Tour du Port follows a scenic, mostly flat route well within the ability of most novice walkers and riders.  Bike roues offered include an abbreviated family 10-mile loop, a 22-mile harbor route and an extended 40 mile tour for the more experienced rider. Additionally this years options include a 10K walking route. All options begin and end at Harbor Point, meandering through some of Baltimore’s most scenic neighborhoods (see below for more information on the major sites of the Tour).

Mountain or hybrid bicycles (including tandems and recumbents) are ideal for this event because their wider tires are better suited for the city roads, streetcar tracks, and cobblestone streets that are part of what makes Tour du Port unique.  Thousands of riders have successfully participated using road bikes, but it helps to have experience riding with narrow tires in an urban setting.

On-site registration will be held from 7:00-8:30 am, Sunday, October 21, at Harbor Point. All walkers should begin at 7:30 am. It is suggested that those doing the 40-mile bike route start by 7:30 am.  Riders doing the 22 mile route should start by 8:00AM.  All riders must be on the route by 9:00 am and off the route by 11:30 am. The “We Made It, Hon!” celebration will run from 11:00 am until 1:30 pm.

Route Map:

Tour du Port travels through six fascinating communities in Baltimore City – Inner Harbor, Fell’s Point, Canton, Dundalk, Patterson Park and Federal Hill – scroll down to read more. See Baltimore from an intimate angle and enjoy Charm City’s historic neighborhoods and landmarks.
Experience Baltimore, one of the top 10 destinations in the world for 2005 as named by Frommer's, the world's leading travel guide publisher.

Inner Harbor:
Formerly the site of Baltimore’s shipping trade, the Inner Harbor was recreated as a retail and historic site, starting a national trend of revitalizing downtown. Check out the USS Constellation, a Civil War-era ship docked in the Inner Harbor (www.constellation.org). The National Aquarium in Baltimore features stunning exhibits and more than 11,000 aquatic animals (www.aqua.org). The Maryland Science Center has three full floors of hands-on exhibits, IMAX films, planetarium shows, kids' room, observatory, Science Store and a new café (www.mdsci.org). On the way to Fell’s Point, check out the Flag House & Star-Spangled Banner Museum (www.flaghouse.org) and the new Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture (www.africanamericanculture.org).

Fell’s Point:
Established during the colonial era, Fell’s Point is a neighborhood rich in history, attractions and colorful people. Englishman William Fell purchased the land in 1726, realizing its potential for shipbuilding and shipping in colonial America. Beginning in 1763, his widow Ann Bond Fell and son Edward divided and sold the land to speculators and adventurers anxious to take part in the growth this natural deepwater port promised. Docks, shipyards, warehouses, stores, homes, churches and schools quickly turned Fell’s Point into a bustling seaport that was the commercial heart of the area.

Fell’s Point was annexed by Baltimore Town in 1773 and then the two were incorporated, along with Jones Town, as Baltimore City in 1797. Shipping traffic moved upriver to the docks at the Inner Harbor when its channel was dredged, but shipyards thrived here, most notably as builders of the famous clipper ships that irritated the British so thoroughly during the War of 1812 that they tried to capture Baltimore by land (stopped at North Point) and sea (stopped by Fort McHenry).
The Great Baltimore Fire of 1904 destroyed many of the city’s old buildings, but Fell’s Point was spared when the fire was finally stopped along the banks of the Jones Falls.

Check out the Fell's Point Visitor Center and the Robert Long House (www.preservationsociety.com) for the look back at Baltimore’s past. And watch out for those cobblestones – ouch!

Canton:
The Canton area was developed from the plantation of merchant seaman, John O’Donnell, in the late 1800's by his son, Columbus O’Donnell, William Patterson and Peter Cooper. The land was sold for expanding waterfront industrial uses and housing to support the blue-collar workers. During the early 1900's European immigrants settled in the area, most notably, Welsh, Irish, German and Polish. More recently, as industry moved out, new housing and marinas have been developed along the waterfront.

