Bike the Mt. Vernon Trail

You can bike the Mt. Vernon Trail but you're better off riding your own bike than renting one of these available for rent at the Washington Sailing Marina since, of the bikes pictured above, only one was suitable for riding. All the others had flat tires, the attendant said.   Photo by Patricia Leslie

The "quality" bikes (says the Washington Sailing Marina's website) are so bad (they remain outdoors during the elements) the hand grips stick to your hands but an attendant fixed that with paper towels which he taped to the handle bar.  Nice! Actually, they worked for the whole ride. Whatdya expect for $11/hour? Like everything else, you get what you pay for:  Here, not much.  Christine had to ride a man's bike without a kickstand, and it may not have had brakes either.  At least, it had wheels which went around/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail heading toward Alexandria. A straight shot/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail heading toward Alexandria. Up ahead, a big curve down a hill/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail heading toward Alexandria, a good place to take your dog out for a Sunday stroll in the park/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail in Alexandria. Look out for drivers opening car doors into you and your bicycle!/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A park alongside the Potomac River in Alexandria/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A park alongside the Potomac River in Alexandria/Photo by Patricia Leslie

In a park alongside the Potomac River in Alexandria, you can read under an umbrella/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail in Alexandria/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail in Alexandria, look!  In the sky! It's a bird!  It's a plane!  It's a plane!/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail near Alexandria/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail near Alexandria/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail near Alexandria there's plenty of room to ride, walk, and run/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail near Alexandria/Photo by Patricia Leslie

It may seem like you're in a swamp along the Mt. Vernon Trail near Alexandria and that's because you are!/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Along the Mt. Vernon Trail near Alexandria, dogs are welcome and a'scampering they will go!/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A gorgeous scene overlooking the Washington Sailing Marina from the Mt. Vernon Trail/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Time for a brew at the Washington Sailing Marina/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Time to sit and relax at the Washington Sailing Marina and watch the planes come and go, in and out of National Airport/Photo by Patricia Leslie

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Bike Virginia's Creeper Trail

On the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

It may look like a roadway, but four-wheeled monsters are prohibited on the Virginia Creeper Trail which runs almost 35 miles from Whitetop Mountain   through Damascus to Abingdon in the southwestern part of the state. 

Historical markers enlighten riders about the Virginia Creeper Trail. Thomas Jefferson's father, Peter Jefferson (1708-1757), surveyed the area/photo by Patricia Leslie

It's open to bikers, hikers, and horseback riders, and just about five hours from D.C. Well worth the trip down Interstate 81 for exercise, beauty, solitude, and just plain fun!

It begins in either Abingdon (2,000 feet ascent) or Damascus where riders may board a shuttle (laden with bicycles) for a 30- to 45-minute trip to the top of Whitetop Mountain, Virginia's second tallest mountain after Mount Rogers.  (Damascus has all the bicycles and fixuns' ready to rent or take your own.)  

At Whitetop, riders begin the easy 17-mile ride down and around the mountain to Damascus, or continue to Abingdon for a total of 35 miles. (Simple to Damascus, even for grandmas like me!)

On the Virginia Creeper Trail.  Some people (athletic in nature) ride UP the trail, like dumb fools.  They are all thin, and it is true:  I am jealous/photo by Patricia Leslie

The trail hugs Virginia's southwestern boundary which separates the state from North Carolina and Tennessee. From a certain point, the shuttle driver said, you can see all three states! 

It was a hot, muggy day in the lower elevations in the towns, but not for us! We felt only cool breezes emanating from the path strewn with wood chips and some rocks. No sweat!  Of course, you can ride in cooler times, too, but fall months are the most popular ("Lookit those leaves!") and often sell-out, so make reservations now. 

Whatever, it's the best!

What's this?  Van Gogh on the Creeper Trail?  Nope.  He died in 1890 or he might have been here. It's just, just (!) another typical scene found along the trail filled with all things Mother Nature. What artificial beauty could be lovelier? (The building materials came from Mother Woods.)/photo by Patricia Leslie

Christmas trees (in the distance, not those weeds) grow along a stretch of the Virginia Creeper Trail.  Buy a Carolina Fraser fir!  No fragrance like it to match the beauty, sounds, and scenery of a North Carolina mountain top.  (Hey, we're in Virginia, not North Carolina!)/photo by Patricia Leslie

A free museum (with seasonal hours) provides a bit of local yore at Greencove Station (with rest rooms) on the Virginia Creeper Trail /photo by Patricia Leslie

Home sweet home on the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

Who needs helmets on the Virginia Creeper Trail?  Not these young'uns/photo by Patricia Leslie

Children ride with abandon near a crossing of the Appalachian Trail on the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

The Appalachian Trail crosses the Virginia Creeper Trail at least three times/photo by Patricia Leslie

Time out to wave "hallo" on the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

Take a break and listen to the water rush on the Whitetop Laurel River which runs alongside the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

A naturalist pointed out beavers at work on the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

Bike racks aplenty stand ready to house your vehicle while your party stops for a bite to eat on the trail. (Said the guy in red:  "I wish I had that bike.")/photo by Patricia Leslie

On the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

You see what I mean about tree canopies? On the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

Stop and admire the scenery on the Virginia Creeper Trail/photo by Patricia Leslie

Is that kudzu on the Virginia Creeper Trail?/photo by Patricia Leslie

Finish your trip in Damascus with a great big pitcher of margueritas at Hey, Joe's! I'll drink to that!/photo by Patricia Leslie


The people are grateful to the U.S. Forest Service, the cities of Damascus and Abingdon, and property owners who maintain the trail and let us use it. Thanks be to all!

