole logistical question, and an operator who has not asked about it has not thought about it.