Yesterday, we decided to head up to Thurmont, MD to check out the trails on Catoctin Mountain. Mike went to school nearby at Mount St. Mary's University and he wanted to go back to the area to check out the hiking. We had decided to hike the 8.5 loop that hits all of the highlights within in the national park.
As we got closer and closer to Thurmont we noticed there was snow on the ground and cars. We were supposed to get some snow flurries on Friday and I believe it did flurry for a little while in the afternoon but down in DC it didn't amount to anything. Evidently, this was not the case further north!
We parked at the Catoctin Mountain Visitors Center and grabbed a map from inside. The Visitors Center was a surprisingly nice building, with some exhibits, restrooms, maps and a wonderful fireplace complete with roaring fire. After talking to the park ranger, we decided to hike the loop counter-clockwise and hit the more strenuous uphills first. I started the GPS and we headed off for the trails just after noon.
The first section of the loop is on Cunningham Falls Nature Trail (1.2 miles). We were quickly emersed in
the forest, crunching snow and dead leaves under our feet, following the footprints of earlier hikers. Without blazes or other trail postings, these footprints were the our only guide along the trail. One of the things that struck me as we first started our hike was how different the mountain trails were compared to the trails along the Potomac River we hiked last weekend. The Billy Goat Trails were marked by the bright yellows and greens of leaves still clinging to the trees, and autumn. As we hiked Catoctin Mountain very few leaves were still hanging on to the branches and the few that were, were brown and appeared frail and brittle, as if they were using all their strength to avoid falling to the bright white snow below. The differences were visually striking.The Cunningham Falls Nature Trail took us over MD 77 into Cunningham Falls Park (.4 miles) and lead us to Maryland's largest cascading waterfall. Honestly, the falls seemed a little underwhelming - really, that is the state's largest cascading waterfall, OK. Perhaps it is more impressive at another time aIt was a nice little waterfall and was obviously the main attraction in this area. We saw several hiking groups and families headed to the waterfall.
Afterwards, we backtracked to the state park and headed up Hog Rock Nature Trail toward Hog Rock Vista (1 mile). This section of the trail was much steeper than the previous trail but it fun. I love hiking hills and this section of the trail proved to be a surprising challenge. It was a deceptively long ascent and got mylegs, lungs and heart pumping. The crunch of the snow as we huffed and puffed our way to the level trail at the top was a wonderfully physical experience. And the views at the top, were worth the effort.
After stopping for a few minutes to survey rtThurmont off in the distance (and
to catch our breath), we continued on Hog Rock Nature Trail toward Blue Ridge Summit Nature Trail crossing the Hog Rock Parking area (.7 miles). This section of the trail was more rolling than the previous two trails with short ups and downs. We quickly made it to Blue Ridge Summit Vista and has similar views on the other side of the mountain; however, we didn't linger at this spot.Being unprepared for the amount of snow on the trails, our shoes were starting
to get a little wet and we made the decision to cut our hike short and head back toward the Visitors Center, just over a mile and a half away. The trail was flatter for approximately a half mile and Mike took off on a run. Naturely, I had to give chase. This was my first time, however brief it happened to be, running on snow-covered trails and it was marvelous. The thrilling crunch of the snow underfoot combined with the heightened awareness of the terrain (rocks and leaves and roots), as I leapt over rocks and avoided slippery patches was a good deal of fun. I couldn't help but smile as I ran down the trail. It didn't last long but it was a highlight of the hike for me.As we got closer to the end of the trail, the downhill section began and it was more or less downhill for the rest of the hike. Although my
shoes were wet and my toes were just starting to feel the cold, I was a little sad to see the hike come to an end. We ended up hiking just under 6 miles (5 of actual trail and about another mile of backtracking and meandering) in roughly 2.5 hours. I can't wait to go back to the mountain and see what the other trails have in store for us.We finished off our Saturday adventure with a quick swing through the Mount St. Mary's campus and then headed north toward Gettysburg for some lunch. I mentioned to Mike, "I love that you love to hike" and I do because these experiences are so much more rewarding when they are shared. I am looking forward to our next hike. Today? Maybe. Next weekend? Definitely!
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