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Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park

11710 MacArthur Blvd, Potomac, Maryland 20854 USA

Independent

“Preserving America's early transportation history”

Preserving America's early transportation history, the C&O Canal began as a dream of passage to Western wealth. Operating for nearly 100 years the canal was a lifeline for communities along the Potomac River as coal, lumber and agricultural products floated down the waterway to market. Today it endures as a pathway for discovering historical, natural and recreational treasures!

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Reviewed by
Nancy Sewell

1,228 Reviews
414 Helpful

October 21, 2016

The Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park (a.k.a. C&O Canal Towpath) follows the route of the Potomac River for 184.5 miles between Georgetown in Washington, D.C., and Cumberland, Maryland. 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.

The trail provides campgrounds (both private and public), picnic areas, portable toilets and lookout points along the way. You’ll also find amenities including cafes and restaurants, B&Bs and motels, bike shops, museums and retail shops, as well as enumerable historical sites. 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. You can even stay the night in one a handful of restored lock houses (visit the National Park Service website for more information).

Length: 184.5 miles
Trail end points: 29th St. at Rock Creek Parkway (Washington, DC) to W. Harrison St. nr. I-68 (Cumberland, MD)
Trail surfaces: Crushed Stone, Dirt, Gravel

Info: http://www.traillink.com/trail/chesapeake--ohio-canal-national-historical-park.aspx

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