# Moving to DC



## enki42ea (Apr 11, 2005)

Well DC area, as MD and VA are fine. Anyway, I live around Baltimore now but got a job next to the New Carrolton station and would like to stop taking the Marc and get an apartment closer. 

So any recomendations of good places to live for good road biking (obviously) and not to far away from work (travel time, distance doesn't matter)? I could bike commute but others at work say the area around work isn't such a good area so not sure I'd want to when I can just bike after work.

Thanks


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## cptab (Sep 12, 2002)

I live in Arlington, but am not familiar w/ the New Carrolton area. A lot of places in and around DC, however, have easy or short ride access to the various trails that ring the area. Many people also like to drive a good distance to ride in the rural areas on the weekends. If you don't get much feedback at the New Carrolton area in here, you might want to check out the North and South East forums on bikeforums.net. Good luck.


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## Slim Chance (Feb 8, 2005)

The New Carrollton area is not prime biking territory. Most roads inside or just outside the Beltway are packed with cars. There are some very nice roads in Anne Arundel and Charles Counties. Many people ride out of Davidsonville, which is off of Rt. 50 on Rt. 424. Do you have a car or are you limited to riding from home? Another option is to move somewhere near a Metro stop an commute on the Metro. I believe you can take bikes on the Metro during certain times of the day. Check their Web site for more info.


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## Spongedog (Aug 6, 2005)

New Carrolton is not sweet for riding. My suggestion is move to Arlington and ride Metro to work. From Arlington, you have a wide variety of road choices. W&OD, Custis, the roads are nice in the area, and everything connects up to Montgomery County, where you can get some killer rides in. Also, easy access to Capital Crescent-Rock Creek, Haines Point, and more!


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## djg (Nov 27, 2001)

Spongedog said:


> New Carrolton is not sweet for riding. My suggestion is move to Arlington and ride Metro to work. From Arlington, you have a wide variety of road choices. W&OD, Custis, the roads are nice in the area, and everything connects up to Montgomery County, where you can get some killer rides in. Also, easy access to Capital Crescent-Rock Creek, Haines Point, and more!


Look, I really like living in Arlington, but you're suggesting that the guy buy into something like an hour commute, each way. I don't know the New Carrolton area, but there's got to be a better way.


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## Spongedog (Aug 6, 2005)

New Carrolton (sorry to those who live in the area) is in the Lanham/Landover area. I can assure you that is not a bike friendly area, and frankly, most rides will take you through either very congested traffic or through bad neighborhoods. I have tried to get some rides in on that side of the beltway, but I have never found anything good or reasonably safe or enjoyable. I tried a ride to Towson from McLean recently, and went through the area...mostly industrial riding. Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoy city riding (I was a messenger in DC back when I was in college and learned to love the urban jungle), but in some areas, biking just does not work. I would equate living and riding in New Carrolton to living and riding in Tysons Corner...but without close access to the W&OD.

Perhaps the suggestion to live all the way in Arlington was a little crazy, but there is not a lot of choice to live in a decent part of town and get to New Carrollton fast.


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## MarkS (Feb 3, 2004)

Spongedog said:


> I tried a ride to Towson from McLean recently, and went through the area...mostly industrial riding. .


How did you get from McLean to Towson? I live northwest of Baltimore (Owings Mills) and have thought about riding to visit friends in Northern Virginia (Mrs. S would meet me there and bring me home). I have no problem with routes from DC to Northern Virginia. But, getting from Baltimore to DC by every route that I have contemplated looks like a nightmare.


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## enki42ea (Apr 11, 2005)

djg said:


> Look, I really like living in Arlington, but you're suggesting that the guy buy into something like an hour commute, each way. I don't know the New Carrolton area, but there's got to be a better way.


The other end of the orange line and out the red line towards Bethesda were the places I was told would be good from asking non cyclists, but then commute time wise doesn't seem that much better then my current situation of taking the Marc into work. I mean it is better, but then Baltimore is much cheaper to live and I can bike around where I live now pretty easily.

Anyone know about how good/bad Greenbelt is?

Thanks

sorry for the slow response, went over my handlebars in a crash saturday so didn't feel like thinking about biking when my arm hurt too much to use....


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## MarkS (Feb 3, 2004)

enki42ea said:


> sorry for the slow response, went over my handlebars in a crash saturday so didn't feel like thinking about biking when my arm hurt too much to use....


Sorry to hear about your crash. Hope that your are feeling better. Get well soon.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

Yep, riding in Lanham/Landover would be nuts. I know I wouldn't want to do it unless I REALLY had to do it for some reason. What everybody has said about the neighborhood and traffic is correct. I live out in Germantown and love the riding around here. You can come out this way on the red line with the last stop being Shady Grove. I have met one guy off of this board that would ride the red line out to Shady Grove to ride with me and climb Sugarloaf with me.

