A C&O Canal Gallery

If I ever move away from the Mid-Atlantic region, the C&O Canal National Historical Park is one of the things I’ll miss most. It extends for 184.5 miles along the Potomac River from Georgetown in Washington, D.C., to Cumberland in western Maryland. A wonderful place to walk or bike, the C&O Canal is a local and national treasure.

The scenery along the canal towpath is amazingly diverse. Intriguing historic structures and ruins await your discovery all along it. You never know what wildlife you might run across—snapping turtle, egret, beaver, otter, fox, fawn. The mood of the canal changes by the hour, day, and season.

My first bike trip on the canal in 2004.

I’ve walked and biked sections of the canal countless times and biked its entire length twice. My first trip in 2004, a three-day solo ride from Cumberland to Georgetown, was my first bicycle camping trip. My second in 2008 was an Adventure Cycling tour. Our group rode in the opposite direction. In Cumberland, we switched to the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) trail and continued on to the outskirts of Pittsburgh, another 150 miles away.

But it’s the day-to-day walks along different stretches of the canal that have brought me the most pleasure. I can see and experience much more at a walking pace than even at a slow cruising speed on a bike.

These days I’m not doing much traveling to write about, so I thought I’d sort through the hundreds of images I’ve taken along the canal over the years and assemble some of them into a photo gallery. Here it is.

Along the Towpath

Completed in the 1830s, Great Falls Tavern once served as a combined lockhouse, tavern, and hotel. It now houses a visitor center and park staff offices. With its scenic falls and rapids and its rewatered (when not under repair) section of the canal, Great Falls is the most popular area of the park.

Redbuds in bloom beside Lock 19 near Great Falls Tavern.

The towpath alongside the Potomac gorge near Great Falls.

The view from Lock 27 (Mile 41.5) just downstream from Monocacy Aqueduct. You can see the gray gravel of the newly resurfaced towpath. The ongoing project so far has resulted in about 40 miles of smooth riding along the notoriously bumpy towpath.

Swains Lock, a nice spot to relax.

Spring blossoms downstream from Violets Lock.

Lock 8 in 2014, when this section of the the canal was still watered. It has been drained for many years for repair work.

A replica of a canal boat near Great Falls. The popular boat rides have been discontinued while the canal is drained for repairs.

Winter reflections at one of the wide stretches in the canal upstream from Carderock.

The rebuilt section of towpath (Mile 86.5 to 88) alongside Big Slackwater, where canal boats were towed through the river.

A winter day on the towpath, upstream from Carderock.

Structures

The seven-arch Monocacy Aqueduct is the longest of the 11 aqueducts on the canal. It was restored to its original appearance in 2004-05 as part of the Save America’s Treasures program.

This lift bridge in Williamsport allowed railroad tracks crossing the canal to be raised as needed so a canal boat could pass beneath. It now serves as a pedestrian bridge.

In 2019 the National Park Service finished replacing the deteriorated wooden gates on locks 17, 18, and 19 near Great Falls with new ones that replicate the originals.

The Catoctin Creek Aqueduct (Mile 51.5) collapsed in 1973 but has now been rebuilt and restored. A railroad viaduct can be seen just beyond it.

One of the many ruins along the canal, this one a lockhouse at Lock 51 (Mile 122.7) near Hancock.

This guard gate at Lock 5 is used to divert water from the Potomac into the canal and control the water level in it from Mile 5 to Georgetown.

Current and original canal mile markers stand side by side here. The stone marker reads, “9 MILES TO W.C.” (Washington City). Only three other sandstone mile markers are known to be standing, at miles 7, 17, and 22.

The three-arch Conococheague Aqueduct in Williamsport was restored in 2019. It is the only rewatered aqueduct on the canal and the second longest at 210 feet.

Critters

On several visits in the fall of 2017, I spotted this beaver (and a second smaller one) nesting on the berm-side bank (the side across the canal from the towpath), just downstream from Mile 14 near Great Falls.

A small eastern box turtle found on the towpath.

A small snapping turtle found on the towpath.

This beaver, spotted near Mile 19 downstream from Pennyfield Lock, walked right across the towpath in front of Sue.

This tuliptree silkmoth (also called a giant silkmoth), which I spotted on a trail near Great Falls, was at least 5 inches across.

We followed this racoon for quite a distance as it walked down the towpath and then through the woods near Swains Lock.

A muskrat in the canal between locks 15 and 16, downstream from Great Falls.

A birder pointed out this barred owl nesting in the hollow of a dead tree upstream from Carderock in February 2013. We saw it several times after that, and then again the following winter. Unfortunately, the tree later collapsed.

The Floods

Floodwaters overwhelm Lock 5 in January 1996, as the Potomac rose to its 5th-highest level ever recorded. The flood resulted from the rapid melting of a deep accumulation of snow that began with the region’s 4th-heaviest snowfall on record.

The year 2018 was the region’s rainiest on record. Two major late-spring floods surged through the Potomac valley. I took this photo of Great Falls during the first flood in late May from the Olmstead Island overlook.

The second flood in early June was even higher. Olmstead Island was closed, so I took this photo of Great Falls from the Virginia side of the river. Only one small ridge of rock in the river remains visible. The falls themselves have been overwhelmed by the raging flow.

Taken during the second flood on June 5, 2018, from the C&O Canal towpath just downstream from Great Falls Tavern. Compare this to the following two photos taken in the same place at other times. Note the large tree to the left, half-submerged in water, and the rocks around it.

The same spot on the river two days later as the floodwaters were receding.

Taken in July 2020 when the river was at a typically low level. Note the tree to left, which was half-submerged by the June 2018 flood, when the river level was at least 20 feet higher.

What the river more typically looks like: Great Falls from Olmstead Island in July 2020.

Widewater

Downstream from Great Falls, canal builders took advantage of the natural terrain and routed the canal through an old river channel now known as Widewater. It is one of the most beautiful stretches of the C&O Canal.

Widewater from Berma Road, a wide trail that lies atop the Washington Aqueduct on the opposite side of the waters from the canal. The scenic 3-mile loop hike via the towpath and road is one my favorites.

Widewater in winter. Ice skating is not allowed here. Although the canal elsewhere is shallow, Widewater in places is 90 to 100 feet deep.

Widewater in winter.

Morning fog on Widewater during a fall bike trip on the canal.

Widewater in December from Berma Road. The towpath is clearly visible on the opposite side.

David Romanowski, 2020