Hiking Annapolis Rock & Black Rock
Somehow, when I began to brainstorm places I wanted to hike and write about I got preoccupied with discovering new places and I didn't stop and think about places I had already been... typical. Annapolis Rock/Black Rock is a hike that I've actually done a few times and didn't remember until I was going through my pictures the other day. So here I am, finally putting up some pictures and writing a review.
The first time I did this hike was during the winter (either a very warm day in late November or January) and the second time was during last summer.
Annapolis Rock/Black Rock is ultimately an 8 mile out-and-back hike during which you visit two outlooks: Annapolis Rock and then Black Rock. If you just hike to Annapolis Rock (which is the more popular option) the hike is only 5 miles. During my first trip, I hiked to Annapolis Rock and back. Annapolis Rock is located in Maryland, fairly close to Greenbriar State Park (you can see Greenbriar Lake from the lookout!). The trail isn't too difficult but it still gives you a great workout. It begins with an incline, then as you reach the top of the mountain, the trail begins to level out. There's a bunch of camping spots along this trail as well, so I would image it's a pretty popular place to camp out for the night. As I previously mentioned, I did this hike for the first time in the late fall (or I think I did). It had already snowed and the snow melt had basically turned the trail into a little creek. We had to wind and weave our way up the mountain, and it definitely took us longer to get to the summit because of it.
When I went for the second time during the summer, we hiked to Annapolis Rock and then out to Black Rock. We went during the week so it wasn't too crowded, but I was still surprised by the number of people we saw out on the trail. HOWEVER, once we left Annapolis Rock and started to hike out to Black Rock, the amount of people we saw dramatically decreased. The last two pictures are from Black Rock outlook. Personally, I'm definitely a fan of outlooks that have mountains/untouched wilderness views instead of farmland/civilization. But regardless, both outlooks are pretty beautiful. For more information on these hikes go here.
Hope everyone has a great weekend!