All last summer I had been promising Stormy that I would take her hiking, just her. My plan was to do the Billy Goat Trail, section A, because the trail has a ton of rock scrambling, and I knew Stormy would love it! Just before school began, my plan finally came to fruition. I knew hiking on a weekend was risky due to the increased amount of people in the park, plus the weather had been hot then! I woke Stormy up very early, and we were out of the house by 7am. The park is located at 11710 MacArthur Blvd. in Potomac, MD. Once you make the turn into the park, you follow the looping, downward road to the parking lot, and the admission booth. It is $20 per vehicle to enter. Stormy was bouncing with excitement by the time we got out of the car. She wanted to see everything!
We walked past the restrooms, and then past Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center. The Center wasn’t open yet, and I told Stormy it would be a great place to stop at after our hike. Near the Center, placards were placed in a few spots recommending hikers that planned to do the Billy Goat Trail not to do the hike between 10am and 4pm due to the heat. Those that were doing the hike needed to ensure they had plenty of water on hand. We crossed a bridge over the canal, and set off down the towpath to the trailhead. Stormy was fascinated with the canal, and stopped to look at the different locks as we passed by. Just before we reached the trailhead, we spotted a Great Blue Heron standing in the reeds on the far side of the canal.
It has been over ten years since I last hiked the Billy Goat Trail. In fact, the last time I hiked it, I wasn’t wearing a Garmin watch, and I didn’t know how many miles the trail was. According to signage at the trailhead, the trail is 1.75 miles long, marked by blue trail blazes, and the trail is one way only, going downstream. The northern access point for the trail is the official entrance, while the southern access point is exit only. One-way travel wasn’t the norm last time I’d hiked, but having done the trail both ways, going from north to south is the better way to go. The one-way travel prevents bottlenecks at narrow areas of the trail, like the Traverse, which is easier to go up than down, plus it protects natural habitats. Stormy and I set off following the blue blazes, which were marked on trees as well as rocks.
Stormy loved the trail, scrambling up and down rocks, enjoying the gorgeous views of the Potomac. When we reached Marker 1, we saw the sign for difficult trail ahead. I had told Stormy there would be a lot of scrambling, and boy did we scramble! This section of trail required us to jump across open areas, walk across open rock faces, and climb up a 50 foot traverse. We took our time winding through the rocky maze, picking our trail carefully, watching our footing. Stormy was amazing! She watched me, and then did her own thing, sure as a billy goat. Stormy got very nervous when we reached the Traverse, but we were the only ones at this section of trail so she was able to take her time climbing up.
Shortly after we conquered the Traverse, we reached Marker 2, and had a decision to make. There was an exit trail we could take at this point that would link us back up with the towpath. I told Stormy we could stop if she wanted to, but she wasn’t ready to stop. We hiked onward, and took a breather on Purplehorse Beach to hunt for small shells for a bit. This area of Bear Island was a tough one to hike through because the rocks were very smooth and slippery with sand everywhere. The temps were rising, too, and we both had bright red faces. On one of our water breaks, a couple, who took a break at the same time as us, gave Stormy a pack of gummies. She loved that! I’d packed snacks, but she wasn’t interested in those. By the time we’d passed the third marker on the island, I could see Stormy was really slowing down. We probably should have taken the exit option before the beach, but I’d let Stormy make the decision. Slowly, we hiked the last section of trail, before reaching the towpath once again.
Stormy was thrilled to be back on the flatter ground of the towpath. She’d loved the scrambling, but her toes were sore, her feet were sore, she was tired, and ready to stop hiking. We both needed to use the restroom at this point, but our only options were to hike a mile plus back up the towpath to the restrooms near our car, or hike downstream on the towpath a half mile to use the facilities at the parking area near Old Angler’s Inn. We decided to go south. The parking lot at Old Angler’s Inn was hopping! We used the facilities, and sat down for a bit to rest our weary feet. I tried to fill our bottles up at the water fountains here, but I needed something smaller to get water into our Nalgene bottles. They need a water filling station instead of small water fountains. After snacking and a rest, we headed back to the towpath, and headed upstream.
It was a long hike back to the Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center. Stormy was beyond done, and stopped at every bench to just rest for a second or two. I let her use my sunglasses for a bit to see the schools of fish in the canal next to us. We also saw many turtles out sunning themselves. There were many people walking their dogs along the towpath, and Stormy often asked if the dogs were friendly and if she could pet them. We met a lot of nice people and their pets on our walk. As this was Great Falls, I did convince Stormy to do one quick side trip over to see the Great Falls themselves. Sadly, the water level was very low, and the falls were greatly reduced. Still, it is a gorgeous area, and we took a lot of pictures.
When we eventually reached Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center, Stormy couldn’t wait to go inside! We stopped to see one of the outlying exhibits on the mules who live and work on the canal today for the Park Service, before going into the main exhibit space. As luck would have it, another girl, Stormy’s age, was requesting a junior ranger book from the ranger when we entered. Stormy’s eyes lit up! She has 2 junior ranger badges so far, and wanted a third. Stormy ended up working with the other child, and the two girls happily filled out the booklets together learning about the history of the C&O Canal. Both Stormy and the other girl were able to finish their booklets, and were sworn in as junior rangers of the C&O Canal. Stormy was glowing as she held her badge.
Badge in hand, Stormy and I headed for the car. We were both exhausted, and in desperate need of a hot shower and lunch. Stormy relished all of the attention I gave her, and thoroughly enjoyed her morning out. I asked her if she’d ever do that trail again, and she said maybe, but not for a few years. We both hiked close to 7 miles, so I can see why she’d be reluctant to do it again anytime soon. I wouldn’t do the Billy Goat Trail with kids under the age of 10, but that is my own decision based on the difficulty of the trail. I am planning to search out easier hikes I can take her on on fall weekends. Maybe we will even visit a different area of the C&O Canal. The scenery along the canal is gorgeous, especially near Great Falls. If you have never been here, I recommend it! Happy trails!
https://www.nps.gov/choh/planyourvisit/greatfallstavernvisitorcenter.htm
