The list contains the largest contiguous public parks-preserves within 30 miles (48Â km) of either Baltimore, Maryland or Washington, D.C., which is within the Baltimoreâ"Washington metropolitan area.
- Prince William Forest - Locust Shade, Virginia; 18,255 acres (74Â km2) â" about one-third is closed to the public
- Patuxent Wildlife Research Refuge - Fran Uhler (Patuxent River Park), Maryland; 13,300 acres (54Â km2) â" about one-third is closed to the public
- Seneca Creek - McKee-Beshers - C & O Canal - Germantown, Maryland / Algonkian, Virginia; 12,435 acres (50Â km2)
- Upper Patapsco, Maryland; 9,575 acres (39Â km2)
- Patuxent River Park - Merkle - Jug Bay Wetlands - House Creek, Maryland; 8,575 acres (35Â km2)
- Mason Neck - Accotink Bay - Pohick - Meadowwood - Gunston, Virginia; 7,690 acres (31Â km2)
- Patuxent River State Park, Maryland; 6,650 acres (27Â km2)
- Chapmans - Myrtle Grove - Mattawoman, Maryland; 6,278 acres (25Â km2)
- Sugarloaf Mountain - Monocacy River - C & O Canal, Maryland; 5,790 acres (23Â km2)
- Lower Gunpowder Falls, Maryland; 5,325 acres (22Â km2)
- Manassas Battlefield, Virginia; 4,355 acres (18Â km2)
- Little Bennett, Maryland; 3,700 acres (15Â km2)
- Great Falls, Virginia - C & O Canal, Maryland - Riverbend, Virginia - Scott's Run, Virginia - Carderock, Maryland; 3,440 acres (14Â km2)
- Lower Patapsco - Rockburn Branch, Maryland; 3,435 acres (14Â km2)
- Cedarville, Maryland; 2,848 acres (12Â km2)
- Smithsonian Environmental Research Center Maryland; 2,800 acres (11Â km2) - limited public access
- Upper Gunpowder Falls (Hereford), Maryland; 2,755 acres (11Â km2)
- Rock Creek Regional (Lake Needwood - North Branch); 2,670 acres (11Â km2)
- Susquehanna State Park, Maryland; 2,645 acres (11Â km2)
- Fountainhead, Virginia; 2,450 acres (10Â km2)
- Nanjemoy Creek, Maryland; 2,415 acres (10Â km2) - generally closed to the public
- Mid-Gunpowder Falls (Baldwin-Fork), Maryland; 2,300 acres (9Â km2)
- Eastern Neck, Maryland; 2,285 acres (9Â km2)
- Douglas Point - Mallows Bay - Purse State Park (Nanjemoy Wildlife Area), Maryland; 1,920 acres (8Â km2)
- Soldiers Delight, Maryland; 1,920 acres (8Â km2)
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Rock Creek Park, D.C.; 1,750 acres (7Â km2)
Notes
- a - only a portion of this park is publicly accessible
- b - This list does not include interrupted, scattered parts of administrative units, but rather entire, contiguous park-preserve tracts. Strip park area (<1000 foot (300 m) width for more than 1/2 mile (800 m)) and public utility land (reservoirs) are excluded. Much of the 72,500 acres (293Â km2) Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland. and 56,000 acres (230Â km2) Quantico Marine Base, Virginia are undeveloped, and constitute the largest such areas within 30 miles (48Â km) of either Baltimore or Washington. Neither is generally open to the public. Quantico is contiguous with Prince William Forest Park. Washington and Baltimore are 33 miles (53Â km) apart.
References
External links
- The Nature Conservancy - Maryland/DC Areas We Protect