Gas is 4 bucks a gallon, money is getting tight and Baltimore area residents are desperate for an activity that won't cost an arm and a leg. So without further ado, let's talk about the section of the Gunpowder between York Road and Big Falls Road. This time I chose to potentially sacrifice a camera to get some tubing video, see how much I love you all!
Every time I tube down the Gunpowder I always think the section I have just completed is the nicest, and this time was no different. The segment from York Road to Big Falls proved to have steady water flow, constant movement that didn't require any hand paddling, and incredible scenic beauty. The area is absolutely lush with plant life and all sorts of birds. Rock formations abound. The best part of the segment is that it has trails on both sides that will get you back to your car on York Road. I am not a big fan of carrying an inflated tube, nor do I like to huff and puff my tube once I get to the put-in, so I like to inflate the tube at the car with a little car inflator, tube the river, deflate the tube and civilly walk back to the start. But you can do it any way you wish.
Another tuber admired my tube and asked where I purchased it. I bought my tube for $20 on sale over at Dick's Sporting Goods at the Hunt Valley Mall behind the Wal-Mart. If you don't wish to purchase a tube, you can rent one at Bike Stuff for and then deal with driving over to Monkton, renting the tube for $20, and then driving back there to return it, all the while being wary of their hours of operation. Whatever floats your boat.
Directions to get there: Take I-83 to Exit 27, Hereford - Mt. Carmel Road. Head east on Mt. Carmel Road to York Road. Head north/left on York Road. Drive 2 miles until you get to the parking area at Gunpowder State Park off of York Road.
Below is a map of the area.
View Gunpowder - York Road parking area in a larger map
6 comments:
How long did it take you to tube the distance from York Rd to Little Falls? Thanks for the details!
A little over 2 hours. It took me about 45 minutes to walk back to my car along the south trail.
I was hiking up near prettyboy a few months ago, maybe a half mile down from the dam, when two guys appeared out of nowhere running through the woods with a kyack which the slammed down into the river and set off with a random whoop.
Have you tubed any other locations in and around Baltimore or Harford County?
If so how did they compare to this location?
I've tubed much of the Gunpowder between Pretty Boy and Loch Raven and I like this area very much because one is surrounded by a park-like environment and there are no roadways nearby, the trails on both sides make it easy to get back to a car. Monkton is nice too but for different reasons, you'll see more people there and have some good conversation.
Good luck with your tubing site, it's inception looks promising. I think I have total of 3 posts on tubing the Gunpowder, I have a few on Tubing the Potomac and I have one somewhere on Tubing the Cacapon. As you can see from the dates on the posts I did these all a few years ago when the economy was booming and I was disheartened that so many people felt these need to visit Kings Dominion or Hershey Park to believe they were having fun. Since then, people have calmed down and again realize they can spend almost no money, head to the nearest river, have a great day enjoying the outdoors and still be home for a relaxed dinner.
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