Last Sunday, my oldest daughter asked if we could go on a bike ride. We ventured out to the towpath for the C&O Canal. There are access points every few miles along the well maintained compacted crushed stone path. The most difficult part of the ride was finding parking. The first several parking areas we went to were over crowded, with several cars stalking the next spot to open up. After driving past some overflowing parking areas we found a space at Lock 10 which is just inside the Washington DC 495 Beltway.

We jumped on the trail and my daughter decided we would pedal towards Washington DC. The path is well maintained compacted crushed stone. Along either side of the path are drop offs to the canal on one side and the Potomac River on the other. There is a volunteer group who patrol the path to provide medical and mechanical assistance if needed.

As we headed south on the path we came stopped to look at a low head dam across the Potomac River that is part of the water supply for Washington DC. It is a dangerous place for kayakers or boaters but offers a scenic view across the river and mansions on the Virginia shoreline.

We peddled about 8 miles into the waterfront neighborhood in Washington called Georgetown. After a quick photo op in front of the skyline of the Virginia side of the Potomac River.

On the way back north we took a short detour out to the river at Fletcher's Cove which is part of the National Park Service. Visitors can rent bikes, boats, or purchase fishing gear at the boat house. The smell of burgers on the grill at the boathouse had me wishing I had brought some cash.

As we got back on the path I noticed my daughter's seat had slipped down a bit. We stopped for a bit and raised her set up to her hip joint. Once she started off with the raised seat I had a hard time keeping up with her. It was a great way to spend two hours on an early Sunday afternoon and take in some fresh air and beautiful scenery along the 16 mile trip.

2 hours