About us
All are welcome! Even the young, old, Virginians, and Washingtonians. Although my goal with this group is to lure out folks in their late 30's to early 50's and help remind them how to have fun outside. So if you're one of those people who has been spending too many Saturdays watching children's soccer games, sneak out and join us sometime soon. We'll even post events further afield in VA, WV, and PA, but the majority of meetups will be in Central Maryland and usually 4-8 miles in length.
This group has only four rules:
- If you sign up, show up. I will ruthlessly boot anyone who is a no-show. It only takes 6 seconds on average to change your RSVP to NO. Don't you want to give your spot to someone in dire need of fun?
- Please read the entire description before signing up for an event. I work hard to post thorough descriptions so people can be informed of both the itinerary AND the expected challenges.
- You are responsible for your own safety. This is just a group of potential new friends walking around the woods, not a professional guide service. Please come prepared with the appropriate gear and provisions to safely make it through the posted itinerary.
- Have fun! No spoilsports allowed.
Many events will be cross-posted with the warmer-season group, Paddle Something. If you've got a kayak, canoe or paddle board - check it out at: https://www.meetup.com/paddle-something/
Upcoming events
2
Patapsco Valley SP - Hilton and Cascade Falls - 4 miles with 2 BIG hills
Hilton Area, Catonsville, Patapsco Valley State Park, 1101 Hilton Avenue, Catonsville, MD 21104, Catonsville, MD, USLet's hope our beautiful weekend weather continues and take a hike at Patapsco. This one is a fairly short 4 miles, but we will be hiking from the top of the valley, down to the river, up the other side, and then back. The good news: we're taking the gentler slopes on the way up.
We'll leave from the parking lot at the Hilton northern parking lot and take the steeper Hilton path straight down to the swinging bridge. We will swing a right on the Rootball trail and then follow a counter-clockwise loop, almost all the way to Landing Road, then back down into the valley again, passing the actual falls. From there we cross the bridge again, take a short, flat jaunt along the Grist Mill Trail, then ascend the Forest Glen Trail back to the Hilton Parking lot.
There are two significant uphills, totaling 660ft. Make sure you have appropriate footwear. There are also some potentially slippery rocks to cross over at Cascade Falls, so poles might be helpful.
Please arrive with time to get laced up and start promptly at 10:00. We don't wait for latecomers.
Follow along on Alltrails
(Route map is posted in the photos section)There is a better than average chance that we will head to Guinness afterwards, as the tent area may be open.
23 attendees
Maple Syrup Festival and Hike Chimney Rock - Hard/steep 6.5 miles (1000' EL.)
Cunningham Falls State Park, 14274 William Houck Drive, Thurmont, md, USEveryone likes a reward after a strenuous hike, right? How about some freshly cooked maple syrup treats and live music? That's right - The Annual Maple Syrup Festival is back at Cunningham Falls!
But first... The Hike. And this one is kind of a doozy. We will park in the main lot of Cunningham Falls State Park ($5 per person fee due to the festival). We will meet at the north end of the parking lot near the snack stand, do quick introduction and then start hiking promptly at 10am.
It is barely a half mile to Cunningham Falls, which should hopefully be impressive with all the recent snow and rain. We will partake a somewhat sketchy crossing of the creek to get back to Route 77 and the Nature Falls Trail. That leads us to the visitor center in Catoctin Park. From there, we will have a fairly consistent elevation gain all the way to Wolf Rock, which doesn't have an amazing view, but does have some pretty neat crevasses to (optionally) leap over. From there it is a fairly level trek to the spectacular lookout on Chimney Rock, where you can easily see Frederick! If it isn't too windy, we can break here for a snack. From there, it is a number of switchbacks descending the mountain and winding along MD 77, back to the Visitor Center and an optional bathroom break. Then across MD 77 again and another 3/4 mile down a poorly-maintained trail to the festival, where the food an music should still be in full swing. Total distance is about 6.5 miles, making this one of the longest and steepest that we tackle in this group.
PDF maps of both parks are here:
Catoctin Mountain (Orange Blaze Trail)
Cunningham Falls1 attendee
Past events
39
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