About trails in Howard County, Maryland

Howard County has 172 named trails on the map, covering 329 miles in total, an average of 1.9 miles per trail. That is the 6th largest mapped trail network among 24 counties in Maryland. 153 of them are tagged for hiking and 124 for mountain biking.

The longest single trail is Patapsco Alt HoCo Thru Trail, at 32.6 miles. 13 trails run 5 miles or longer. Mapped points of interest in the county include 5 trailheads, 3 campsites, 1 waterfall, and 8 boat launches. The nearest towns to these trails are Ellicott City, Eldersburg, and Damascus.

What the trails in Howard County are like

By length, 121 are under a mile, 38 run 1 to 5 miles, and 13 are 5 miles or longer. 5 are loops, ending where they start; the longest is Garrett's Pass, at 5.0 miles.

Of the 114 with a difficulty rating, 19 easy, 91 moderate, and 4 hard. Of the 172 with measured elevation, Patapsco Traverse (south hiking) climbs the most, about 7,242 ft, and 10 gain 1,000 ft or more.

Explore by activity

329Total miles

3Campsites

8Boat launches

1Waterfalls

5Trailheads

Patapsco Alt HoCo Thru TrailMTB32.6 mi Patapsco Traverse (south hiking)Hike31.6 mi Patapsco Traverse (south mtb)MTB31.6 mi Patapsco Howard County Thru TrailHike30.9 mi 1 (Maryland)MTB17.6 mi Clarksville-Fort Meade Signed State Bicycle RouteMTB14.3 mi HoCo Thru Trail9.3 mi Coral RouteMTB8.7 mi Maroon RouteMTB8.4 mi Silver RouteMTB7.0 mi Morning Choice TrailMTB5.3 mi OEC ConnectorMTB5.3 mi Garrett's PassMTB5.0 mi Patuxent Branch TrailHikeMTB4.9 mi Gold RouteMTB4.5 mi Elkhorn Branch TrailHike3.8 mi Wood-Marr Trail3.6 mi Wood-Marr (HoCo Thru Trail)HikeMTB3.6 mi Old Main Line (HoCo Thru Trail)HikeMTB3.0 mi Wilde Lake LoopHike2.8 mi Ridge TrailHikeMTB2.5 mi OEC Connector TrailHikeMTB2.3 mi Split Rock TrailHikeMTB2.2 mi South Wind TrailHike2.2 mi Rockburn Branch TrailMTB2.1 mi Wildlife Loop TrailHike2.1 mi Daniels SingletrackHikeMTB1.9 mi Lake Elkhorn LoopHike1.9 mi River Hill SouthHikeMTB1.8 mi Daniels Laurel TrailHikeMTB1.8 mi Indigo RouteMTB1.8 mi Smith Farm TrailHike1.7 mi Ridge Trail ExtensionMTB1.6 mi Green TrailHikeMTB1.6 mi Bloede Dam TrailHikeMTB1.5 mi Woodstock Station (HoCo Thru Trail)HikeMTB1.5 mi Woodstock to DriverHikeMTB1.5 mi Woodstock to Driver Trail1.4 mi Cascade Falls TrailHikeMTB1.4 mi White TrailHikeMTB1.4 mi NachoHikeMTB1.3 mi Rockburn TrailHikeMTB1.3 mi Ole Ranger Trail (blue)HikeMTB1.3 mi Red TrailHikeMTB1.3 mi Tulip Poplar TrailHike1.2 mi Valley View TrailHikeMTB1.1 mi Union Dam TrailHikeMTB1.1 mi Rockburn Branch Trail (purple)HikeMTB1.1 mi Woodland TrailHike1.0 mi Chapelgate LoopHike1.0 mi TVO Main TrailHikeMTB1.0 mi Belmont TrailHikeMTB1.0 mi Out of Range TrailHike0.9 mi Orange TrailHikeMTB0.9 mi Colt 45HikeMTB0.9 mi Mullineaux OrchardHikeMTB0.9 mi Fisherman's TrailHike0.8 mi Lil' BirdHikeMTB0.8 mi Nu TrailHike0.8 mi New RangerHikeMTB0.8 mi Outside of RangeHikeMTB0.8 mi Pain CaveHikeMTB0.8 mi River RoadHikeMTB0.8 mi Davis Trail (Affeldt Gasline)HikeMTB0.7 mi Little Patuxent FlatsHikeMTB0.7 mi Savage Historic Mill TrailHike0.7 mi Old Park DriveHikeMTB0.6 mi Peaceful Pond TrailHike0.6 mi Lewis and ClarkHikeMTB0.6 mi Hop The SnakeHikeMTB0.6 mi Upper Cascade Falls TrailHikeMTB0.6 mi Church Loop 1HikeMTB0.6 mi Turf Valley FlatsHikeMTB0.6 mi Blandair Hunting