There was hardly a parking spot to be found on National Trails Day, held early this month on a spectacularly sunny afternoon at Slatington's downtown trailhead.

Visitors to that section of the Delaware & Lehigh Trail buzzed about, loading and unloading bicycles from their vehicles, tying up running shoes while sitting at picnic tables under the pavilion, enjoying hot dogs from the nearby food truck, listening to the sounds of a local keyboard troubadour or milling about at the display tables set up by both the D&L National Heritage Corridor and the Lehigh Township Rails to Trails organizations.National Trails Day was begun by the American Hiking Society in 1991 and is observed the first Saturday of June. Slatington was honored to be one of only five spots along the entire 165-mile long trail where the D&L chose to set up this year from late morning until early afternoon.At the D&L table, visitors were invited to pick up informational pamphlets, maps of the trail and homemade granola, plus chat with two D&L members on hand to answer questions.Meanwhile, opposite them, Lehigh Township Rails to Trails, which aims to provide recreation for all ages in and around the township, had several tables of collectibles and native flowers, trees and herbs for sale as a fundraiser for its organization.When asked why it was important for the group to be there, President Nancy Thatcher said, "Well, we all use (these) trails, too. Anything on either side of the river is part of the National Heritage Corridor. That's why the Walnutport Canal Association also falls under the umbrella of the corridor."The trail actually follows the routes of three historic transportation systems: the Lehigh Canal, the Delaware Canal and the Lehigh Valley Railroad. So though on opposite sides of the Lehigh River, Slatington's side follows an old rail line while Walnutport's side follows an old canal towpath, both are still part of the D&L Trail.Meanwhile, the term "corridor" is used to encompasses not only the trail but also its nationally significant surrounding landscape of waterways, mountains, hills and valleys, plus towns, landmarks, historic ruins and more, from Wilkes-Barre in the north to Bristol, near Philadelphia, in the south.And in recent years, more and more people are taking notice of the entire trail and using it, said D&L Trail manager H. Scott Everett, who was there Saturday with D&L volunteer Allen Sachse."There's been this pent up demand for trails, as people kind of get back to the outdoors, the obesity epidemic ...," Everett said, noting that the public has "just embraced" many parts of the D&L Trail.He also noted that when the D&L has been able to tie in the surrounding communities with the trail, not only do those townspeople come out to enjoy it, but so do people from across the Lehigh Valley and beyond, making it a travel destination.In fact, bicyclist John Cool, of Allentown, mentioned that a group of 18 bicycle riders taking a break nearby had all come down from New York State to ride different sections of the trail over the course of three days."Pennsylvania does have the most miles of rail trail in the country," Everett noted."It's beautiful," added Robin Davies, of Macungie, "and (it's right here,) you don't have to go anywhere."