Catoctin

Catoctin National Park is in Maryland, less than a two hour drive from the DC area.  It's a nice intro park, because instead of one really big hike, there is a network of linked trails, so you can plot a course through the woods to any of several viewpoints, and either head back to the car, or add on another loop and go a little farther.

We went a little farther.

Cunningham Falls

Our original plan was to find the Blue Ridge Overlook and Cunningham Falls (known locally as McAfee Falls) in the neighboring Cunningham Falls State Park, making one big loop connecting the two.  We finished early enough that we decided to really make the hike worthwhile, we should go find Chimney Rock, too.  It provided great views to the southeast, and the trail we took back to the visitors' center also led us to Wolf Rock.

Wolf Rock

It's pretty easy to see how it got its name.

The geology of the park is pretty interesting.  Boulder fields are everywhere, and spines of rock rise up from the ground, belying the tectonic activity of earlier millenia.

Not only is it closer to DC than Shenandoah, but the trail networks guarantee plenty to do on return visits.  Maybe not as many trails as Shenandoah National Park, but it doesn't have the crowds, either.