Harpers Ferry Town Loop

Hike Description

Be sure to stop in our Harpers Ferry Visitor Center before or after your hike for more information about town, A.T. gifts and souvenirs, maps, and Trail exhibits!

1. From the ATC’s Harpers Ferry Visitor Center, follow the blue-blazed side trail along the side of the building and across Filmore Street through the iron gateway onto the Storer College campus. Enjoy the college’s rich history as you stroll along the brick pathway. Founded shortly after the Civil War in 1867, Storer College provided an education to formerly enslaved people.
2. At the end of the walkway, the blue blaze trail skirts around the pavilion for the National Park Service Interpretive Design center and heads down a staircase. Shortly after entering the woods, the side trail comes to the A.T.
3. Take a left and head downhill on the Trail over large, smooth rocks and stone steps. In 0.3 mile on the left, the forest will clear a bit, revealing stone steps. These lead up to the historic Harpers Ferry Cemetery, the final resting place of many of the town’s original settlers and civil war soldiers. The cemetery also offers fine views of town and the Shenandoah River.
4. Follow the white blazes for another 0.1 mile and on the right, the trees give way to a rock outcropping with stunning views down to the Shenandoah River. This is Jefferson Rock, where Thomas Jefferson stood in 1783 and remarked that the view was “worth a journey across the Atlantic.”
5. Continue downhill and the A.T. passes the ethereal ruins of St. John’s Episcopal Church, destroyed by shelling during the Civil War. After going down a length of wood steps, the Trail comes into town on Church Street. Continue following the blazes down a series of stone staircases and be sure to stop to admire the old architecture and National Park exhibits along the way.
6. When the Trail reaches High Street, leave the A.T. and turn left uphill. In a mile this route will be back at the ATC visitor center at the top of the hill. Along the way, pass several restaurants and shops. Or, continue to follow the A.T. for a short distance out to the point at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac rivers. The A.T. heads north on the footbridge.