Day Trips in Washington DC Area?

[Chaosbarbie]

Hi There!
My fiancee and I will be in Washington DC in March and we want to rent some bikes and go be-bopping around the capitol. I have a few questions:

1. Can anyone recommend some local favorite routes? We live in SF, and I always suggest to my cyclist friends that they do the Butterlap loop.

2. Any recommendations on the best way to rent bikes? I see there is a bike sharing program or you can rent a bike?

Thanks!

[MattFoley]

You can rent bikes for the day or do bikeshare. DC has Bike and Roll, just like SF. Bike sharing is better to get around town and spend time at sights, but renting a bike may be better if you want to do a longer loop/real ride. A great and easy loop is around the mall (there are gravel paths the entire length), then to Ohio Dr. and around East Potomac Park (Haynes Point), then across the George Mason Memorial Bridge (known locally as the 14th St. Bridge), and south along the Mount Vernon Trail to Gravelly Point. Gravelly Point is a park right at the end of the National Airport runway, right on the river looking out at DC, and when the planes land\take off, it's pretty freakin' cool. That's probably a 15 mile loop depending on the exact route.

There is also a bike lane that runs along Pennsylvania Ave, basically from the White House to the Capitol, and a lot of north/south bike lanes in that downtown area as well. Bikeshare stations are packed in pretty densley downtown, so you won't have a problem getting around that way. Spotcycle is a must-have app for your smartphone if you're going to bikeshare, as it'll tell you where all the stations are and how many bikes are available.

Sorry I don't have a nice map, but if you look at google maps with the bicycle layer on, you'll see exactly what I'm talking about.

[QueueCT]

Why not ride all the way to Alexandria for lunch then back on Mt. Vernon Trail? You can take the 14th St. Bridge as above or cross the Memorial Bridge (by the Lincoln Memorial) and walk your bike down the slope toward the river to hit the trail. At the bottom of the slope you have to cross GW parkway so be careful. I

[cc_rider]

If you want to site see, Capitol Bikeshare is probably the best way to rent. You can ride a bite, drop one the bike off, hit a museum, pick up another bike and ride to the next site. No extra charge for trips under 30 minutes.
If you want to do an extended ride, a rental from a local shop, or Bike-and-roll would be better.
http://www.bikewashington.org/rentals/index.php

The Haynes Point / Gravely Point loop is a good one, especially if you are here in late March just as the cherry blossoms are coming out. Mount Vernon Trail north takes you to the National Cemetery and Iwo Jima (good view of the Mall from the Carillon). Key Bridge gets you to Georgetown. The river trail takes you past the Watergate and the Kennedy Center. Ride the Mall from the Lincoln Memorial to the Capitol, around the neighborhoods of Capitol Hill, then Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House.

Too many options.
Here's a site with some suggestions.
http://www.bikewashington.org/

Have fun.

[Consularrider]

Another source of discussion is the BikeArlingtonForum. I think a lot depends on what type of riding you are comfortable with.

[BikeNewEngland]

There is a comprehensive list of bike trails in the DC area and an interactive Google map of the trails at www.bikenewengland.com/washington.html . The Cycling New England blog also has several posts about rides in and around the District of Columbia.

[cc_rider]

There is a comprehensive list of bike trails in the DC area and an interactive Google map of the trails at www.bikenewengland.com/washington.html . The Cycling New England blog also has several posts about rides in and around the District of Columbia.

They just linked to a small part of the BikeWashington site.
Go to the original for the best information.
http://www.bikewashington.org/

Some of the posts are interesting.