Since you have to work everyday, I would suggest that you move somewhere close to work and then deal with traveling to ride. Any way you slice it, if you move far from work you still have to get home before you can ride, so what would be any different if you lived close to work and then had to take the metro somewhere to ride. How often do you ride? Me, I just go out my garage in Germantown and ride, which I love. I used to do the same thing when I lived with my parents in Kensington and then Silver Spring. If you find somewhere to live in Montgomery County, you will be splitting the difference and living in a much better neighborhood than Lanham/Landover. I have a friend that is a PG police office and he tells me that the Landover/Lanham/Seat Pleasant area is terrible with crime. If anybody would know, it would be the police.


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## Spongedog (Aug 6, 2005)

*McLean to Towson Rt.*

Here is a map of the route I took: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/2360304

Basically, I took the Custis Trail over Key Bridge, and then took M St. to the White House. Then I just road up to Rt. 1 (Rhode Island Ave), and took that into Baltimore City. I should have gone more towards the Inner Harbor, and then go up Charles, instead of going through the sketchy neighborhoods I ended up riding through.


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## enki42ea (Apr 11, 2005)

MarkS said:


> Sorry to hear about your crash. Hope that your are feeling better. Get well soon.


Thanks, regained some more use of my arm today. (hard to contract the front deltoid muscle)


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## enki42ea (Apr 11, 2005)

fabsroman said:


> Since you have to work everyday, I would suggest that you move somewhere close to work and then deal with traveling to ride. Any way you slice it, if you move far from work you still have to get home before you can ride, so what would be any different if you lived close to work and then had to take the metro somewhere to ride.


I kind of like riding most days after work (i.e. when the weather is good, I'm not in need of sleep, and not in pain) So while I don't mind traveling to a weekend group ride needing to travel to ride on a weekday wouldn't be very good (especially since bikes can't be on the metro during rush hour)


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## JohnnyTooBad (Apr 5, 2004)

To put it simply, you don't want to live in Greenbelt or Lanham/New Carrolton. Basically, you don't want to live in PG County. I'd recommend either Davidsonville or Annapolis (Anne Arundle county), or pretty well into Montgomery county (not Silver Spring - at least to Bethesda/Rockville). Mont. county will be more expensive, but the commute is much better going that direction. Also, there are hills closer, as you can go north to northern Mont county up I-270, or into Frederick. From Annapolis, there is good riding, but it's very flat. A bit better in Davidsonville. D'ville is pretty rural for as close in as it is, but it's also expensive. I did the commute from almost downtown Annapolis to Lanham (close to the New Carrolton metro) for a number of years. It was 20 miles, and traffic back then was okay, but it's been 8 years, and I'm sure it's worse now. Basically, Rt50 through Bowie is where it gets bad.

As for Montg. county, having to come down I-270 in the morning sucks big time, but once you start heading north on the beltway, the traffic in that direction is pretty light. So if you can afford to be in Bethesda, that's a good choice. Even past Rockville, you'll spend a lot of time on 270.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

Bethesda and Kensington are both pretty nice areas to live in that are close to the beltway. Kensington is right by Rock Creek Park/Beach Drive that has some pretty good riding. There are even a couple of hills on that ride if you take a few detours. There is the Mormon Temple hill and a couple of hills around there. There are some good climbs further down Beach Drive in DC. From Bethesda you can head north and really get into some climbs. I did a course out here today that pretty much killed me with the climbs.


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## bikeboy389 (May 4, 2004)

Silver Spring is quite the place to live, if I say so myself. I'm not super hot on all the new development downtown, but it has made our part of Silver Spring a nearly car-free place to live with some shops and entertainment close by. But it's gotten pretty expensive, so unless you're ready to throw down, it might be out of your price range. Actually, most of close-in Montgomery is good for cycling, and not too far from where you'll work, but if you plan to own, it's gonna be spendy. There are probably lots of apartments that would be workable, though.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

Yeah, Silver Spring isn't too bad to live in. I lived there for 15 to 16 years with my parents, but we were on the outskirts. Still visit my parents every weekend at their place. I also have some clients in Silver Spring. The area is pretty nice, but at this point in my life it isn't the place for me, my wife, and my kid to live. We are looking at north Montgomery County or Howard County around Columbia/Ellicott City. I just like open spaces versus cities.

Bikeboy,

How long have you been in Silver Spring? I went to high school at Springbrook and graduated in 1989. Just wondering if you are from the area.


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## bikeboy389 (May 4, 2004)

fabsroman said:


> Bikeboy,
> 
> How long have you been in Silver Spring? I went to high school at Springbrook and graduated in 1989. Just wondering if you are from the area.


