A dozen new showers were installed at Assateague Island State Park, ready for use this summer.
As summer begins, there are new paths to follow, new places to explore, and old history to learn about in Maryland state parks and public lands.
Throughout this past fall, winter, and spring, hundreds of rangers, engineers, builders, historians, planners, and other professionals with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources have worked to bring a new state park online, to forge new trails, to restore historic structures, and to make safer harbors for the public. Here are some highlights of this ever-growing list.
The Maryland Park Service has two adventure challenges running this year, both with prizes available for completion – Miles for Maryland, a challenge to hike 250 miles in state parks in 2026, and America in Miniature, a photo scavenger hunt across state parks to honor the semi-quincentennial of America. The Park Service encourages anyone up for meeting these challenges to purchase an Annual State Park and Trail Passport to enjoy a full year of Maryland’s outdoor adventures.
Day Use Reservations Expanded
Swallow Falls State Park. Photo by Anthony Burrows.
First, some need-to-know updates: after the successful launch of a day-use reservation and traffic flow control system at our busiest parks in 2025, the Maryland Park Service will expand day-use reservations this summer.
Reservations are needed at Swallow Falls State Park seven days a week from May 23 – Sept. 7.
Reservations are needed on the weekends and holidays at the following properties: Greenbrier, Point Lookout, North Point, Newtowne Neck State Parks and Sandy Point. Reservations are available seven days in advance.
Future public lands and features to be added to the system include: Elk Neck – Turkey Point Lighthouse, Gunpowder Falls – Hammerman Area, Rocks, and Rocky Gap state parks, as well as Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area (NRMA).
Park visitors can look for additional announcements in the coming year. To make your reservation, go online. Guests are encouraged to plan ahead, please use the Park Dashboard to see if your desired park is open, closed, or if there is anything you should be aware of, such as special events.
New Park Tells the Story of African-American Family Who Overcame Enslavement
Reenactors bring to life the former owners of the property that is now Freedman’s State Park at a ceremony celebrating its opening this May.
In May, DNR and the Maryland Park Service celebrated the dedication of Freedman’s State Park, a 1,000-acre park in Montgomery County. Freedman’s encompasses land once owned and farmed by Enoch George and Harriet Howard, and their descendants, who shaped the Civil Rights Movement in Maryland.
A map of Freedman’s State Park in Montgomery County.
The park’s name comes from the term “freedman,” an individual who was emancipated from enslavement. Freedman’s State Park was established in 2022 by the Maryland General Assembly and will be used to celebrate all Marylanders freed from slavery.
Restored buildings and new displays planned for the park will tell the story of the African-American family which overcame enslavement to become a prosperous and influential family in northern Montgomery County, Baltimore, and Canada. A cross-park trail is planned for the future.
Historic African-American Cemetery Added to Cunningham Falls
Earlier in the year, the Maryland Park Service accepted the donation of two acres of land, including a historic African-American cemetery, the final resting place of enslaved, skilled workers at the historic Catoctin Furnace. The cemetery and surrounding land is now a part of Cunningham Falls State Park.
Catoctin Furnace opened in 1776, and contributed iron to the revolutionary war effort and George Washington’s army. The remains of the furnace are already inside Cunningham Falls State Park, and the inclusion of the workers’ cemetery will enable Maryland Park Service to tell the site’s complete story.
A historic African-American cemetery is now part of Cunningham Falls State Park.
The Maryland Park Service acknowledges the work of the Catoctin Furnace Historical Society, which helped uncover, document, and preserve the cemetery’s history during their stewardship of the property.
The associated nonprofit Catoctin Furnace Friends Group Inc. is currently seeking funds on behalf of DNR and the Historical Society to develop a conservation and preservation management plan and conduct a ground-penetrating radar survey for a planned trail extension to the site.
Restoration of North Point Trolley Station Pavilion
In the foreground, fresh sidewalk connects the visitor center and historic fountain. Trolley Station Pavilion in the background.
The Historic Trolley Station Pavilion at North Point State Park is once again open to the public. Failing concrete flooring has been replaced with new stamped concrete, designed to look like a winding trolley track entering the station.
The building’s roof and electrical system were replaced, with new shingles and fixtures that harken the one-time amusement park’s early 20th century heyday. The sidewalk connecting the station, an historic fountain and the visitor’s center has also been replaced, with more than 2,000 feet of repaving completed.
Adaptive Recreation
Looking for a trail to hike or bike that offers some flexibility? New trails have opened in Western Maryland in the last year featuring just that – interconnecting paths that let a user move to an easier or harder level as they go.
Last July the Margraff Plantation Trails opened inside Savage River State Forest, with six miles of newly-constructed trails.
Tucked in the mountains of Western Maryland near Accident in Garrett County, the Margraff offers a 1.4-mile beginner trail, a 1.4-mile intermediate trail, a 1.2-mile advanced trail and a 2-mile intermediate-level adaptive trail.
The trails cover a diverse landscape – pine forests, deciduous forests, mountain laurel and meadows. With its 2,800-foot elevation, the area offers stunning views from the mountain.
Part of the four miles of new trail in the Bear Ridge Area of Rocky Gap State Park.
Farther east at Dans Mountain State Park, a small connection has opened options for hikers on the Lonacona Loop. The 4.5-mile Lonacona Loop winds through groves of hardwoods and conifers, and with 650 feet of elevation gain, the whole path is a challenge. A small, quarter-mile connecting trail in the center now gives hikers the chance to have a shorter journey without the need to double-back.
Also in Allegany County, users looking for a trail system with options can enjoy the Bear Ridge Area of Rocky Gap State Park – four miles of trail with two interconnecting loops. The red blaze is easier, the blue blaze is more difficult, and both are wide enough to serve adaptive mountain bike users, with predictable slopes.
Boating
The breakwater that is a part of the renovated Rogue’s Harbor Boat Ramp at Elk Neck.
Visitors to Rocky Gap will also notice an improved campground boat launch on Lake Habeeb. When it opens, users will enjoy a number of ADA upgrades – a vault toilet, boat trailer parking, more standard parking, beach access via MobiMat, a beach wheelchair, and an ADA accessible kayak launch. The launch is currently closed due to low water levels caused by drought conditions.
DNR has also completed a major renovation to Rogues Harbor boat launch at Elk Neck State Park. A breakwater now provides protection from wind and boat wakes, making launching and trailering safe for both the user and the equipment. The breakwater will reduce the needs for maintenance between seasons, shielding the ramp and pier from ice and floating debris.
The pier is open for fishing and crabbing as well, remaining a prime location for bass tournaments, as the facility can accommodate up to 50 boats.
Assateague Bathhouse Renovated
Along the Atlantic coast, Assateague State Park is boasting a major renovation of its beach-side facilities, including all new fixtures, new bathrooms, new changing stations and new showers.
Highlights include 12 new ADA-accessible showers along the boardwalk for guests to rinse off the salt and sand. Inside the renovated bathrooms, natural light abounds with solar tube passive lighting, which accentuates the new lighter and brighter tile and durable slip resistant flooring.
