Section 5: Waterfront/Crosstown 6/25/2010

Friday was my ninth commute in by bike for the year. The trip is becoming second nature, but my preparation is still slow. I've been getting a later and later start each morning, and now I am leaving well after 7am -- not ideal. I need to do a better prep job the night before to roll out on time, hopefully around 6am if not earlier.

Today I will describe the last section of my morning ride which I think of as the "Waterfront and Crosstown" section. This section begins where the Custis leaves off: The ramp down from Rossyln outputs me directly into the Roosevelt Island parking lot which is the northern trail head for the Mount Vernon Trail. This lot would make a great commuter lot for biking, but with its 3 hour parking limit on weekdays and northbound only (countflow) access from the GW Parkway it is always mostly empty on weekday mornings. The trail continues into the woods at the east end of the lot and travels down a long boardwalk over the marshy tidal banks of the Potomac River. The right fork leads up to the Roosevelt Bridge carying I-66 and US-50 over the river, but I stay to the left and continue along the MVT. Although I appreciate the shady coolness of this section I'm always afraid that my tires will pick up a splinter from the rough boards and will leave me having to change a flat a good 6 miles from my office.

Once off the boards the trail climbs slightly and crosses the boundary channel. As it's name implies I am technically in "The District" at this point, although it doesn't really feel like it until I cross over the 14th street bridge some 2 miles south of here. The prettiest shots of the Washington skyline in the morning can be captured as I ride along the MVT across the river from the Lincoln memorial and the Washington Monument. The trail passes under the memorial bridge in a narrow single lane section and then opens up to a beautiful view of boaters, birds and the memorials bathed in the yellow light of the morning sun. About 1.5 miles into this section I pass by a memorial for sailors and marines lost at sea and then head up and over the humpback bridge. Recovery Act tax dollars are widening this short bridge over the boundary channel as I briefly pass back into Virginia before climbing the gradual approach to the 14th street bridge.

One or two planes landing at Regan National will usually pass overhead while I pedal along the bridge side path. I enter the city at the Jefferson Memorial and dodge pedestrians along the wide tidal basin paths. It is deserted this morning, but I know that I will have to employ my bell for the return trip. I cross over the 395 SB/Potomac Park entrance lanes and then work my way under 395 to the southwest waterfront. The rotton fish smell is overpowering as the fishmongers are clearing out the day-olds and restocking their ice chests. I pass Phillips Seafood and the now-quiet night clubs and then turn left onto 7th street The light at 7th and Maine is usually long enough for me to refill my water bottle and get a good drink before I head across town. 7th street leads me to I (EYE) street upon which the city is marking a bike lane, making EYE a much safer alternative to the hustle of M street. In the morning I tend to hit every light but I really don’t mind the breather, having completed 23 of my 25.3 miles. I cross over South Capital 6 blocks north of the stadium and work my way to New Jersey and then to L street before turning down 3rd and crossing M at the DOT building. I make one last push down M street and up into the Isaac Hull entrance to the Navy Yard. Feeling good about my ride I coast down to the garage and lock up my bike.

Section 4: Custis Trail 6/18/2010

I rode in this Friday again. I had a going away party at work so I did not ride back home. Keow picked me up from downtown and we left from there for our fathers day vacation across the bay bridge at the Delaware shore. I will describe the fourth section of my comute here: The Custis Trail.

The Custis is both the most challenging (read most hills) and most enjoyable section of my ride. The signed trail starts at the intersection of Lee Highway/Washington Street and I-66 in East Falls Church but the W&OD and Custis nearly share the same route for 2 miles down to Bon Aire Park. At the W&OD/Custis Trail junction I turn left and head up into the grove of trees lining I-66. This is a surprisingly serene place considering I'm only about 100 feet from the interstate sound barriers at this point. The trail descends to an underpass where the Custis and a branch of Four Mile Run pass below I-66 and the Metro Orange Line. The three separate viaducts play with the morning light creating contrasting shafts of light and darkness against the backdrop of a cool babbling stream. I call this place the Custis Grotto because of its cave-like feel.