Dundalk:
Dundalk was founded when Henry McShane decided to move his bell foundry from Baltimore after part of the foundry burned in 1893. The railroad line followed the foundry to the area in 1895, and officials told the McShanes that they must choose a name for the railroad stop. William James McShane, Henry's son and the vice-president of the foundry, wrote "Dundalk,'' the name of his father's hometown in Ireland, on a board and nailed it to a tree near the railroad. In 1916, Bethlehem Steel bought its Sparrows Point plant from the Maryland Steel Company.
The steel giant created the Dundalk Company, which purchased 1,000 acres of land near McShane's railroad stop. The company hired E.H. Bouton, designer of Roland Park, to create a "workingmen's Roland Park.'' The community was designed to be close enough to the Point to commute to work, but far enough away from workers to escape the noise of the mills.

Patterson Park:
Patterson Park is an urban jewel and one of the oldest parks in Baltimore. First settled by Quinton Parker in 1669, it was purchased at auction in 1792 by William Patterson for $8,500 and was considered to be at the edge of what was called Baltimore Town.

On Hampstead Hill, the ridge where the Pagoda now stands, Baltimoreans rallied on September 12, 1814 to protect the city from the threat of a British invasion. The British had entered the Patapsco River and bombarded Fort McHenry. By land they amassed forces at North Point. As they marched on to Baltimore, they were able to look up to Hampstead Hill and see Rodger’s Bastion - 100 cannons and 20,000 troops. The British returned to their ships and sailed away.

With its historic significance and fine view of the harbor, this area became a popular place for citizens to promenade and picnic. In 1827 in an effort to re-create the beauty of the public walks that he had seen in Europe, Patterson offered the mayor of Baltimore six acres of land on the hill. The city eagerly accepted. In 1850, the city purchased another 29 acres from Patterson’s heirs. On the evening of July 13, 1853, twenty thousand citizens were there when the park was formally introduced.
Baltimore City purchased an additional 30 acres of land and plans began to create park structures fashioned after those in Central Park. However, by 1861 when the Civil War threatened to dissolve the Union, all parks and open spaces were earmarked for troop occupation. Camp Washburn was established. Once again, Hampstead Hill was a strategic military lookout and fortification.

Charles H. Latrobe, then Superintendent of Parks, designed the Pagoda, originally known as the Observation Tower, in 1890. Erected on Fort Hill, also known as Hampstead Hill, the Pagoda still stands on this site. The Parks Commission approved the design in 1891 and construction began in June of that same year under contract with Cornelius Sheehan, at a low bid of $16,730.

Patterson Park is a living museum to Baltimore’s heritage and future and is by far the Best Backyard in Baltimore. More information is available at www.pattersonpark.com.

Federal Hill:
Captain John Smith discovered Federal Hill in 1608 on his first exploration of the Chesapeake Bay. It earned its name in 1788, when thousands of Baltimoreans marched from Fell’s Point to the hill in celebration of the Maryland General Assembly's ratification of the Constitution.

Shortly after Independence, an observatory was erected on the hill so merchants could get advance warning of the arrival of their vessels. During the Civil War, Federal troops occupied the hill and trained their cannon on the city, whose loyalty to the North was in some doubt.

For much of the 19th century, the Federal Hill shore shared the city's thriving shipping trade and related industries with Fell’s Point. Federal Hill itself was mined for sand for a nearby glassworks, leaving behind some caverns that exist to this day and are a favorite subject of legends. Modern Federal Hill was born around 1960, when urban pioneers bought and began renovating homes in what had become a dowdy neighborhood. But the existence of the neighborhood was threatened in the mid-60's by a plan to plow through it with an interstate highway, part of a complex of connecting freeways that would have demolished the Inner Harbor and Fell’s Point. The residents rebelled, joined hands across the harbor, and eventually defeated the plan. The rebuilding of the Inner Harbor area in the late 70s and early 80s greatly increased interest in Federal Hill as an enclave of intimate residential streets within minutes of the city's business and entertainment heart.

Just before you reach Fort McHenry take a look to your left and you’ll see the remaining warehouses where a large number of immigrants coming to America arrived, this spot was second only to Ellis Island the numbers that passed through our port!

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