Epic Mini Local Adventure: C&O/W&OD Semi-Circle (66 miles)

We have been definitely upping our cycling mileage this past summer, which has been great. With more time spent in the saddle and some minor modifications to our highly unexceptionable bikes, we've been feeling more comfortable with longer distances. And by longer distances, I mean 20-30 miles. Before the weather got too cold and nasty, I wanted to try a epic (for us) ride. I had read about the C&O and W&OD Loop, a 75 mile loop that takes you up the C&O Canal to White's Ferry, across the Potomac, and then connects back to the W&OD back into Washington. Frankly, that "75" number scared us, especially since our then-longest trip was about 35 miles. S did some serious Google-Earth planning on how to make this work,and we decided we'd bike to Arlington and take the Metro back with our bikes.

We started off on a cold Saturday morning, our pockets filled with sandwiches and Cliff bites and took the first hour on quiet suburban streets and windy country roads out to Potomac. There's a lovely multi-use path that runs alongside River Road, which we took until we reached Swains Lock. After stopping for port-a-potties and shedding some clothes, we set off on the gravel canal towpath.
North of Bethesda, this section of trail is really quite lovely and uncrowded; we saw a few cyclists and joggers, but mostly we were on our own (though we did see at least two sets of cyclists who looked like they were taking Veterans Day weekend to bike the entire towpath). A bit of wind off the river, but gorgeous views across the Potomac.
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It turns out that 20 miles on gravel is quite taxing, and we were ready for our sandwiches and a quick break as we paid our $4 for our ferry ride across the Potomac.

By this time, we were getting a little anxious for a break, but we needed to keep riding to Leesburg. A few big, busy routes, but fortunately with wide shoulders. Once we made it into Leesburg,we had the usual shopping center choices for lunch, and we settled on California Tortilla for refueling, bathrooms and lots of water.
Just after Route 7, we found our way on to the W&OD Trail. The difference between the W&OD and the C&O cannot be overstated. The W&OD is paved, well-marked, has lovely amenities and is close to lots of towns. I'm sure it's terribly overcrowded in the summer, but in mid-November, it was far from full.

historical signs!

Amazing amenities

Despite better riding conditions, and maybe because we had stopped for lunch, our motivation and pace slowed considerably when we got on the W&OD. It took us a while for us to bring our pace back up. We decided to stop in Reston for coffee, and enjoyed being a spectator to some kind of charity Undie Run through the town center.

With the setting sun now as a motivator, and with what appeared to be a slightly downhill route, we were able to pick up the speed and carry on to East Falls Church, where we took our bikes on the metro and back home again.

Our total mileage was 66 miles, which I realize is not amazing, but it was hard work for us on our hybrids, without cliples pedals, particularly on the gravel towpath portion. My legs ached on Sunday in an unfamiliar way! I did learn that I am not quite ready for a century ride, though that is one of my goals for next season.

Here's hoping to many more happy miles out for next season!