# Roadie Route Recommend in DC/Rockville Area



## Scott in MD (Jun 24, 2008)

Hey, fellahs, from Frederick, MD. I have a friend visiting DC and want to take him on a roadie this Sunday. We're planning to meet in Rockville at the Metro station (him coming North, me headed South) then ride maybe into DC for a few hours. We're both fairly experienced cyclists ... he's a Moab guy and my last ride was Sea Gull 100 past weekend. Can someone recommend a no-brainer road route, please? Capital Crescent Trail ... I never hit that, but it sounds crowded? Any other thoughts? 25-30 miles @ 15-17 mph and some DC sightseeing would be perfect. Thanks in advance.


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## worst_shot_ever (Jul 27, 2009)

CCT is crowded. Wouldn't recommend. Beech Dr is closed to vehicular traffic each weekend and holiday day, making it great for road rides. It's scenic in the rock creek woodsy way, but it doesn't offer any of the sightseeing. You could hook a Beech Dr leg with a monument bike tour by getting off Beech at Broadbranch/Park Rd to Mt Pleasant to 16th Street to the White House/15th Street up to Wash Monument and the Mall easy enough.


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## Scott in MD (Jun 24, 2008)

Thankjs WSE ... That's the kind of info I need. How long a trip can we make on Beach Drive? Any good starting points? Anybody else got info on how best to access Beach Drive from somewhere near the Metro?


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## foggypeake (Sep 11, 2005)

The closest Metro stop to Beach Drive is Grosvenor, if you can swing that.


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## worst_shot_ever (Jul 27, 2009)

As to Beech, depends on which direction you want to go. The southern end of the closed part of the road starts at Broad Branch. It heads NW out beyond 495, a total of about 13 miles or so until it dead ends at a small park in MD. If you're coming on the metro, you could get off at Van Ness, near it's southern end, and ride it out and back for a nice, scenic, you-could-be-anywhere-in-the-mid-atlantic wooded ride with good roads and modest traffic. Here's a possible map for your consideration: MAP 1. (Warning, Tilden is a beotch of a hill -- 12-16% grades, fun going down, a bear coming up. I do it all the time at the end of my rides, and I detest it.) The downside is it doesn't give you any of the DC sightseeing you were talking about, and it's an out and back route. If you want to include the monuments, and do something loop-like, then the MUTs will probably be part of your plan. For instance, I did a search for "monument" in the DC area of mapmyride and found this one, which could definitely be improved upon, but it hits the highlights and gives you something to work with: MAP 2. Then there's the basic CCT loop, which goes in a loop through Georgetown waterfront, the CCT to Bethesda, then a short crummy shot on the Georgetown Branch Trail to Beech Dr., then Rock Creek Parkway MUT to Georgetown: MAP 3. The CCT loop is an easy 20-miler, and if you want to see the monuments you could just veer off at the cutoff to the Georgetown waterfront area and instead stay on the MUT path past the Watergate Hotel and the Kennedy Ctr, which will bring you to the Lincoln Memorial and the National Mall. Good luck.


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## Scott in MD (Jun 24, 2008)

Worst shot, thanks very much. Monuments are secondary to a good groovy ride, so I'll look through some of your maps and pick a good roadie. If you every need some advice about fantastic, chip-seal, farm roads through Frederick county, or mountain biking in the incredible Frederick Watershed, please send me a note and I'll set you up...


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## worst_shot_ever (Jul 27, 2009)

No prob, scott, but I hope your plans were flexible. It is a terrible weekend for riding. High 40s and pouring, supposedly all weekend.

FYI, if you make it up for a better one, there are probably better routes available -- these reflect my extreme prejudice against riding in traffic. If you don't mind some cars, doing something with Falls Rd or McArthur could be fun, too. There's a couple 30-40mi group rides that do those.


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