Maryland Heights — Attraction in Harpers Ferry

5 star review just for the view alone! Its not too long of a hike to do the full loop, I want to say its only around 5 miles or so, but it is pretty steep. Make sure you have solid footwear and a good amount of water; a couple snacks wouldn't hurt either.

The views that look over Harpers Ferry are amazing. If you are anywhere near this area I would highly recommend at least hiking the first bit to get a glimpse at the views. If you have the time/are looking for a decent half day hike, do the whole loop. Not only will you get the great views of Harpers Ferry, but on the other end you will get some great views of Maryland and the Potomac River. And then of course if you are a history buff, there is all the history that goes along with the location with signs posted along the trail.

There is limited parking at the base of the trail on the side of the road -- maybe enough for a dozen or so cars packed in pretty well. They technically want you to pay to park there, but it is on the honor system and there is a box at the trail head to drop money in to. If there is no parking at the trail head, you can pay to park at the main National Park location/parking lot in Harpers Ferry. I want to say it is $10 for the day. Then from there you can walk to the trail head. There is a wide mostly flat gravel path to the trail head and you will need to cross a bridge and a couple of roads but its...

The hike certainly is challenging if you don't pace yourself. Despite the time of day and year I went it still had plenty of people also trekking up and down the trail. Follow the path and you'll get to the scenic overlook that waits at the end. It's a great view. I can only imagine how it would look in the fall.

For those hiking up with pets, two things worth mentioning:

Once the trail opens up to the overlook be sure your dog is able to listen to your commands as it is a cliff and any pulling and tugging may cause you to lose balance...not necessarily to fall to your end but because it's no longer a path but rather stones and rocks on a hill you can easily lose your balance.

I'm not sure if it's the locals or those visiting but the majority of dog owners there have POORLY TRAINED dogs. 90 percent of the dogs there start aggressively barking and lunging as soon as they see each other or when they saw my dog and I walking up. Didn't matter what breed. There were huskies, black labs, australian shepherds, dobbermans. All which are wonderful breeds that are obedient when trained well, but it was clear all these owners had no control over their dogs... so be relatively cautious if you take your dog on the hike...

Oh, if you love hiking and want to get loss in nature don't forget this location! Nice and long trail with beautiful natural view. See picture below what I captured in my last visit. River view, railway crossing, clean and nice weather will take your all attraction. If you ready for hiking be sure you have comfortable shoes and enough water with you. I strongly recommend you wear full safely shoe because you must careful in slippery rock in hiking route while walking. You can find Information at way of hiking, but you must follow sign of your way. Problems: Parking is main problems at this location. Please be sure you can park car nearly location before you visit because there is not on side parking at the main location. If you found parking in Harper's Ferry, there is not much longer way you have to travel to get trail but there only 5-6 car parking area available near Harper's Ferry if you find so there is only three-and-a-half-mile hike one way for shorter route. (make sure you follow RED sign- the red trail, otherwise there is another longer loop for Blue sign- the blue trail, if you want for longer) The views from the top of Harper's Ferry...