State Parks and National Parks

Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historic Park

The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal park stretches 184.5 miles from Cumberland, Md., to the Georgetown section of Washington D.C.

Hand-hewn with picks and shovels in the early 19th century, the canal provided a trade route for boats that transported coal, grain and lumber.

Today, the canal's level and unpaved towpath is popular among cyclists, hikers and horseback riders. The surrounding countryside offers campgrounds, historic sites and wildlife.

The Potomac River meanders nearby, offering hiking trails and crashing white water at Great Falls, located 14 miles from Washington. The river is popular with canoeists and kayakers.

The Georgetown and the Charles F. Mercer mule-drawn canal boats offer passengers hour-long rides on restored sections of the waterway in Georgetown and Great Falls, Md. from April through October. The boats are wheelchair accessible.

Much of the park's 184.5-mile towpath and the Olmsted Island trail to the Great Falls of the Potomac are wheelchair accessible.

Visitor centers are located at Georgetown, Great Falls, Williamsport, Hancock, Brunswick and Cumberland. A park fee is charged at the Great Falls entrance only.

Photo credits in order: Photo by M. Woodbridge Williams, courtesy of National Park Service. Photo by Elsa Nessler, courtesy of National Park Service. Photo by M. Woodbridge Williams, courtesy of National Park Service.