Hiking In MD: Gunpowder Falls (hereford area)

Ok, so we have tried to find this specific location 4 times now and last weekend, we FINALLY found this one hike.  It promised decent elevation gain, beautiful river views and just seclusion.  I will say, we only ran into one other couple on the northern trail but the south trail seemed a bit busier, as there were plenty of cars.      This location is up off of I-83 in NW Baltimore (we actually walked under 83), between Hereford, MD and Weisburg, MD.



Once you break away from the river and hike up hill, you notice that this is different than most of Maryland and other area's we've hiked on the east coast.  The trees are tall and the understory is just ferns and maybe other small shrubs but mostly ferns.  It had an old growth forest feel to it and we both commented how much like Eastern Oregon it was.  Below is a photo of the horse trail on the south trail.  I was very impressed by the trail, now when we went back downhill toward the river, it was overgrown but only Jim walked away with a tick.

The name gunpowder falls can be misleading, there is no falls here.... not in the traditional sense but does have some down stream rapids but nothing like a giant waterfall.  The area is the fall line between the coastal plain and Piedmont in Maryland and the entire park runs from Pretty Boy Reservoir down to the Bay.  Out of the parts we have been too, this was our favorite and we were looking forward to coming back and kayaking (though the water seemed shallow).


 

I was thrilled with all the mushrooms and fungi along the higher elevation trail and the flowers on the lower part. 




we are both looking forward to another hike this way, through the seasons!