East Coast Greenway Ride

  Riding the Mt. Vernon Trail about to cross the Potomac onto the DC Mall Leo, Sandy, Sarah, and Randy posing at the Lincoln Memorial with Washington's monument in the background. A view of the back of the white house from much further away than the normal viewing area.  Fencing keeps us all further away after the January 6 shenanigans. Riding down Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House to the Capital with bike lanes in the middle of the Avenue.   This concept of bike lanes between the car lanes works well.  The capital is also fenced off. However, the food trucks located in the mall were wide open so we chowed down before heading toward the Anacostia Trail. Sarah speeding along a straighter section of the Anacostia Trail. The trail has lots of curves that are really fun on the bike.  Even the bridges have curves.  Our riding along the Anacostia trail and DC was just over 40 miles. These sculptures were in Bladensburg Park just east of DC along the A...

Between rainstorms today we hiked to George Mason's plantation, a long hike of over a quarter-mile....  Our group displayed a wide range of enthusiasm tempered by my request to stop for a photo. George was one of the richest Virginia colonists who was one of the delegates to the constitutional convention of 1787 but refused to sign the constitution to be ratified by the states because he said there was no bill of rights and the executive branch was too powerful.  He complained loudly and after the states ratified the new constitution, the first 10 amendments are now our "Bill of Rights". Some of the glassware the early colonists had printed to complain about the tyranny of the British and some of the current campaigns as well are on display in the visitor's center of the plantation. Here are the kitchen, laundry, and garden buildings that slaves ran for the Masons. On the other side of the home was a storage house a schoolhouse where special tutors were hired to provi...

 We elected to drive from Ashland to Fredricksburg, VA, and begin riding bike paths and streets.  In the first mile, we had to go off-road to connect a shopping mall parking lot with another string of streets.  Sandy leads the way.   The bike paths once we found them, were a delight.  The nearby stream was a gathering point for many turtles. Due to a bridge reconstruction project we got to ride through a lot more of Fredricksburg than we had planned but experienced the old town was well worth seeing. Along the trail, we were treated with an artist's perception of what a "Dancing Dandelion would look like. As we left Fredericksburg, we rode 30 miles of very lightly traveled roads to the Pohick Recreation Park where we set up camp next to the Mt. Vernon Trail.  Google guided us through of multitude of turns that added to the fun,  The grotto above appeared next to one of the backroads we were riding and is likely associated with a church nearby.  We...

  Since this day was to be a day of likely rain we elected to drive to the Ashland RV park north of Richmond.  On the way from Williamsburg, we stopped at the Berkeley Plantation.  Berkeley was the name of the company in England that was funding the effort to establish a profitable company in the new world in 1619, now the site of the first Thanksgiving. Benjamin Harrison III bought Berkeley in 1691 and a dynasty of Harrison's lived here over the centuries.  Benjamin the V was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.  Later two more Benjamins were elected president of the United States. The Berkeley Plantation rivals Thomas Jefferson's Monticello for history and beauty.  We got to tour the inside of the very old home but could not take pics.   The current owner of the plantation is George or more formally known as King George.  He carries a regal air about him and commands the center of attention. George oversees the local bird ...

Beth, Sarah, and I started the Virginia Capital Trail in Richmond and rode southeast for 45 miles toward Williamsburg and Jamestown. At the midpoint, a historical park with a giant bicycle gave us some photo opportunities. The students of one of the middle schools expressed themselves with an eye-catching sculpture on the Capital Trail. Jamestown historical displays were worth seeing and the research being done is revealing more about one of our first settlements and how tough it was.  Of course, intruders do have difficulties especially if they think they are the real owners.... After visiting Jamestown. lunch was on our minds as we pedaled the 20 miles to Williamsburg.  What better place than the Billsburg Brewery to chow down and take in some live music. The old overpasses added elegance to the parkway we were riding. In Williamsburg, we toured the old town after taking in some ice cream from the new part of the city.  The enactment areas were fairly quiet since it is ...