Trail Town

Baltimore

Baltimore City County, DMV

Inner Harbor

About Baltimore

Baltimore is a historic port city on the Chesapeake Bay, long shaped by maritime commerce, immigration, and industrial innovation. Founded in the early 18th century, Baltimore played a central role in American history, from the War of 1812 to the rise of railroads and manufacturing. Today, the city is known for its waterfront neighborhoods, cultural institutions, and extensive network of urban trails and greenways. Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and surrounding districts provide access to services, transit, and public spaces, making the city a natural waypoint for long-distance trail users traveling through the Mid-Atlantic region.

9/11 Connection

At the base of Baltimore’s iconic Baltimore World Trade Center in the Inner Harbor stands the 9/11 Memorial of Maryland, a public monument dedicated on September 11, 2011 to honor the victims of the terrorist attacks. The memorial incorporates three twisted 22-foot steel beams from the World Trade Center in New York, limestone from the Pentagon, and polished granite representing Flight 93, along with inscriptions of the events of that day — designed so the building’s shadow moves across the memorial like a sundial on each anniversary. The memorial specifically commemorates the 68 Maryland residents who were killed in the attacks in New York, at the Pentagon, and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania — including people from Baltimore and across the state whose lives and families were forever changed.

Trail Access

In Baltimore, the 9/11 National Memorial Trail follows a network of urban trails, waterfront promenades, and bike-friendly streets through the heart of the city. Approaching from the south, the route enters Baltimore County and city limits via regional trail connections before linking into the Gwynns Falls Trail, a multi-use greenway that carries trail users toward downtown. The route continues east through the Inner Harbor area, utilizing the Inner Harbor Promenade and adjacent shared-use paths to pass through the city’s waterfront districts. Departing Baltimore, the trail connects to the Jones Falls Trail, which provides a northbound corridor through parkland and neighborhoods as the route advances toward northern Maryland and onward toward Pennsylvania and New York City.