Wonderful Washington!

Our ride from Bowie, MD into our Nation's Capitol was really quite nice! First of all it wasn't too far and the city is very bicycle friendly. The Greenway took us by the Smithsonian and into the vast green space park with the Carousel (of course we had to hop a ride!) on our way to the end point, the Lincoln Memorial. We spent a little time soaking up the beauty and majesty of this great city before we crossed the Arlington Memorial Bridge to cycle another five miles to our friend Scott's house. He has created such a warm and wonderful home (complete with his own artwork adorning the walls!) and we just loved Kobe, Mocha, and Simon his dog and cats! Scott took the afternoon off and became tour guide extraordinaire for us. He grew up in Alexandria before attending Hamilton so he knows DC and environs very well. We enjoyed a delightful lunch along the Potomac in Alexandria before we walked the quaint streets and toured through the old Torpedo Factory which is now a three story structure for artists' studios and galleries. Scott then took us to Arlington National Cemetery where his father is buried. We also were witness to the very moving Changing of the Guard ceremony at the tomb of the Unknown soldier. The Air Force Memorial can be seen in the distance. Another Hamilton crony, Susan Muchmore, and her husband Mark joined us for a fun catch up dinner at the Liberty Tavern in Arlington. I must say, the best part of this odyssey is the time we spend with friends and family along the way. Treasured memories!

Thursday dawned hot and sunny. After our goodbyes to Scott we launched out on a gorgeous 17 mile trail along the river. Just before we reached the Mt. Vernon Homestead we met Scott's Mom in a park where she provided us with cold water for our trip. It was wonderful to see her again after all these years! The rest of our day, however, was not so great. The temperature continued to rise up to 102 and we kept getting forced off course due to military installations that were once passable but now are closed to the public. The day was going to be an 80 miler, which in and of itself, was daunting, but it soon became apparent that if we kept on this way it could reach into the 90's. Once we hit Route 1 near Quantico and saw that there was absolutely no shoulder with more than 20 miles left to go, we placed a call to Mom and Dad and the sag wagon swung into action! Good thing too because Holly began to experience the effects of heat stroke. A nice cool hotel room and a spectacular dinner at an Italian restaurant in Fredericksburg proved to be the cure! Our next destination is Williamsburg, VA and the Labor Day weekend with Lisa and Michael Brickey!!