I've been in Silly String about 12 years, in our current house near downtown for 10 years in October. Before that, DC for a few years. I've only been in the Metro area for 17 years or so. You know, it's weird. I've never lived anywhere as long as I've lived in the area--and I'm edging up on having been in SS as long as anywhere else, yet I still somehow don't consider myself to be local. Weird. Maybe when I've lived in my current house longer than any other, I'll decide I can claim permanent residency.

I've been here long enough to remember how desolate downtown Silver Spring was before (maybe three places to eat--four if you count the old Tastee). The extra business is good, and my office is in one of the new buildings, which is nice.


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## enki42ea (Apr 11, 2005)

So almost a year later and haven't moved yet. Well soon be working in greenbelt so won't be able to take the train to work. Everyone at work seems to think Silver Spring isn't that good for someone in their 20s


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

I grew up in Silver Spring and didn't leave the area until I was 30. I managed just fine. Bethesda and Chevy Chase aren't that far away for the night life. Silver Spring has been built up recently, but it still has a ways to go. The problem with living in Bethesday or Chevy Chase is that it is a high rent district. I have no idea how much money you make, but if you are looking for a night life and less crime, Bethesday and Chevy Chase would be the place to go. Next on the list would be Rockville. It seems as though the new construction, for the most part, is taking place in western Montgomery County, with a little bit of revitalization stuff in eastern Montgomery County. Problem is that they cannot plow down the old stuff fast enough compared to buying farms in western Montgomery County and erecting small office parks and subdivisions.


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## enki42ea (Apr 11, 2005)

At about an hour commute by metro/bus Silver Spring seems like it may be a bit too much of a commute since that doesn't even include waiting for the first metro and getting there. (and hence Bethesda and Rockville are really out)

Anyone know how good Mt Pleasent/Columbia Heights is for biking? Some friends are saying its a nice area to live but I'm not sure how good it is for biking.

Thanks


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## Slim Chance (Feb 8, 2005)

I lived in Mt. Pleasant (Lamont between Mt. P and 16th) and Adams Morgan from the late 70’s to the late 80s and now reside in Silver Spring so I know the area pretty well. On the positive Mt. P borders Rock Creek Park which is a nice place to ride during non-rush hour times. Columbia Heights is just a bit further. Mt. P is mostly residential while CH now has a bustling commercial district. I can hardly believe how much it’s changed in the past 5 years. Demographically it’s much more diverse (read getrification). There is lots of traffic, but it’s still ridable. I was pretty amazed one night as I was driving up town on 13th St. To see how many 20-30 year-olds we hanging out on the street, many on bikes, many just cool cruisers. I was pretty jealous. On the downside, you still have traffic and crime, but that’s life in the big city. I would think either one of those neighborhoods would be a great place to work and both give great access to the rest of the city. Lastly, they’re in one of the high points of the city, so it’s always uphill on the way home.

And if you decide Silver Spring is the place, downtown is also close to Rock Creek and there are a couple of bike shops around, too.


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## nate (Jun 20, 2004)

fabsroman said:


> I grew up in Silver Spring and didn't leave the area until I was 30. I managed just fine. Bethesda and Chevy Chase aren't that far away for the night life. Silver Spring has been built up recently, but it still has a ways to go. The problem with living in Bethesday or Chevy Chase is that it is a high rent district. I have no idea how much money you make, but if you are looking for a night life and less crime, Bethesday and Chevy Chase would be the place to go. Next on the list would be Rockville. It seems as though the new construction, for the most part, is taking place in western Montgomery County, with a little bit of revitalization stuff in eastern Montgomery County. Problem is that they cannot plow down the old stuff fast enough compared to buying farms in western Montgomery County and erecting small office parks and subdivisions.


I don't know. I think Silver Spring now is similar to how Bethesda was when we were in high school. With NOAA and Discovery well established and many other businesses that have followed, I really think it is up and coming, so to speak. There are really a lot of similarities in terms of easy access to public transit, proximity to the city, and more.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

I'll have to disagree with you Nate. There are parts of Silver Spring, and small parts at that, that are pretty nice, but the surrounding area isn't very new. In Bethesda, you can see a lot of older homes being bought by the rich and being plowed down and replaced with new ones. In Silver Spring, most of the homes are just plain old and the well to do will not move into that area. I went to look at a house in Wheaton for a potential rental, and it was a complete dump. Wheaton has some new construction above the metro, but not much other than that.

Honestly, the county should use its eminent domain power, buy entire city blocks and sell them to developers so that developers can plow everything down and build new stuff. Some of the pre WWII stuff isn't too bad, but that is the minority of it. Then there is the lead paint hazard that goes with older houses.


