Distance 6.5-7 Miles
Difficulty 7.5-8 (out of 10)
Pace 2-2.5 MPH
This moderately paced adventure will total about 7 miles in length. We will encounter easy, moderate and at times very challenging and difficult terrain. Lots of rocks and rock hopping and at time 2 & 3pt holds.
Please be sure of your capabilities before signing up. Although efforts are made to plan hikes while also considering trail conditions, always come prepared.
A bail out before the difficult part is available.
This will be a day to remember and you won't want to miss this hike.
This will be about a 7 mile hike (about 5+ hours on the trails). This is a early start because it's a popular spot and parking fills up quickly. Leave enough time incase you have to park up the street some. Park at the parking lot across from the Old Anglers Inn. Plenty of parking but this is a popular place, so parking may be tight. We'll meet in front of the bathrooms right off the road (yes, running toilets). I'll have a bright fluorescent shirt on.
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The first 3.5 miles are easy terrain through the woods to the visitor center at the Potomac Falls on the Maryland side. This is the C & O Canal National Historical Park. From there we'll walk on the walkway over the falls. Some great photo opportunities here so make sure you have a camera. Some pictures I took are on this page. After the boardwalk, well be doing the "A" section of the Billy Goat Trail. This is where it's gets fun. The Billy Goat trail is a rock scramble. And a fun rock scramble. It's not a super hard scramble, but can be strenuous at times. Know your limits. Once on that trail, there is no bailing out. At one point we'll be scaling the side of the mountain in a crevice in the rock.
Please know your limits. Check out the photo's from a previous hike to know what you're in for.
https://www.meetup.com/Outdoor-Club-of-South-Jersey-Hiking/photos/26917254/449261184/#449261184
Link to the Maryland C & O Canal Web Site. http://www.nps.gov/choh/index.htm
Link to the Great Fall Web Site on the Virginia side (not the side we'll be on) http://www.nps.gov/grfa/planyourvisit/falls-viewing.htm
Link to the Wikipedia page for the Billy Goat Trail https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Goat_Trail
After the hike, for those interested, The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center Smithsonian Institute Air & Space Museum in Chantilly, Virginia. It's only a half hour away. This is part of the Smithsonian Institutes that are in downtown DC. Why is this out here then? Because it has all the cool planes they cant bring in the city. Here you'll see the Enola Gay, a Concord jet, the space shuttle Discovery and (my all time favorite plane) the Lockheed Martin Black Bird SR-71 plane. The fastest plane ever. And many others. Admission is free but parking is 15 bucks till 4pm. It'll take about 2hrs to go through all of the museum.
We'll be sure to grab a bite to eat afterwards somewhere.
Link to the Smithsonian Air & Space:
https://airandspace.si.edu/udvar-hazy-center
Link to the SR-71
https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/lockheed-sr-71-blackbird/nasm_A19920072000
For the hike parking, it's about a 2.5 - 3 hour ride from the Deptford Mall area. Plan accordingly for traffic and pit stops.
Leader - Doug Hillebrecht
Cell - 856-816-8824 till 9:30 pm