Walk 20: The Muddy Branch Trail, Home of the 19th Massachusetts

If you look closely and have a lot of imagination, you might just see the shade of Robert Shaw under this massive Sycamore tree.

This tree might have shaded Union troops in the Civil War.

As I mentioned in my first post about Block House Point Conservation Park, Robert Shaw was stationed here in 1861 along with the 19th Massachusetts Regiment with the job of stopping the Confederates from burning the locks on the C&O Canal. Shaw rose to fame when he took over command of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment, an all African-American regiment featured in the movie "Glory."

But Shaw didn't much appreciate his stint doing guard duty for the canal and called the encampment along Muddy Branch the worst camp he had ever seen. Considering this was at the beginning of the Civil War, perhaps he later on found others even less becoming than the damp and marshy ground here.

It's not too difficult to figure out where the Union encampment must have been. Afterall there is only one area of broad flat land along the creek that is just before it meets the canal itself. In fact, the swathe of level ground is a flood plain and more than one encampment must have been washed away during our September hurricane season.

To reach this spot, Sarah and I started off with Loki at the middle, and largest, parking area and followed the old River Road track for about 1.25 miles until it joins up with the Muddy Branch trail which is really an access road to the Washington Aqueduct.

The Muddy Branch trail.

Of course, since Muddy Branch is cool running water and it was a hot day, you couldn't have kept Loki out of the creek if he'd been tied to wild horses. No sooner than we reached the access road but he disappeared down the embankment.

Come on in, the water is great!

We followed the access road until it dead ended amid some aqueduct equipment and from rank swamp smell coming up from the pipes, I'm glad that water gets treated before it reaches my taps.

Just before this dead end, is a bridge over Muddy Branch that leads to a path up to Pennyfield Lock, the place Grover Cleveland liked to bass fish.

The Muddy Branch bridge.

Practical information: Take River Road towards Poolesville. Once you pass Pennyfield Lock Road, keep your eyes on the left hand side. The main parking area is the second parking area and is marked with a sign. The walk along old River Road down to Muddy Branch and onto Pennyfield Lock is about 1.5 miles, 3 miles round trip. Going towards the lock is gentle downhill all the way and coming back is the opposite.