Annapolis Rock & Black Rock Cliff Trailhead — Attraction in Boonsboro

Beautiful views, small parking lot, but weekday was easy access. This is a moderately difficult trail. Lots of uphill steps. A walking stick is good to have. Pack water and snacks. Wild animals such as bear are possible. Trail is 2.2 miles to the rock one way. Took a 50 year old who doesn't regularly exercise 2 hours to get to the rock/view. Definitely was more than I should have done. If you don't regularly hike, try some smaller hikes first. From the parking lot there's access to the Washington monument trail that's listed as difficult and 3 miles one way. There's a spring located just beyond the rock; a short walk down from rock on the same path. This trail is off the Appalachian trail/AT and marked with blue blazes. The AT trail is marked with white blazes. Trail is popular. Trail feels just as difficult coming downhill. Calves worked out going uphill, knees and feet downhill. There are a couple of bathrooms along the trail that contained an outhouse style toilet with toilet paper and wood chips to place on top. Camping area that I believe is first come first served. No fires allowed there. The black rock overlook is about 1.4 miles from the Annapolis rock according to signs and is listed as difficult I believe, but definitely...

Moving at a fast pace, I was able to complete the trail in about 45 minutes to an hour comfortably in sneakers. I was surprised that I had phone service on almost the entire trail and even at the Annapolis Rocks. There weren't very many people on a Friday afternoon, but everyone I passed was so nice. One complaint is that the sign to get to Annapolis Rocks wasn't 100% clear to me. You have to turn left at the fork. This caused me to walk in the wrong direction for about 10 minutes. No big deal. Also, I wish there were more signs along the way saying how much further you have to go. Overall, the view is spectacular both on the trail up and at the rocks. I also used the bathroom and it was pretty clean considering it didn't have indoor plumbing. Also, people were rock climbing, which I thought was cool. Take water and snacks if you go.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time reading, thinking, and taking pictures...

The views from the top are amazing but this gem has become overrun with visitors to it's detriment. Please arrive early if you plan to undertake this hike. Although the parking lot is massive it is full by 9am on weekends. Park police aggressively ticket anyone double parked, on the grass on on the shoulder of the road. Annapolis rocks is accessed via the Appalachian Trail most commonly from the I-70/MD-40 trailhead. The trail goes up the ridge and many will need to take a break halfway up the climb, for the casual hiker it is a challenge. It is often busy at Annapolis rocks so much so that you may choose to pass it by on the way to black rocks which has much less litter and is not ussually crowded. My favorite way to visit is to stay the night at the Backcountry campground. This allows you to experience sunset and see the rocks when it isn't busy and make your exit in the morning before the...