Towpath

tarar@herald-mail.com Police say a man whose body was found by a jogger on the towpath along Keep Tryst Road in the Sandy Hook area Friday morning was a homicide victim. The Washington County Sheriff's Department said the body was that of a white male in his 40s. The victim's injuries and other evidence at the scene indicated homicide, police said. They did not identify the man or say whether they had any suspects. Mike DiLeo, who found the body, said he was on his daily jog at 7:16 a.m. when he saw what he thought to be a bedroll just off the towpath.

Officials with the C&O Canal National Historical Park have issued a warning to hikers and especially bikers to use extra caution when using the towpath because of recent heavy rains and standing water. A specific towpath advisory has been directed for the one-mile stretch between McMahon's Mill and Lock 41 of the towpath in Washington County. That section has been severely damaged by rain and high levels of water and will remain closed until conditions improve, said Kathy Sholl, public affairs assistant with the C&O Canal.

Man exposes himself to woman on towpath BIG POOL - A man exposed himself to a woman on the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal towpath Saturday, Maryland State Police said. The incident was not related to a sexual assault two weeks ago along the popular recreational trail, police said. A 44-year-old Inwood, W.Va., woman had been riding her bike on the towpath near Big Pool when she stopped at a water pumping station about 12:30 p.m. and saw the man walk out of the woods toward her, police said.

Outdoor experiences and physical exercise are some of the aspects of the Boy Scouts of America program. Units strive to include these outings, along with good citizenship in the program for the Scouts. Recently, the Scouts and Leaders set out to bike the C&O Canal towpath as one of the trails in the Mason-Dixon Council area. The Scouts packed their bicycles and lunches and started from Fort Frederick and biked the towpath, ending at Williamsport. Along the way, they discovered some of the plants native to the area and were told of the local history associated with the canal.

WILLIAMSPORT - More than 30 officials, National Park Service workers and C&O Canal volunteers toured a stretch of the towpath south of Williamsport, which has been closed for several years. "To complete a journey on this historic towpath, hikers and bikers take a detour, which includes traveling on Dam No. 4 Road and other local roads, and then connecting back to the park," said C&O Canal National Historic Park Superintendent Kevin Brandt. Brandt was joined Saturday by several elected officials and by volunteers interested in helping restore the park.

A citizens association that supports protecting the C&O Canal National Historical Park has donated another $40,000 to help rebuild the damaged Big Slackwater section of the canal's towpath, a park official said. Erosion from floods in the Big Slackwater area downstream from Williamsport has forced hikers and bicyclists to use a 4.7-mile detour on public roads, officials said. It is hoped the Big Slackwater area can be restored using money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, officials said.

o What do you think should would draw more tourists to towns along the C&O Canal? Vote in our online poll . TRI-STATE -- One issue that comes up when talk turns to tourism on the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park is this: How do you get there from here? The question of easy access to the canal and towpath is one of the issues being discussed as area towns try to find ways to attract more tourists, both to the C&O and to the towns. There are those, for instance, who say getting to the canal and towpath at Harpers Ferry, W.Va.

Part of C&O towpath to be closed C&O Canal National Historical Park will temporarily lower the water in the canal in Georgetown beginning Sunday. The water will be lowered in order to repair a leak in the canal at the Whitehurst Freeway. The towpath will be closed for construction from 31st Street (Milepost 0.59) to the Alexandria Aqueduct (Milepost 1.07). Towpath users will be diverted to Water Street to bypass the closure. The detour is expected to be in effect for two weeks.

Due to emergency repairs on the historic waste weir at Lock 7 on the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, the towpath in this area of the park will be completely closed to visitors Monday through Wednesday. A serious seep has developed adjacent to the waste weir structure just upstream of Lock 7. Visitors will not be allowed to pass through the construction area at Lock 7. Visitors should use caution on the towpath from Lock 5 to Lock 7 due to increased construction traffic.

HANCOCK - It can be hot, sweaty work and often quite labor intensive, but Jorden Souders said she wouldn't have it any other way. Jorden is working with the Youth Conservation Corps this summer, and has been assigned to the C&O Canal National Park maintenance office in Hancock. "I was looking for work, and a friend of my family got me an application," Jorden said. "There are five of us here. " One other youth is from Little Orleans, Md., while the others are from Hancock and Berkeley Springs, W.Va.