View of downstream gate of Lock 42 at Mile 89 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal towpath

Lock 42 is located at Mile 89 on the C&O Canal towpath. It cannot be accessed by vehicle, so reaching it requires hiking or biking .9 mile upstream from the closest parking area, McMahon’s Mill. See the Locks and Lockhouses web page for an interactive location map.

Lock 42 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal raised or lowered canal boats nine feet. It is amazing that you can look down into the lock and still see the remains of rotting wood from the lock gates after all these years.