This all has me dreaming up a Riv owners overnighter or multi-day excursion along the C&O / W&OD. Would enough folks be interested in something like that? It’s a 7 hr drive for me to DC Metro area but I already make the trip once a year, so I have no problem doing it for a bike meetup! Looks fab, Nick. I've ridden just a little bit of the W&OD out of Arlington to Mt. Vernon. I'm down the highway a piece in Fredericksburg. On Sunday, November 19, 2023 at 7:40:52 AM UTC-5 Garth wrote:
Nice day for a long bike ride Nick ! The fall lighting makes for lovely photos indeed. On Saturday, November 18, 2023 at 7:25:47 PM UTC-5 Josh C wrote:
Nick,
Very fun! Nice write-up. Great look'n bike too.
Thanks again to you all for your kind responses!
Bill -- that snapper's claw wasthe size of a kid's hand. It was probably about 20-22" long, and clearly the resident royalty for that section of the canal.
Brians -- link to the route below. We took the W&OD and cut north from Leesburg on back roads to the Point of Rocks Bridge, which is very traffic-laden and sketchy. There's one walkway on the northbound side about 30" wide and elevated 10" from the road. In hindsight, I should have walked it!
Nick in FC
Yes, Nick… I would also be very interested in seeing your route. I’ve done the C&O several times, but had no idea there was a parallel rail trail across the Potomac starting at Point of Rocks, I assume? That seems like it would make a nice overnighter without having to retrace your route or get a shuttle.
I spent a very harrowing night bike camping at one of those sites near Point of Rocks (Calico Rock, maybe?)… probably the worst storm I’ve ever been caught out in!
Brian Lexington Ky Nick- What a classic NOVA ride! I grew up in Leesburg and have ridden countless miles on the W&OD ranging from skating to school on it when I was a freshman at Loudoun County High School, up until a few years ago when my folks still lived in the area. I'd be interested in seeing your route and trying it sometime; I rode the GAP/C&O last year from Pitt to DC on my Hillborne, tried it again this fall on my Appaloosa, but my knee gave out on me by the time we reached Cumberland and I had to bail. This looks like it would be fun to try in the spring.
On Friday, November 17, 2023 at 6:46:39 PM UTC-5 Bill Lindsay wrote:
I want to know more about that turtle-shaped moss-covered rock! That guy is a bad ass. Excellent work
Bill Lindsay El Cerrito, CA
A good friend and I managed around 105 miles last weekend. It was our (the Atlantis and my) first century.
We made a long loop here in the D.C. area.
First
out to Leesburg on the W&OD trail. It took a while for the sun to
peek out from behind the autumn clouds, but when it did, all the frost
started sublimating, making it look as though we were riding through
clouds:
Then wound our way northward to the Point Of Rocks bridge via rural
roads in Loudoun County, both paved and gravel of various types:
And headed back to Georgetown on the C&O
Canal towpath. Then on home after dark via the Mount Vernon trail and southern end of the W&OD.
We happened upon a giant old snapper sunning next to the towpath that had an ecosystem living on its back:
Around mile 65, we stopped for a break at one of the boat ramps near a lock house, with a lovely view of the Potomac:
All
in all, it was a specacular though difficult (and, at times, cold
and/or dark) ride. No real mechanical issues aside from a dropped chain
here and there, for which we were both grateful. I feel that my Atlantis
was truly in its element, traversing nearly every type of passable
terrain with aplomb. I can't imagine having ridden anything else.
Nick A. Falls Church VA
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