Join Jon Wolz on Wednesday October 2nd at 10:15 a.m. for a tour of the Pennyfield Lockhouse along the C&O Canal towpath. Pennyfield Lockhouse #22 is part of the Canal Quarters program and is available for overnight stays! It is furnished in the 1830s time period. Learn the history of the lock and house. Find out which president fished here before Camp David was established. There are still beavers and great blue herons in this part of the canal.
We will walk from Pennyfield Lock down to milepost 18, then return (3.25 miles on the canal). For anyone interested, we can walk up a hill to the remains of the Civil War block house earth works on the hillside above the lock. The climb up the hill is steep, but not slippery. There is no path and there are no signs describing its location. All that is left of the fort is a cross shaped earth works. The fort was destroyed in July 1864 by the Confederates and never rebuilt.
The group will meet in the parking lot at Pennyfield Lock. Access to the parking lot is via River Road, turn onto Pennyfield Lock Road and follow the parking lot.
Jon Wolz, our local expert on the C&O Canal and leader of our “pop-up” walks, has a long history with the canal. As a Montgomery Blair High School sophomore and Eagle Scout, he had already hiked the entire canal. In 1970, Jon was the Boy Scout chosen to testify before a Senate subcommittee on behalf of the bill to protect the C&O Canal as a National Historical Park. Maryland Congressmen Gilbert Gude and J. Glenn Beall sponsored the bill.
Since 2015 Jon has volunteered as a level walker with the C&O Canal Association (COCA). His two levels encompass the area from White’s Ferry to Monocacy Aqueduct.