to ensure the maps, photographs, and trail descriptions are as accurate as possible:
Cindy Dickerson
Eli Griffen
Kathryn Harris
Jennifer Kaleba
Amy Kapp
Timothy Rosner
Laura Stark
Introduction
Of the more than 1,900 rail-trails across the United States, 147 thread through the Mid-Atlantic region of Delaware; Maryland; Virginia; Washington, D.C.; and West Virginia. These routes relate a two-part story: The first speaks to the early years of railroading, while the second showcases efforts by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, other groups, and their supporters to resurrect these unused railroad corridors as public-use trails. Rail-Trails: Mid-Atlantic highlights 57 of the region’s diverse trails, each serving as a window into the communities the railroad once served. Some trails delve into the particular history of an area, such as Virginia’s Hanging Rock Battlefield Trail, which tells of Civil War battles and the importance of the railroad to the troops. Other trails, such as Maryland’s Savage Mill Trail, tell a more docile tale. At its trailhead stands a renovated 1822 textile mill.
In this updated edition, we’ve also included some of our favorite multiuse trails. These trails were not previously railroad corridors, but many still have the look and feel of the rail-trails that you’ve come to love. The Mount Vernon Trail in Northern Virginia is a great example of a multiuse trail full of scenic, cultural, and historical charm that is a wonderful corridor to walk, run, skate, or bike.
With the most trails of the region, West Virginia also boasts some of the most rural and unique rail-trails. Not always the flat and even pathways you might expect from rail-trails, West Virginia’s trails offer a variety of backwoods treks, such as the Limerock and Green Mountain Trails of the Monongahela National Forest. Complementing these rustic pathways are the well-groomed yet still wild and wonderful Mountain State trails, such as the gorgeous and popular 77-mile Greenbrier River Trail or Deckers Creek Trail in Morgantown, which is part of the Mon River Rail-Trail System.
Next door, Virginia is also a keeper of rail-trail gems. No guide to the area would be complete without featuring the state’s southern Virginia Creeper National Recreation Trail, which was inducted into the Rail-Trail Hall of Fame in 2014. In the northern part of the state, right outside the bustle of Washington, D.C., the Washington & Old Dominion Regional Park takes riders out of the city and into rolling farmland and horse country.
Washington, D.C., itself is home to a portion of the Capital Crescent Trail, which begins in suburban Maryland before heading to the historical and trendy Georgetown neighborhood. And in the state best known for its crabs and waterways, Maryland’s Cross Island Trail is a coastal sojourn. The only closer you could get would be to meander on Delaware’s Junction & Breakwater Trail, which sits in the heart of the state’s recreational beach area.
No matter which route in Rail-Trails: Mid-Atlantic you decide to try, you’ll be touching on the heart of the community that helped build it and the history that first brought the rails to the region.
What Is a Rail-Trail?
Rail-trails are multiuse public paths built along former railroad corridors. Most often flat or following a gentle grade, they are suited to walking, running, cycling, mountain biking, in-line skating, cross-country skiing, horseback riding, and wheelchair use. Since the 1960s, Americans have created more than 22,000 miles of rail-trails throughout the country.
These extremely popular recreation and transportation corridors traverse urban, suburban, and rural landscapes. Many preserve historic landmarks, while others serve as wildlife conservation corridors, linking isolated parks and establishing greenways in developed areas. Rail-trails also stimulate local economies by boosting tourism and promoting trailside businesses.
What Is a Rail-with-Trail?
A rail-with-trail is a public path that parallels a still-active rail line. Some run adjacent to high-speed, scheduled trains, often linking public transportation stations, while others follow tourist routes and slow-moving excursion trains. Many share an easement, separated from the rails by extensive fencing. More than 240 rails-with-trails currently exist in the United States.
How to Use This Book
Rail-Trails: Mid-Atlantic provides the information you’ll need to plan a rewarding trail trek. With words to inspire you and maps to chart your path, it makes choosing the best route a breeze. Following are some of the highlights.
Maps
You’ll find three levels of maps in this book: an overall regional map, state locator maps, and detailed trail maps.
The Mid-Atlantic region includes Delaware; Maryland; Virginia; Washington, D.C.; and West Virginia. Also included in this guide are two trails that run predominantly through Pennsylvania but serve as important and prominent connections to Maryland and West Virginia. Each chapter details a particular state’s network of trails, marked on locator maps in the chapter introduction. Use these maps to find the trails nearest to you, or select several neighboring trails and plan a weekend hiking or biking excursion. Once you find a trail on a state locator map, simply flip to the corresponding page number for a full description. Accompanying trail maps mark each route’s access roads, trailheads, parking areas, restrooms, and other defining features.
Key to Map Icons
Trail Descriptions
Trails are listed in alphabetical order within each chapter. Each description leads off with a set of summary information, including trail endpoints and mileage, a roughness index, the trail surface, and possible uses.
The map and summary information list the trail endpoints (either a city, street, or more specific location), with suggested points from which to start and finish. Additional access points are marked on the maps and mentioned in the trail descriptions. The maps and descriptions also highlight available amenities, including parking and restrooms, as well as such area attractions as shops, services, museums, parks, and stadiums. Trail length is listed in miles.
Each trail bears a roughness index rating from 1 to 3. A rating of 1 indicates a smooth, level surface that is accessible to users of all ages and abilities. A 2 rating means the surface may be loose and/or uneven and could pose a problem for road bikes and wheelchairs. A 3 rating suggests a rough surface that is only recommended for mountain bikers and hikers. Surfaces can range from asphalt or concrete to ballast, cinder, crushed stone, gravel, grass, dirt, and/or sand. Where relevant, trail descriptions address alternating surface conditions.
All trails are open to pedestrians, and most allow bicycles,