TrailHike0.6 mi Turf Valley Nature TrailHike0.6 mi Barley and HopsHikeMTB0.6 mi Whoop De DoosHikeMTB0.5 mi Davis Trail (Allenford)HikeMTB0.5 mi TVO Grass TrailHikeMTB0.5 mi Log TrailHikeMTB0.5 mi Daniels Singletrack (Switchplate)HikeMTB0.5 mi Turf RidgeHike0.5 mi Church Loop 2HikeMTB0.5 mi SmokeyHikeMTB0.5 mi Davis Trail (No Beech Lost)HikeMTB0.5 mi Old Track LoopHikeMTB0.5 mi Church Loop 3HikeMTB0.5 mi Turf TraverseHikeMTB0.5 mi The Fox and the HoundHikeMTB0.5 mi Blue-Green TrailHikeMTB0.5 mi KillarneyHikeMTB0.5 mi Grassland LoopHike0.5 mi Magic MikeHikeMTB0.5 mi Church Loop 4HikeMTB0.4 mi Bethany BypassHikeMTB0.4 mi Captain John Smith LoopHikeMTB0.4 mi East Branch TrailHike0.4 mi Purple TrailHikeMTB0.4 mi Switchplate Trail LoopHikeMTB0.4 mi Long CutHike0.4 mi Old Columbia Bike TrailHikeMTB0.4 mi Dorseys RunHike0.4 mi Bike Buster-DownhillHikeMTB0.4 mi OvergrowthHikeMTB0.4 mi Turf ValleyHikeMTB0.4 mi Fairmont ForestHikeMTB0.3 mi Pond LoopHike0.3 mi Skills Park TrailHikeMTB0.3 mi Davis Trail (Wall Trail)HikeMTB0.3 mi Even Foxes Need a BenchHikeMTB0.3 mi Pale Morning Dun ConnectorHike0.3 mi Stone Wall TrailHike0.3 mi RivesideHike0.3 mi RootballHikeMTB0.3 mi Davis HoleHikeMTB0.3 mi Airrang | River Ridge TrailHikeMTB0.3 mi Dunloggin Middleschool's Watershed FootpathHike0.3 mi Little DipperHikeMTB0.3 mi Backside of DanielsHikeMTB0.3 mi Something's Gotta GiveHikeMTB0.3 mi Water BarsHikeMTB0.3 mi Yellow TrailHikeMTB0.3 mi Davis Trail (Candyman)HikeMTB0.3 mi Old ConnectorHikeMTB0.3 mi Quarry TrailHike0.3 mi Frisbee Golf Drag StripHike0.3 mi Affeldt ClimbHikeMTB0.3 mi Horse Fly AlleyHikeMTB0.3 mi Daniels Singletrack (Backside of Daniels)HikeMTB0.3 mi One EyeHikeMTB0.3 mi Boones BountyHikeMTB0.3 mi River Road TrailHike0.2 mi Davis Trail (Affeldt Drop to the Beech)HikeMTB0.2 mi Campground Connector TrailHikeMTB0.2 mi Force of NatureHikeMTB0.2 mi Hop The Snake Alt (New)Hike0.2 mi Affeldt Climb (HoCo Thru Trail)HikeMTB0.2 mi Davis Branch TrailHike0.2 mi Big DipperHikeMTB0.2 mi Davis Trail (Formerly Ol' Man River)HikeMTB0.2 mi Jelly BeanHike0.2 mi Super Secret Frisbee Golf BypassHike0.2 mi Quarry AccessHikeMTB0.2 mi TVO Cross TrailHikeMTB0.2 mi Lookout LoopHike0.2 mi Raven WoodsHikeMTB0.2 mi Ole RangerHikeMTB0.2 mi The Druffel ShuffleMTB0.2 mi Belmont-Rockburn ConnectorHikeMTB0.2 mi Davis TrailHikeMTB0.2 mi The Springs of ExcelsiorHikeMTB0.2 mi Kindler RoadHike0.2 mi The NarrowsHikeMTB0.2 mi TwistiesHikeMTB0.1 mi To the RiverHike0.1 mi River Ridge TrailHikeMTB0.1 mi Yorkshire ConnectorHike0.1 mi 99 DropHikeMTB0.1 mi B&H-MC ConnectorHike0.1 mi Davis Trail (Formerly I've Gotta Be Me)HikeMTB0.1 mi Dude Where's My CarHike0.1 mi Parking Lot DropHike0.1 mi Lakefront / Oakland Mills Connector - Pedestrian BridgeHikeMTB0.1 mi Frisbee Field ConnectorHikeMTB0.1 mi Blue TrailHikeMTB0.1 mi Black MagicHikeMTB0.1 mi Boca BoulevardHike0.1 mi Don't Fall InHikeMTB0.1 mi Morning Log ConnectorHike0.1 mi Diamond BackMTB0.1 mi Old Guilford Road (closed)Hike0.1 mi Sylvia's StrongholdHikeMTB0.1 mi

Trails by town in Howard County

More Maryland counties

568 trails · 1,269 mi

Prince George's County

Trail geometry from OpenStreetMap contributors, licensed ODbL. Elevation from the USGS 3D Elevation Program. Compiled and published by Trailmonger · trail data last rebuilt September 24, 2026.