Wikipedia has some history on the trail, but the name is never explained on any of the websites I found.  
It creeps along the states' borders?  
It creeps along the river?  
It creeps where rails used to roam.  
Sounds like the title of a song or poem to me.  

Van Gogh in Damascus?  Novel, anyone?

patricialesli@gmail.com 

Bike the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath

Bikers along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath near Shepherdstown, WVA.  The path ranges from 7 to 12 feet across, and although it may look like Spanish moss hanging from the trees, it's not/Photo by Patricia Leslie

An adventure may begin at the Ferry Hill Plantation managed by the National Park Service and located on a hill above Shepherdstown, WVA where free bicycles and gear are available on weekends through Labor Day.  (Call ahead:  301-582-0813.)  

During the Civil War, after the Battle of Sharpsburg/Antietam, the Confederates housed their wounded at Ferry Hill.  They used the grounds as headquarters and encampment sites, like the Union forces did (at separate times). 

Ferry Hill lies above the Potomac River which troops crossed during the Antietam, Gettysburg, and Monocacy campaigns.  A NPS brochure says that when Union soldiers suspected the mistress of Ferry Hill, Helena Blackford Douglas, of conspiring with Confederates across the river, they imprisoned her husband, Robert, a minister.  Robert's son, Henry Kyd Douglas, was an aide to Confederate Lt. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, and wrote I Rode With Stonewall/Photo by Patricia Leslie

"Honey, you're in the wrong lane!"/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Historic markers line the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Barbara Humes, left, Harpers Ferry guru, and NPS guide Cindy Brockman, in the distance,  stop to read what it's all about on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath near Shepherdstown, WVA/Photo by Patricia Leslie

What I've always wanted to do: run with a tire strapped to my body.  Yee-haw!/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Campers off the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A brochure says swimming in the Potomac River is verboten, but these swimmers do not understand German. Overheard in English:  "Jackie!  Bring me a beer!"/Photo by Patricia Leslie

"That's more like it."/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A monument to James Rumsey (1743-1792), on the banks of the Potomac River at Shepherdstown, WVA, seen from the Towpath on the other side of the river.  In 1785 George Washington appointed Rumsey to be the first construction superintendent to build a canal at Great Falls, but Rumsey quit after a year when he did not get more pay.  Rumsey invented a self-propelled steam boat which he launched at Shepherdstown in 1787, and he has a following dedicated to his cause: the Rumseian Society/Photo by Patricia Leslie

The Antietam Aqueduct along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath, north of Harpers Ferry.  The aqueduct was built in 1834, mostly by Irish immigrants, many who died from a cholera epidemic which swept the campsites/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Bikers ride between the stone walls of the Antietam Aqueduct on the Chesapeake and Ohio Towpath/Photo by Patricia Leslie

This hill, the last rung before reaching Ferry Hill at the end of the ride,  is much steeper than it looks!/Photo by Patricia Leslie

 You can't go wrong with an adventure along the Ohio and Chesapeake Canal which stretches 184.5 miles from Georgetown to Cumberland, Maryland, but it's not necessary to do it all in one day. (!) 

You may begin the fun with lunch at the Blue Moon Cafe in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, highly recommended with its large and varied menu, good food (and beer), sure to please most everyone (including babies and dogs) in a delightful, shaded outdoor setting with indoor seating, too.

After tasty treats, you may proceed through Shepherdstown and Shepherd University and head over the bridge atop the Potomac River into Maryland, home of the Ferry Hill Historical Park which is up the hill and immediately to your left.  There you will find free bikes, helmets, and a National Park Service guide (if you're lucky, she'll be Cindy Brockman) to lead you along the street and down, down, down the path to the grassy green wonder of the Ohio and Chesapeake Canal Towpath. 

You can walk, run (with a tire), or ride the trail in gaps, like we did, starting at the Ferry Hill Mansion and ending at the Antietam Aqueduct (about six miles round trip). The trail straddles the Sharpsburg/Antietam Battlefield, and is beautifully shaded which helps keep you cool.

The park is "trash free," meaning you take out what you bring in, and at the Ferry Hill Mansion, no bottled water is sold, so take your own container or buy one there.

Exercise, an outdoor setting, nature, fresh air, camaraderie with friends, tranquil scenes, history, butterflies, sunshine and Vitamin D, all things good for you and available at no charge at Ferry Hill. 

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