Thanks for the Info Barry,

You ride a Ducati too? Your avatar would suggest so.

I did a nice ride this morning from my home in Severn to Galesville and back. It turned out to be 61 miles round trip. I really love Galesville, and would love to move over that way one day. When I was younger I owned a couple of boats and always loved the rivers and the bay. Later today I took the wife back down there and hung out at one of the dock bars called "Thursday's Crabs and Steaks". It was a great little place to hang out and have a couple of beers. The patrons were all friendly and the restaurant is dog friendly which is a plus to us and our Jack Russel

Link to today's Galesville Ride

http://www.biggrizzly.com/Team%20In%..._thursdays.jpg

Hello everyone! I just found this forum on google, so hello from Baltimore / Johns Hopkins University! :)

Anyways, I was actually hoping to find a nice forum like this. I was planning to make a bike trip to DC on July 4th to see the fireworks, and then camp out somewhere and return the next day. However, most of my friends are either not here, or are running away scared at the 40-mile number, lol. In any case, I'm really hoping to get a couple of people together for this trip. Please reply this thread if you're interested!

Camping??? Count me in. I’ve got some multi-men tents and room for some extra sleeping bags if any of you roadies would like to join in.

Don: nice ride and I love the pic.

Greetings: I grew up in Utah. Moved here 40 years ago. I'm still not use to the humidity. Weather out west is the best there is in the US, period! Sorry to inform you of that. I can handle the heat w/ no problem but when the humidity gets near the temps(95F-95RH) I start to wilt. I will say biking is still decent in those temps. Evaporative cooling on a bike ride is good especially if you wear the correct shirts and don't stop:D . Cotton will not cool as much as nylon type shirts. Sweat in the eyes kinda sucks.
The Waldorf area is a great cycling area. Roads are mostly flat to gently rolling. Many of the roads have little traffic. Some roads have bad rush hour traffic but bikers know the sneak routes.
Buses in dc and "some" surrounding areas have racks, all metro stations have bike racks or lockers, folding bikes w/ bags allowed on DC metro at rush hour, bikes (non folding) allowed on at other times, MARC(Balto to DC) allow folding bikes(no bag) only, racks are at most stations some have lockers, buses in balto do not have racks but that doesn't matter as they have a poor reputation for being on time. Waldorf probably doesn't even have a bus. In short: DC great subway system, fair bus system, Balto small subway(1 line), 1 light rail, bad bus system, MARC train is ok. I don't know waldorf but a safe bet is a poor mass transit system because it's in the suburbs. Might find an express bus to DC??
I hope you enjoy this area, it's been good to me. I still go west and often think about retiring out there.
Charlie

PS Don looks like a nice ride. Did you eat crabs? I haven't had any thisyear:( Weather has been superb!!! I was in West Va this wknd. Actually had a camp fire to stay warm....in July!
Barry and James enjoy the zoo....I mean 4th of July in DC. Ireland is a feature in the folklife festival. Should be nice I'll probably go down after the crowds have thinned.

I agree. I do have to say I stay away from the monroe st. and fulton ave section of Baltimore. I'll ride early but not late. I've had a few hassles on Frederick rd in this area. Nothing I couldn't handle but someone not use to the streets would have freaked out. In fact it happened 3x's on one ride. It was early evening when this occurred.

Is that paradise in Catonsville?? That's my hood. Howdy. Charlie

After rereading what I wrote I felt I need to clarify that by “some” I mean a few. And more specifically I have had some really nasty experiences in the White Marsh area.

No crabs yesterday, but I have had them twice this year so far with fair results. The crabs looked good yesterday, but I wasn't sure if they were still LA crabs or MD crabs. Prices are still outrageous though.

Good place for a MD BF get together. Hint Hint :)

Is there any other? :)

Howdy Charlie.



Until a few years ago, I used to commute daily from Paradise to University of Maryland downtown. Only about 7.5 miles each way. Fun, fun.

I had a job in Dundalk-- did that ride, too, but not daily.

Peaceout,
Onan

wow you must live very close to me because paradise is tiny. We are building a rail trail to the beltway near Charlestown community center. Trail is open for walking, needs a harder surface for biking. We pulled out the rails(sold 'em for $$), picked up the trash(people are pigs) and cut out the branches/trees and such. Hope the politicians will allows us a bridge over the beltway. That is our next push. Commuting to Dundalk is tough. I have a hard time figuring out the east side roads. I'll be going over there(Chase, md) on the 4th of July for a family party. I'll probably miss the Catonsville fireworks. They have the best in this area. Better than the Inner Harbor. If anyone is looking for great fireworks this holiday try out the Catonsville. Charlie

I also love Galesville. I used to keep my boat in Deale and Galesville was a favorite destination in both boat and car. The car was for going to dinner there. Pirates Cove is an excellent place to eat. I also often make Galesville part of my ride. That part of the country is some of the best riding anywhere.

Right now I'm down in Solomons. Maybe somebody wants to organize a ride around Galesville, Rose Haven, Shadyside, etc. one weekend. If so, count me in.

I have lots of queue sheets of various rides from Davidsonville Park&Ride to Chesapeake Beach or Galesville that take in a lot of nice scenery and will offer around 3,000 to 4,000 feet of climbing as well over gently rolling hills and a few short steep ones too. These rides could be modified to start from just about anywhere along Rt. 2

Cheers

Possible "impulse" ride tomorrow:

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path...d-via-Delaware

If I do it, I'll get some pics along the way, including fireworks at OC.

NoRacer,
That's some ride. How long do you think it will take you to get to OC?

Totally awesome! It’s funny how the 20 mile detour around Conowingo Dam looks like nothing on this route. I assume you are going to do this in one shot, have fun! It does seem like once you're in Delaware you can just keep on going and going as there are so few hills to wear you down.

Yup, the only blip on the elevation profile is from the climb up Bainbridge Rd on the east side of Port Deposit. Other than that, it's very flat.

I'm hoping the roads that I chose let me continue to cruise for quite a while until having to stop for traffic control devices.

My only worry is where to sleep. I'm on my commuter/racer and I'm trying to travel as light as possible--no camping gear here. I only plan on bringing some shorts, a couple of t-shirts, and water shoes to change into as I bum around OC. I'll rinse the kit out in one of the public restrooms or under one of the showers that rarely appear along the beach.

Any suggestions?

Why the detour? Is there no way across the river around the HavreDeGrace area?

No bikes or peds are allowed on the Hatem Bridge. You can, for a fee, be driven across.

Anyone actually ride on the road in Allegany County? I grew up there and when I go home to visit I would like to be able to ride, but I'm thinking my bike and its skinny tires can't handle the tow path.

The elevation profile is wrong no way you are at 0 most of the way.

Suggestions on where to sleep:
http://www.warmshowers.org/

I see one host 20 miles from Ocean City, it's on your way back home so not that bad.

I bet there are some great TR from yesterdays wild weather. I did a 60 miler to a party in Chase/Essex yesterday. Rather uneventful....glad I had a ride home tho'. Here's the round-about route
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=1108688

I also rode to a cookout yesterday. I took a route down towards Annapolis and then back north through Severna Park using the B&A trail to get to my 4th of July cookout. Although not as far as Charlie, I got in another 30miles. It was nice, I ran into a few cyclists from the Naval Academy along Generals Highway and rode with them back to the Academy before I peeled off over the Severn River Bridge to get the trail. I was happy that an old fat guy like me could ride with a group of youngin's.

Link to don's 4th of July ride