Some of the fiercest fighting of the Civil War took place here, near the intersection of the Old Hagerstown Pike and Smoketown Road. John Bell Hood's men fanned out along Smoketown Road (road to right) to engage the Yankees in the infamous Cornfield to the left and beyond. To the far left, you can see a portion of the replanted West Woods, which is filling in quite nicely. When I go to Antietam, my running circuit takes me down Old Hagerstown Pike, right on
Cornfield Avenue (not there during the war) and right on Smoketown Road. Three times around is about 3.5 miles. It's an eerie experience running there early in the morning, the fog hanging low over the battlefield and the sun peeking over the horizon. Check out all 18 of my interactive Antietam panoramas
here.
