![]() Also, because the path requires regular maintenance, some sections may be closed for repairs. ![]() Don’t miss the Paw Paw Tunnel at milepost 155.2, at the northern end of the trail. Most of the trail is heavily wooded, and river views are best during early spring, late fall, and winter, when trees are leafless. The guidebooks sold by the National Park Service describe these sites and events. Though many aren’t marked, several sites along the canal saw events both tragic and heroic. Troops on both sides of the conflict lobbed ammunition across the water and crossed the river and canal numerous times to raid enemy camps, sabotage canal operations, and march to and from battles, including the Gettysburg Campaign. Of particular importance is the role the canal played during the American Civil War as a dividing line between North and South. You can even stay the night in one of the restored lock houses. A handful of visitor centers operated by the National Park Service sell guidebooks and provide information about the towpath, its history, and local points of interest. In adjacent canal towns, you’ll also find amenities such as cafés and restaurants, B&Bs and motels, bike shops, museums, and retail shops, as well as additional historical sites. The park provides campgrounds (both private and public), picnic areas, indoor and portable toilets, innumerable historical sites, and lookout points along the way. Weekends from spring through fall are busy, especially around Washington, D.C., and Great Falls Park in Potomac, Maryland. (Additional miles are planned to be resurfaced in the coming years.) Every year millions of visitors hike or bike the C&O Canal Towpath. The towpath is primarily dirt and gravel with about 50 contiguous miles surfaced with crushed stone. Today, recreationists of all types can enjoy this mostly level, continuous trail through the spectacular scenery of the Potomac River valley. The C&O Canal Towpath was an engineering feat that, unfortunately for investors, was largely outdone by the competing railroad that parallels the towpath in many places. Hundreds of original features, including locks, lock houses, aqueducts, and other canal structures, are reminders of the canal’s role as a transportation system during the Canal Era, which peaked in the mid-19th century. Both trails are part of the Capital Trails Coalition-a Rails-to-Trails Conservancy TrailNation project that aims to develop an 800-mile trail network connecting the greater Washington, D.C., metropolitan region. For its first few miles, the pathway also parallels the paved Capital Crescent Trail, which forms an arc around D.C.’s western and northern boundaries. Following the Potomac River, the C&O Canal Towpath traverses the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park for 184.5 miles between Georgetown in Washington, D.C., and Cumberland, Maryland.
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