The trail quickly assends up "Grotto Hill" from below grade to well above I-66 and then it flattens out into what I refer to as the "Custis Flats". This straignt run under a treed canopy is a rare level spot among the roller coaster hills that line the interstate. After a few more quick up and down hills the trail rises to a fork with the Fairfax Drive trail to downtown Ballston. This marks the start of the hill up and over Glebe road the most difficult in this direction. Once over the Glebe road overpass, the trail ascends and rapidly descends 4 good size hills that I refer to as the "Four Sisters". Each of the sisters has her charms but their difficulty is really felt in the return trip. The northern most sister leads down to a section along the interstate that is level with the road and in front of the sound barrier not behind it for a change. The trail departs from the interstate to cross above US 29 Lee Highway and then it rapidly descends througha series of switchbacks down to the road grade. I call this the "Maywood S-curves" since there is a sign for and an access trail to the Maywood neighborhood at the apex of the curves. At US 29 the trail ascends behind a strip mall and crosses over Spout Run Parkway at grade with I-66. There is one final steep uphill in this section and then a quick rise to US-29 which now rises about 50 feet above I-66 at this point. The trail then drops about 300 feet into Rosslyn in less than a mile. The trail is no more than a wide sidewalk along Lee highway passing condos and the Key Bridge Mariot. After a grade crossing with the Key Brige access street, the trail descends down to the river, crossess the George Washington Parkway and a series of switchbacks take the trail down to the parking lot for Roosevelt Island, where I pick up the last section, "Waterfront/Crosstown."

Section 3 Washington &Old Dominion Trail 6/17/10

I am riding in for the 7th time this morning. I will describe the third section of my ride along the Washington and Old Dominion Trail. More to come. . .

Section 2 Vienna/Metro 6/11/2010

I rode in to work for the second time this week. I had meetings out in Chantilly on Thursday and rode the 18 miles yesterday out and back. So together I rode 118.6 miles this week!!! So far June has been good for riding. We plan to do some riding this weekend as well, I know Keow wants to get out on the C&O canal path, but more on that later.

Section 2 of my ride is the first part where I feel that I am away from home. This section rolls 4.1 miles from the Fairfax Circle to the W&OD trail and runs along the signed Fairfax City Connector trail, which is more a designed bike route connecting several disjointed paths, and not a dedicated bike commuter route.

Crossing over Fairfax/Arlington Blvd (US 50) I head into the tall trees of the Towers Park, a dark sylvan adjacent to the Circle Towers Condominium complex. The trail quickly rises about 50 feet and dumps me out about 100 yards from a crosswalk on Lee Highway going in the wrong direction. If I can cross at the light I will quickly jump across the 4 laned road otherwise I must stride my bike along the broken sidewalk and wait at a busy bus stop to cross. On the other side of Lee Highway I descend into the East Blake Lane Park, a large wooded quadrangle that 4 town home communities back up to. Despite its proximity to major roads, it is usually very quiet through here. One morning I came within an arms lenght from an adult white tail doe. The trail gradually rises through the EBLP and outlets to a defunct parking lot for the Vienna/Fairfax/GMU Metro station. The metro station is my first out. If I breakdown or don't want to continue I can lock up my bike here, deposit 5 bucks for a train ticket and ride into the city.

The "connector trail" then continues on sidewalks over I-66 and past both the north and south parking garages for the metro station before it passes through Vaden street and into Nottoway park. Dog walkers are usually out in Nottaway as I zip through and make the sharp right onto Tapawingo and head up the hill into Vienna. This second major hill rises 80 feet and tops out at the Vienna watertower. Tapawingo rises up and down over the last 1.5 miles. As I cross over Park street, the houses get larger and the cars more plentiful. I round the "Knuckle" before which I was heading mosly to the north east, and after I travel primarily southeasterly. I turn right onto Glyndon and then Left onto Adahi. The W&OD trail and the start of section 3 is just up ahead.

Section 1 Mason/Fairfax 6/7/10

Monday morning was another opportunity to ride in. I thought I would use the next few entries to describe in detail my route. My 25 mile ride is easily broken up into 5 20-30 minute segmants. Each section has a different feel, and completing each gives me a sense of accomplishment and a better idea of how far I still have left to go.

