The idea of making a natural surface connection on the Howard County side of the river, past the Bloede Dam site, and onward to Ilchester Road had been on trail users’ radar for years at PVSP. The Bloede Dam was a hydroelectric dam and is recognized as one of the earliest dams constructed of reinforced concrete – its removal presented huge opportunities for park connectivity. While there were informal, social trails that made the connection – the American Rivers project to remove the Bloede Dam was the catalyst to get this connection built.
The 2019 National Trails Day event at the Bloede Dam build had over 250 attendees, and the connection was formalized. In, 2022 we completed the Bloede Dam Trail Extension, extending the singletrack and adding sweeping views of the Patapsco River.
After getting past our Covid- related restrictions, we moved on the to Bloede Dam Trail Extension – a single track connection that takes advantage of big views and amazing terrain.
REI works to keep people connected to the outdoors – not only do they support the park, but they are also hands-on and active in our community – we are so pleased to have them as partners and fortunate to have their members and employees as friends.
-Dave Ferraro, Executive Director, FPVSP
History of the Bloede Dam Project from the Department of Natural Resources