Following is information about how to get to the C&O Canal and its towpath from area towns:
o Shepherdstown, W.Va. -- Shepherdstown has a nearby bridge across the Potomac River, which provides access to the C&O Canal. The bridge has a concrete ramp that zig-zags through a wooded area below the bridge to the canal. The 1,100-foot bridge, which was completed in September 2005 at a cost of $18.9 million, also has a lighted sidewalk. Parking is available along the canal across from Shepherdstown.
o Williamsport -- Williamsport has an attractive access to the C&O Canal near the Cushwa turning basin, said Cathy McCullom, regional director of Trail Towns, an organization that has been helping local towns assess their tourism potential. But the problem is that people who do not know about Williamsport and who arrive at the town on the canal would not know the downtown area is there, McCullom said.