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## Slim Chance (Feb 8, 2005)

Well to stray a bit further off topic I’ll have to disagree with Nate & Fabs on a few issues. I’ve lived in SS for about 15 years just up Wayne Ave. from downtown.I’ve was here before the revitalization and have been observing the changes, both good and bad, with much interest. I guess it will be at least a generation before SS will ever, if ever, become Bethesda. The primary reason is the ethnic make up of the two areas. (By the way, I assume that when we say Silver Spring, we mean the downtown area. SS itself is very big and the downtown/Georgia Ave. section is vastly different from the parts along New Hampshire Ave. and Randolph Rd.) Lower SS is made up of many ethnic groups along with a strong middle class white group. If you want to see the real difference between SS and Bethesda, visit both in the evening. Both have lively streets scenes, but SS’s is markedly more diverse. Sort of a suburban version of DC. Both are great, but the truth is that each reflects it’s own community. It’s easy enough to say let’s tear down all of the housing that’s not up to our standards (and there is plenty I’d like to see go), but you run smack into the affordable housing issue, which has many proponents in SS. SS has long been a center for immigrants, which brings a nice flavor to the area that‘s missing in Bethesda. It also brings many socioeconomic problems, that people much smarter than I, have yet to solve. Maybe we should have a Tour d’SS to asses the problem and possible solutions?


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## Slim Chance (Feb 8, 2005)

*Hyattsville?*

Back to the topic . . . Have you considered Hyattsville? It’s not as far along in its renaissance, but it’s an up and coming place.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

Slim Chance,

I'll agree with you about the different ethnic makeups of downtown Silver Spring and downtown Bethesda. Bethesda is just a much more expensive area, so you won't see many immigrants there. Same went for my parents when they first got here. The first house I lived in for the first 2 years of my life was in Camp Springs. Then, my parents bought a place in Kensington, and finally they moved to a larger house in Colesville by the intersection of Randolph and New Hampshire. I have been in the Montgomery County area essentially 34 years, going to college at College Park and law school at the University of Baltimore, all the time living with my parents. Things have definitely been changing in Montgomery County.


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## rsosborn (May 19, 2008)

enki42ea said:


> At about an hour commute by metro/bus Silver Spring seems like it may be a bit too much of a commute since that doesn't even include waiting for the first metro and getting there. (and hence Bethesda and Rockville are really out)
> 
> Anyone know how good Mt Pleasent/Columbia Heights is for biking? Some friends are saying its a nice area to live but I'm not sure how good it is for biking.
> 
> Thanks


that area is very much in transition. i lived on hobart until three years ago. i'm sure it 
changed up until the point i moved in, two years before.

it seems nice when i drive up 14th now. the coffee shops are in, and the target is supposed to be on the way. i had a rough, rough, rough time there though. 

my townhouse got broken into twice in the first two months. the neighbor across the alley
lit his house on fire. i almost got mugged twice. 

"how is it for biking?" i road my $3k specialized s-works mountain bike around, simply to get out in the city. i don't think anyone knew what level of bike it was. if anyone knows what bike you're riding, i'm not sure you might not get "bike jacked" riding around there. it's close to alot of stuff, but crappy area.


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

If most people knew how much our bikes cost we would stand a pretty good chance of getting bike jacked almost every day.

By the way, I agree with your assessment of the Mt. Pleasant/Columbia Heights area. That wouldn't be my first choice for a place to live in or work in.


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## rsosborn (May 19, 2008)

fabsroman said:


> If most people knew how much our bikes cost we would stand a pretty good chance of getting bike jacked almost every day.
> 
> By the way, I agree with your assessment of the Mt. Pleasant/Columbia Heights area. That wouldn't be my first choice for a place to live in or work in.


yea i hear ya. my point is this. 

i'm obviously not a professional bike thief, or an amateur one.  i would think in those places a $3k road bike will stand out more than a $3k mountain bike. maybe this is true anywhere?


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## enki42ea (Apr 11, 2005)

Guess I'll be moving to Greenbelt, now there is just the problem of long wait lists for apartments. Thanks all


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## fabsroman (Jul 14, 2006)

Not a bad area at all. They have a bike race from April to the end of August every Wednesday evening at Greenbelt park. That series is over 20 years old and I love it. They have 3 categories, and almost any beginner can race the C race without too much trouble. There is a metro stop right there and the beltway is also right there. That is probably why there is a decent waiting list for a place there. Maybe you should think about buying something in today's market. That way, you can also get a tax break. Yeah, it will hurt at first, but the tax savings will be pretty good and you will see that every spring. Plus, if the market picks up, you might even make some money.


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