Herndon, Virginia

Hi from Herndon, VA! i intended to bring our laptop from home so I could update the blog more often, but I left it home by mistake. But there is a computer in the lobby of this hotel so I will take advantage of its availability.

I drove to Washington, DC on Saturday and drove through some light rain and snow in NY and PA. But the sun was out by the time I reached Maryland. I was a few miles south of Frederick, MD on I-270 when the 2 lanes of traffic came to a stand-still. Some times we were parked for 10 minutes without moving and then we would crawl ahead 10 feet. This delay ended up extending my trip by 90 minutes, but I used part of that time to call both Tucker and Corey and talk to them! Thanks guys for helping me pass the time! The traffic eventually was reduced to one lane along the shoulder of the road as we went around what looked like a very bad accident.

But the GPS got me to my hotel in the Old Town Section of Alexandria, VA. and I unloaded my luggage and bike to my spacious, quiet room. I walked about a mile into the tourist section of Old Town and found an Italian restaurant that could seat me right away and I enjoyed a good pasta dinner and a glass of sangria! Liz and I touched base about our biking on Sunday.

Sunday morning we met outside my hotel at 9 and were biking on the Mount Vernon Bike Trail 15 minutes later. It was a cool, windy morning, but we had a great ride south to the Mount Vernon estate, where we did a quick turn around and headed back to Alexandria. The trail was fun to ride and when we returned to my hotel, we had done 22 miles! Liz put her bike back in the car and went home and I took a short rest in my room, before heading back out on the Mount Vernon Trail, this time heading north towards DC.

I included a ride across the George Washington Memorial Bridge so I could ride around some of the monuments, including the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington monument and the WWII monument. By the time I returned to my hotel, my cyclometer registered 42 miles, my longest ride of the year!

Liz and Ryan picked me up for dinner and we went to a restaurant in Old Town that was famous for their chili, which we all ended up having in one from or another. Ryan has his straight up in a bowl, Liz had her's over spaghetti and I had mine over tater tots! It was delicious and I could not remember the last time I had tater tots! I enjoyed meeting and getting to know Ryan. He seems like a great guy! I have a photo of us all from dinner, but because I am writing this on a hotel computer, the photos will have to wait until I get home.

Today was a sunny and warmer day. I moved from Alexandria to Herndon, VA, about 40 minutes from DC, and close to Dulles Airport, although I have not been aware of planes overhead.

This hotel is quite close to the middle of the Washington & Old Dominion bike trail. This 45 mile trail goes from Purcellville, VA to Arlington and Herndon, is near the middle. So this morning I rode from Herndon to Purcellville, about 27 miles, had lunch at a local diner, and then rode back, for a total of 55 miles! The trail was paved and well marked with mile markers and historical markers. Because it is a rail to trail bike trail, the uphills and downhills are gradual. Tomorrow I will head east on the trail to finish it. It is supposed to be another good riding day.

Now it is time to grab a shower and a quick rest and then find some dinner.

Hope all is well with you.