General
Annapolis Rock is a horizontally-bedded quartzite crag in South Mountain State Park, near Frederick MD. This is a good crag to practice trad climbing, whether for setting top rope anchors or for lead climbing.
About a mile away is the less popular Black Rock which offers similar climbing.
Type of Climbing
Annapolis Rock consists of a number of separate cliffs and offers around 50 routes from 5.3 – 5.11 up to 50ft in height. Most routes can be top-roped and many can be led on trad gear.. There are no bolts on these cliffs.
Directions and Parking
Annapolis Rock is several miles and an hour’s walk along the Appalachian Trail from the Annapolis Rock & Black Rock Cliff Appalachian Trailhead Parking on Route 40, outside of Myersville, Maryland. This is 60 miles and an hour’s drive from Washington DC.
Crag Logistics
There is a campsite on top of the cliff with a spring but no reliable water. No ground fires are allowed so you’ll need a stove. Camping is also allowed at Pogo Memorial Campsite on the Appalachian Trail another 1.6 miles north.
There are four separate major cliffs a short distance apart: Argo Cliff, the Faint’s Roof area, Fin Rock and the South End. The South End is home to Black Crack (5.9), perhaps the most classic route at these cliffs
For top roping, if you’re only using natural anchors and not placing gear you’re going to a long static rope or webbing. Good anchor points are hard to find on some walls, especially the Faint’s Roof area. The South End is easier to build anchors
There is cell reception at the top of the cliff and the climbs face west so you can climb here on a warm winter’s day.
Guidebooks
Climbing routes at Annapolis Rock are described in the recently (2024) published Climb Maryland Vol 1 by Mark ‘Indy’ Kochte and are listed on MountainProject.
They are also included in Rock Climbing in Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland. by Eric Horst (2013). The cover photo of the earlier edition of this book is Faint’s Roof (5.10a). one of the classic routes at Annapolis Rock.