HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania expanded Boyd Big Tree Preserve Conservation Area into Lower Paxton Township on Friday with the addition of 12 acres that provide a new trailhead and parking area, increasing public access to the 1,068-acre preserve and its 12 miles of trails.
The property, formerly known as Hocker Park, extends the conservation area into Dauphin County’s largest municipality and provides another access point for residents of the Harrisburg region.
The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources said the acquisition advances Pennsylvania’s 2025-2029 Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan, which guides state efforts to expand and improve outdoor recreation.
“This addition expands Boyd Big Tree Preserve into Lower Paxton Township and gives more people in the Harrisburg region a place to hike, enjoy nature, and connect with the outdoors close to home,” DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn said.
The addition also brings land surrounding a longtime access route into public ownership. Lower Paxton Township Supervisor Kate Scheib said people have used the area as a trailhead to the Blue Mountain ridgeline for years, even though portions of the land they crossed were not publicly owned.
“That’s what makes celebrating today so significant,” Scheib said.
Boyd Big Tree straddles Blue Mountain and provides habitat for deep-forest birds, including warblers, as well as native plants and other wildlife. Its trails support hiking, wildlife watching and state park programs.
The preserve traces its origins to 1999, when Alexander Boyd donated 914 acres to DCNR’s Bureau of State Parks. Additional acquisitions and donations involving the Central Pennsylvania Conservancy and Lower Paxton Township, along with planning and support from The Nature Conservancy, helped expand the property to its current 1,068 acres.
Peggy Fogarty, executive director of the Central Pennsylvania Conservancy, said the latest project required funding from DCNR, The Nature Conservancy and the Boyd Foundation.
“Thankfully into the future, the community can enjoy this property,” Fogarty said.
The expansion also adds protected land along the Kittatinny Ridge Conservation Landscape. Evan Endres, Pennsylvania government relations director for The Nature Conservancy, described the area as a wildlife corridor used by birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles.
“This is a real section of refuge,” Endres said.
The project comes as outdoor recreation accounts for a growing share of Pennsylvania’s economy. The industry contributed $20.4 billion to the state economy in 2024, equal to about 2% of gross domestic product, and supported more than 177,000 jobs and $9.5 billion in wages, according to U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis figures cited by the state.
Pennsylvania has more than 14,000 miles of trails, 6,500 local parks and 125 state parks, along with 2.2 million acres of state forestland.
Support the local news that supports Chester County. MyChesCo delivers reliable, fact-based reporting and essential community resources—free for everyone. If you value that, click here to become a patron today.