Hike to Chimney & Wolf Rocks (MD)

Recently, I went on a hike in Catoctin Mountain Park in Maryland. The park is quite large with several different trails all leading to different overlook points in the region, but my group and I decided to follow the trail that led to Chimney Rock and Wolf Rock, looping back to our starting point.

The Important Deets:
Length: 3.9 miles round trip
Level of difficulty: moderately strenuous, quite rocky
Duration: 3-4 hours

Getting There: We got there around 9am and the Visitor’s Center parking lot was already at full capacity. There were cars parked all along the road leading up to the entrance, but luckily we were able to snag a spot as someone was leaving. I would recommend getting there as early as you can (to both get a good parking spot and to avoid large crowds). There are public restrooms available 3 miles into the park from the visitor’s center, which we ended up using later and found they were quite clean! Definitely pick up a map from the Visitor’s Center as it will be a good guide for you to follow as you begin your hike. We followed the “blood orange” color trail going in a counterclockwise direct towards Chimney Rock first and then Wolf Rock.

On The Trail: We began from the parking lot and followed the well marked trail the entire way. The trail was quite rocky for most of it so I would definitely recommend wearing a pair of hiking boots or shoes with thick soles to keep your feet from hurting during and after the hike. We also started off with the “steepest” part of the hike so that it would be easier on our legs later, which I would recommend for any future hikers.

There weren’t as many people on the trails as we had expected from the parking lot situation, but still quite a bunch of groups. For the most part, everyone was respectful and covered up with masks when passing or allowed groups to space out on the trail rather than walking very close to each other. Also, the trail was very dog friendly. We encountered a variety of dogs walking on the same path, so this was a doable hike for a healthy dog that can walk about 4 hours.

The entire trail was well shaded with tall trees so the air was cool and shaded for most of the hike, which was a blessing around noon when the sun was peaking in the sky.

At Chimney Rock: The sights of the mountains from the top were beautiful. The greenery from the trees went on forever, and I bet it would look even more beautiful during sunrise or sunset. Also, I imagine the view would look stunning during fall colors. However, because there were deep crevices in between the rock formations, there was limited space to stand or take pictures for too long. It did feel a bit crowded and that made it feel a bit less covid-safe, but the views were still really great!

At Wolf Rock: To get to this rock, you have to hike up and cross a massive rock scramble while jumping over deep crevices about half a mile off the trail. You eventually get to the end of the rock scramble where you can see Wolf Rock (which, in my opinion, looked more like dog haha). It was cool to see and read about the history of this rock that supposedly is the outcome of 550 millions of years of erosion from an ancient mountain.

We also saw a snake at the top of the rock scramble, so keep a lookout!!

After The Hike: After we circled back to the parking lot, we drove up to the picnic grounds which were about 3 miles into the park (where the bathrooms are) and munched on some fruits and snacks we’d brought from home. We also picked up some local pizza and devoured it after nearly 4 hours of hiking. The location of the picnic tables was perfectly shaded and safe in terms of covid-safety standards as they were about 10-15 feet apart — so would highly recommend this as a post-hike meal.

Recommendations:
1) wear hiking boots. Most of my group was wearing workout shoes or regular sneakers and that definitely hurt our feet the next day. Hiking boots would provide the sole and ankle support that you need while navigating through the trail rocks as well as have a good grip when on Chimney Rock.
2) bring snacks. There are many spots to take a quick break on the side of the trail, perfect if you want to bring snacks.
3) hike early in the day. Definitely start the hike earlier in the day rather than for sunset as we did see some snakes and lizards that would’ve been difficult to spot in the dark.