This National Park Will Let You Spend the Night in a 200-Year-Old Lockhouse

It could have been just another motorway, a clogged asphalt vein pumping the Mid-Atlantic with hazy car exhaust. But the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal was destined for a more poetic legacy, one that not even land surveyor George Washington could have predicted when he first dreamed of a water-powered commerce channel beside the Potomac River in the 1770s.

Today, visitors hiking or biking the canal’s 184.5-mile towpath trail will observe graceful blue herons soaring overhead, or hear the delicate plunk of basking turtles returning to water from their logs. Bustling commercial activity would have accompanied these sights during the 1870s. More than 2,000 mules each year pulled wooden boats filled with agricultural goods and raw materials to distribute. Thirty-foot steam-powered leisure boats would have also joined the mix, packed with vacationers in corseted gowns and ribbon-trimmed hats.

History of the C&O Canal National Historical Park

The canal’s earliest planners expected the project would run along the Potomac River from its Chesapeake Bay mouth to the Ohio River headwaters in Pittsburgh. But it had some competition: the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, which had broken ground on the same day in 1828, soon outpaced the canal in commercial speed and scale.

The canal made it as far as Cumberland, Maryland. Business fizzled by 1950, and the Bureau of Public Roads proposed that the abandoned waterway be modernized into a 24-foot-wide parkway.

Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas foiled that plan. A passionate outdoorsman, he blocked highway construction with a public awareness campaign. He challenged pro-highway Washington Post editors to hike with him and see what a motorist thoroughfare would destroy. “We would go with packs on our backs and walk the 185 miles to Cumberland,” he wrote in his invitation, trusting his companions would soon appreciate the beauty the public had enjoyed from the canal's access.

It took another 17 years and four legislative attempts for Congress to recognize the C&O Canal towpath as a National Historical Park. Today, the 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage bike trail picks up where the towpath ends, so it is finally possible to travel from D.C.’s Georgetown neighborhood to the Ohio River as originally envisioned.

Why you should go

As a National Historical Park, the C&O Canal towpath stretches from Georgetown’s densely populated grid through suburbs and into Maryland’s farm country before reaching Appalachia.

“This is a bucket list experience for people,” says Mandela Echefu, co-founder of bike outfitter Wheelzup Adventures. Echefu’s shop is located directly along the towpath in Cumberland. He says visitors appear from across the world to pedal through the park’s 19,586 acres.

From south to north, the towpath rises up from sea level, climbing about 605 feet from Washington, D.C. to the Allegheny Mountains. Passing through distinct geologic zones reveals layers of topographical features and wildlife habitats, the region is home to more than 1,200 plant species, white-tailed deer, Eastern snapping turtles, and bald eagles.

Experiencing the historic Canal Towns of the C&O Canal

Ten official Canal Towns in Maryland and West Virginia punctuate the towpath. At the eastern edge, Poolesville (mile marker 30.9) is a gateway to rolling green fields and horse farms. It’s worth biking the extra miles for a mouthwatering lunch at Locals Farm Market.

Point of Rocks (mile marker 48.2) is famous for peregrine falcon sightings and a highly photographed Victorian-era train station tucked against the Catoctin Ridge.

Brunswick (mile marker 55.0) is home to the Brunswick Heritage Museum, which has an impressive model railroad floor where passionate volunteers recount generational stories. Visit Railroad View Park and behold a two-story observation deck from the early 20th century where B&O workers once overlooked the train yard. Don’t miss live music at Beans in the Belfry.

Veering over into West Virginia, cross the visually dramatic skybridge into Harpers Ferry and Bolivar (mile markers 60.7 and 61.7), where the Potomac collides with the Shenandoah against steep hillsides. Here was the site of abolitionist John Brown’s famous 1859 revolt.

Shepherdstown (mile marker 72.8) is a welcoming college town with the state’s oldest main street. Enjoy its whimsical cafes, an impressive independent bookstore, and weekly old-time music circles at the 100-year-old O’Hurley’s General Store. On your way, look for the cherry pie arrow sign pointing towards Alma Bea, the Appalachian bistro led by Chef Mary Ellen Diaz, a James Beard-nominated contender for the Southeast's best chef.

Back in Maryland, visit Sharpsburg (mile marker 76.8) to contemplate the shadow of Antietam, one of the Civil War’s bloodiest battles.

(Want to try bike-camping? Here’s the easy way to do it.)

In Williamsport (mile marker 99.4), start at Cushwa Basin. Stand on the 1923 vertical lift bridge and spot every type of canal infrastructure: a lockhouse, a turning basin, an aqueduct and a warehouse.

