The Rosemont Loop in Washington, DC’s Rock Creek Park comes from the annals of hiking obscura: the hike rarely appears on maps or even on the Internet. Leaving no stone unturned, however, those in search of complete mastery of Rock Creek Park can try this leafy and pleasant walk, wedged in a small strip of …
From the northern entrance of Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park, it takes more than 10 miles to clear Dickey Ridge and reach the “real” mountains of the Blue Ridge by car. 2,909-foot Compton Peak, situated 10.4 miles up Skyline Drive, is neither the park’s tallest promontory nor the prettiest, but it is the first of the …
Continue reading Appalachian Trail to Compton Peak (Shenandoah National Park, VA)
Like most marshy environments, the defining feature of the Mason Neck peninsula is, of course, the water that surrounds it. Despite being well upstream of the ocean, the Potomac River at Mason Neck still ebbs and flows with the Atlantic tides, and the inlets of Belmont Bay and Kane’s Creek give life to freshwater wetlands …
The Meadow View Trail in northern Virginia’s Mason Neck State Park features an excessive string of bridges to nowhere, monotonous woods, and a less-than-exciting finale: an overgrown patch of tall grasses that supposedly passes as a “meadow.” That said, it is the park’s newest trail and I suppose may be of interest to bird watchers …
Continue reading Dogue Trail & Meadow View Trail (Mason Neck State Park, VA)
Today, Kane’s Creek is a quiet and peaceful estuary in Virginia’s Fairfax County that provides a habitat for dozens of species of birds, including bald eagles, ospreys, and great blue herons. Going back in time to 1964, however, and Kane’s Creek was under threat: a pair of local landowners had just proposed turning the estuary—as …
Continue reading Kane’s Creek Trail & Eagle Spur Trail (Mason Neck State Park, VA)
The Deer Creek Trail is, without a doubt, not the best trail in Maryland. It’s probably not even the best in Susquehanna State Park. But there is at least something soothing about the surroundings on this largely wooded loop hike, situated just off the Susquehanna River in northeast Maryland. Here lofty trees, many devoid of …
Continue reading Deer Creek Trail (Susquehanna State Park, MD)
The dilapidated storefronts and crumbling edifices of downtown Paterson, New Jersey tell the story of a town battered by the winds of change. Once a booming hub for manufacturing—in fact, it was the first planned industrial city in the US—Paterson has never quite rebounded from a cascade of factory closures in the latter half of …
Continue reading Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park, NJ
Monarch Pass, situated between Gunnison and Poncha Springs along Colorado’s Route 50, crosses the Continental Divide at 11,312 feet, offering spectacular vistas of central Colorado’s Sawatch Range, which boasts many of the state’s highest peaks. Including the Monarch Mountain ski area, the area around the pass is a launching-off point for skiers, hikers, and bikers, …
The High Bridge Trail is a more strenuous alternative to the lower Box Canyon Falls Trail, climbing 200 feet to a suspension bridge that spans Box Canyon and offers views northeast to Ouray, Colorado. On sunny summer days and weekends, it’s also likely to be jam-packed with visitors, making an early morning or late afternoon …
Billed as “Ouray’s slot canyon,” Box Canyon Waterfall and Park is one of the most popular destinations in the area. Situated just outside southwest Colorado’s “Switzerland of America,” Box Canyon Falls is concealed in a dark, narrow gorge accessed only by a steel-reinforced walkway and staircase. Visit in spring, or after heavy rain, to see …
Continue reading Box Canyon Falls Trail (Box Canyon Park, CO)
Live and Let Hike 