I first segment "Mason/Fairfax" starts at my front door and rolls 4.8 miles through George Mason University, past Old Town Fairfax City, and then down to the Fairfax Circle. As I leave my development I turn left onto Braddock Road toward the main entrance of GMU. I cross the street with the light and head down into campus then I start up one of the six major hills of the entire ride. VADot has changed the traffic patterns on University just north of campus so what used to be a busy bus route now is a quiet disconnected street. At the bottom of the hill I jump back onto University Ave and into Fairfax City. As I pass the fire house I see that the fire fighters are up and washing their rigs. I check the time and temperature at the Sun Trust Bank, then with traffic I wait for the lights at Main Street and North Ave. I continue down University Ave past the Fairfax Library Garage, then Turn right into the Courthouse Plaza Safeway parking lot. I pass behind the shopping center, onto Democracy Road and follow through the office park to get down to Old Lee Highway. At Mile 2.7 I jump on to the side path and continue past Van Dyke Park. Keow and I like to take the kids here and I often meet them for a picnic here on my afternoon return trips. Near the Civil War era historic Blenhenm house I cross over onto the traffic lane in time to pass the Fairfax High School and then down the 4% grade hill. Early in the morning traffic is not bad here and I usually can get up to about 30 mph. I then turn right onto Old Picket and then left onto the Picket Road side path. Up ahead is the intersection of Route 50 and Picket, a block east of the Farifax Circle. I will have to wait a few minutes here to cross both lights so I take a nice rest and get a drink of water. This is the end of the first segment.

I am now at the point of no return. If I were to get a flat, or have to go back it is closer to continue ahead to the Vienna Metro just 1.7 miles ahead. The next segment is "Vienna Metro" because I pass up through a few wooded paths past the Vienna Station of the Metro, and then cross the city of Vienna, VA to the Washington and Old Dominion Trail. It looks like Friday will be the next day to ride in so I will describe segment 2 in more detail then.

June 2: 4th Ride to Work -- Getting Stronger

I rode in again on Tuesday. I left the house at 0610 and it was light enough to not need any lights, a nice change from January. Traffic was heavier on Old Lee Highway and I rolled down to the Accotink stream bridge. I wished I had brought my camera in that there were very many beautiful spots of sun rays shining through the leaves along the trail. Next Time I promise.

I made great time and arrived in the garage at 0810 exactly 2 hours. Not bad for 25.3 miles.

It was quite warm on the ride home. I like my two water bottle configuration but worried that I would have to reload before I made it home. The Custis hills were much easier and I actually found myself passing some people on the way home. My first water bottle ran out just before the Vienna Metro station so I knew that I would be okay for the last 6.5 miles. VDOT is doing some work in the East Blake Lane Park and they have updated the bike trail through this section. I saw a Mason bike cop clocking speeders at near the water tower on the GMU campus as I rolled through. I don't think I was exceeding the posted 25 though. Once in the development I did a quick run down to the community pool and then back home to see if the pool passes were in. Not yet.

Over the next few posts I will attempt to describe several of my favorite spots along the trail and post pictures.

Also Keow and I are getting excited for several bike supported camping trips this summer. We plan on riding down to Burke Lake Park, Lake Fairfax, and the C&O lock house 6. These trips at 7.5, 15, and 30 miles should be a fun way to spend an overnight with the kids. This type of camping trip is called an S24O or sub-24hr overnight. For more information check out Grant Peterson's page.

May 24-25: Two Meetings Out in Chantilly, First Back to Back Rides

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I had two meetings for work on back to back days out near Chantilly, VA on May 24 and 25th. I found a way to get out there, reusing much of the path out to Costco from earlier in the month. Unfortunately much of the ride is on a side path that follows the busy, and loud US 50 west from Fairfax. As you can see from the above shot, the path has several dangerous grade crossings of the acceleration ramps onto US 50 like this one from NB Fairfax County Parkway. The route also incorporated a fair weather crossing of the Rocky Run stream. I would not take the kids on this route but it was fun riding instead of sitting in traffic.

On the return trip the second day I took a detour to Home Depot to pick up some bamboo stakes for the church garden then I delivered them to church via the side path of VA-7100 before heading home. This added about 2.5 additional miles to the trip but it was a beautiful day to ride.