Stop in Hancock (mile marker 124.1) to feel what it’s like in Maryland’s narrowest sliver, where both the Pennsylvania and West Virginia borders are less than two miles away.

Pop back over the West Virginia line to Paw Paw (mile marker 156.1), named after North America’s largest native edible fruit. Turn on your headlamp and walk your bicycle through the half-mile-long, nearly pitch-black Paw Paw Tunnel.

Finally, in Cumberland (mile marker 184.5), arrive at the canal’s western terminus, where the towpath meets the GAP Trail. Home to Washington's headquarters and longstanding bluegrass festival DelFest, Cumberland was once a prominent industry and transportation hub that underwent a $1.7 million renovation in 2025. Fresh businesses are beginning to populate Baltimore Street, including The Wills Hotel, a 20-room boutique stay.

Sleeping in a historic lockhouse

Every few miles, you’ll see them tucked along the towpath—rustic stone cottages brushed with antique white paint, sun-speckled on a semi-shaded lawn.

Built between 1830 and 1850, these are the historic lockhouses of the Canal Quarters Program, perhaps one of the most unusual overnight experiences in the Mid-Atlantic.

“Each of them is interpreted to evoke a different era in the canal's history,” says Lauren Riviello, president and CEO of the C&O Canal Trust.

For instance, Lockhouse 22, nicknamed “Pennyfield” after the family of lockkeepers who lived there, transports guests to the canal’s earliest days. Once President Grover Cleveland’s favorite fishing hideaway, the house is rustic in every sense, from fishing net decor to its absence of heating or indoor water. Battery-powered lanterns provide light, and period games like marbles and Jacob's Ladder offer entertainment.

“Swains Lock,” or Lockhouse 21, reflects a modern take on the 1920s, with full amenities and period-inspired furnishings, like a wooden checkerboard and a kitchen stove gussied up with an antique facade.

Lockhouse 6, aka “Brookmont,” is styled like the 1950s in honor of Justice Douglas, complete with a vintage-looking radio and a Martin guitar for singalongs under the stars.

Of the eight lockhouses currently available in the Canal Quarters program, three are fully rustic without amenities like heating and cooling or water. Another three have modern comforts like central HVAC systems, electricity, and indoor plumbing. Two—Lockhouse 49 and Lockhouse 8—have “half amenities,” which include an outdoor water pump, baseboard heating, and plug-in fans. Every house comes stocked with firewood and an outdoor fire pit with a picnic table.

Each house also has a volunteer “quartermaster" who checks in between guests. There’s no professional cleaner as with a hotel, but volunteers make sure all is in working order. Some add personal touches, like handwritten notes.

For all eight houses, bring your own linens or a sleeping bag. Pillows are provided.

Reservations open up to one year in advance through the C&O Canal Trust website. They are in high demand from spring through the end of the fall. “Sometimes you have the really hardy traveler who wants to do it in the winter,” says Riviello.

The park also offers 31 primitive campsites and several reservable campgrounds for RV and tent camping.

(This grand trail will one day connect Washington, D.C., to Washington State)

Getting to the towpath

Parts of the trail are accessible by public transit via MTA bus, the Amtrak Capitol Limited train from D.C., Pittsburgh, Cleveland, or Chicago, or the MARC commuter train. Check each line’s respective rules for stowing bicycles.

Private shuttles by local outfitters can offer better flexibility. Companies like Wheelzup Adventures and Shepherdstown Pedal and Paddle accept shuttle reservations between popular towns, transit stops, and airports.

Some hotels in popular trail-side towns provide bike storage and wash stations for overnight guests. Inquire when you book.

(Ride the rails, then the trails—these 8 stunning bike routes are reachable by train)

Is the C&O Canal trail accessible?

The towpath’s elevation change is gradual. Its moderate, shaded trail is paved in fine gravel and navigable by recumbent bikes. All five visitors centers are wheelchair accessible. Wheelchairs are allowed anywhere there’s foot traffic. Drive-in campsites at Antietam Creek and McCoys Ferry have one accessible site each.

The Olmsted Island Trail near Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center is one of the park’s most wheelchair-accessible pathways. A wooden boardwalk weaves through the Potomac River floodplain to a view of the park’s most jaw-dropping rapids.

Visitors can request free ASL interpretation and listening devices for ranger-led tours. Auto-propelled e-bikes (no throttles) are allowed on all 184.5 miles of the trail with a firm speed limit of 15 mph. Charging stations are not provided.