Moraine State Park

Located just 14 miles north of Zelienople, Moraine State Park is a popular attraction located on Lake Arthur. This 3000-acre lake is an outstanding warm water fishery that is also great for swimming, sailing and boating. With over forty miles of scenic shoreline, the lake ranges from an average depth of 12 feet to about 36 feet deep near the dam. Two family-oriented beach areas are available for swimmers. Showers, changing facilities and food concessions are available at both beaches.

More than 30 miles of trails are available for hiking. The trails are mapped and marked and range in difficulty from handicap accessible to challenging hiking trails. Bicycle rentals and vending areas are located at the beginning of the paved, seven-mile bicycle trail which winds near the shoreline between the Marina Restaurant and the Bike Rental Building in the northwest corner of the park at the North Shore Recreational Area. There is a six-mile loop trail for mountain bikes on the North Shore and miles of equestrian trails throughout the park.

McConnells Mills State Park

McConnells Mills State Park is located approximately 15 miles north of Zelienople. Located in Lawrence County, it encompasses just over 2,500 acres of the spectacular Slippery Rock Creek Gorge. The park is open from sunrise to sunset, year-round. The 930-acre Slippery Rock Gorge was designated a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior in 1974 and became a State Park Natural Area in 1998. The steep-sided gorge contains numerous rocky outcrops, boulders, old growth forest, waterfalls and rare plants. Cleland Rock Vista is a great place to view the gorge. Also part of the natural area, Hells Hollow has a wide array of wild flowers, waterfalls and habitats. A one-half mile hiking trail leads to a cascading waterfall and an old limekiln. Hiking and picnicking are permitted in designated areas.

Jennings Environmental Education Center

The Jennings Environmental Education Center, an officially designated PA State Park is located 12 miles north of Butler, PA on PA Route 528. The grounds are open from sunrise to sunset, seven days a week, for hiking and other nature-related activities. Jennings offers a full range of educational programs. A unique attraction at the center is its relict prairie, which includes the spectacular and well-known prairie flower, the blazing star. The relict prairie ecosystem is rare in Pennsylvania. Visitors should try to visit in late July or early August when the prairie is in full bloom.

One of the park’s main features, the 20 acre prairie ecosystem, is home to distinctive prairie plants and the endangered Massasauga Rattlesnake. Jennings was the first reserve established in Pennsylvania to protect an individual plant species and remains the only public and protected prairie in the Commonwealth. Jennings provides a unique combination of prairie and forest, which offers a wide array of resource and education opportunities.  

The Maridon Museum

The Maridon Museum opened on May 8th, 2004. It is the only museum in the Western Pennsylvania region with a specific focus on Asian Art and Culture coupled with German Meissen porcelain. The museum, including the objects and the buildings that house them, is the gift of Mary Hulton Phillips. The Maridon's permanent collection includes over 800 art objects. The Asian art collection includes jade and ivory sculptures, tapestries, landscape paintings, scrolls, and artifacts.

Three hundred pieces of Meissen porcelain are also included in the museum's collection. Many works date back to the early 18th century, and one exceptional piece comes from the personal collection of the Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony from 1694-1733, and the "founding father" of Meissen porcelain.

Hours are: Wednesday through Saturday: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The museum will be closed Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays. It will be open by special appointment on these days.