The Mid-Atlantic Hiking Group

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We are a laid back group of over 8500 people who enjoy hiking with others while exploring trails in Maryland, DC, Virginia, and PA. A sense of humor is a must and we are very much a social hiking group. Our group focuses on camaraderie and safety while having good times out on the trail! We enjoy Mother Nature's diversity as well as our own! So get your rear in gear and join us for a hike and see you out on the trail soon!

Why We Hike - To have good times, make friends, and heck, maybe even meet that special someone along the trail while enjoying the benefit of the great outdoors! Whether you want to lose weight and have never hiked a mile in your life, or have a goal to rise up to the challenge of ultra-hiking 30 miles in one day, we have a hike for you. Join now and see for yourself how active we are and our diversity of hikes and locations we offer! Progress from newbie to extreme hiking at your own pace, OR just hit the trail with us as little or often as you like, the choice is yours. We hike because we love it!

When We Hike - We do it in the mornings, evenings, and in the darkest of night, all weekends averaging 10 times a week and are very flexible. Get your mind out of the gutter 'cause we are talking about hiking now people!

We strive to offer at least one easy, moderate, and strenuous hike within about sixty miles of both Baltimore, DC, and NOVA each weekend. Weekday hikes are available for those looking to hike during the week, either during the day, or as an after work hike. We usually have hikes on our calendar 7 days a week every day of the year, especially holidays.

Where We Hike - Our hikes range from very easy walks on paved paths along gentle streams and clear lakes, to very strenuous, steep climbs and rock scrambles to mountain summits, and last but not least, fully supported ultra hikes of up to 30K in one day! For the mountain lovers, we visit the Appalachian Trail, Shenandoah National Park, Catoctin Mountains, and George Washington National Forest almost every weekend. Also, we strive to offer a hike in the Baltimore, DC, Northern Virginia and the mountains every weekend and mix up the offering of distances and difficulties. We enjoy post hike meals after most of our hikes. Additionally, we have cookouts, white water floats, hike out/paddle backs, cave trips, natural water slides hikes, Appalachian Trail Section Hikes, Car Camping Trips, Volunteer Offerings, and last but certainly not least - our very popular Monuments in the Moonlight hikes that was recently written about in The Washington Post.

How We Hike - We will NOT leave anyone behind and safety comes first! All of our hike leaders are certified leaders. All hikes have a leader and a sweeper and most of our hikes offer you several different pace options so you can hike the pace that is comfortable for you! We share what we know with one another and value fellowship and camaraderie within our group and always keep a good sense of humor while focusing on the "Leave No Trace" outdoor ethics philosophy. We hike in small groups of no more than 15 hikers per leader to not only comply with our Leave No Trace commitment but also to provide a more enjoyable experience for you. Most of our weekend hikes have optional post hike meals to enjoy. There are many volunteer and trail maintenance opportunities offered in addition to community building events, so come on out and make a difference with The Mid-Atlantic Hiking Group!

Who Can Join - Simply put, you can! Whether you are young, work, old, retired, laid off, shy, talkative, energetic, dork, brainiac, lazy (but hopefully you don't want to be or we might have a problem), recovering from an injury, super slow hiker, or a competitive speed hiker, or trail runner, this is a Meetup for you. We love our diversity and thrive on it!

WARNING: Our calendar is very active all four seasons and may become addictive and beneficial to your health!

I hope to see you on the trail soon and let's have good times!

Kellie