Will you by my friend?

[7rider]

Welcome to the neighborhood!
Settle in and give us a shout when you're ready to go out an explore.

[madscot13]

So you guys promise that it is possible to ride a bike out there? I love the bike paths around my house. Imagine being able to get within any 20 mile distance I could ever want mostly by bike path. Hey can you cross country ski anywhere around there?

[IFjane]

So you guys promise that it is possible to ride a bike out there? I love the bike paths around my house. Imagine being able to get within any 20 mile distance I could ever want mostly by bike path. Hey can you cross country ski anywhere around there?

Only if it snows. Unless you are ok x-country skiing on ice....

We do get snow, but usually the heavy, wet variety.

[Kalidurga]

There are some ski resorts out in western Md/Pa (Wisp, Whitetail, a few others I can't recall). I've considered finding out whether they offer cross-country or snow-shoeing, but haven't looked into it yet.

And, yeah, there are tons of places to ride in/around DC. Peruse through this and get ready to pedal: BikeWashington.org

Also, I don't know if you saw the ride reports from our TE-DC Monument Tour last month, but we talked about doing a similar ride again after Labor Day. You'll definitely have to join us!

[7rider]

There are some ski resorts out in western Md/Pa (Wisp, Whitetail, a few others I can't recall). I've considered finding out whether they offer cross-country or snow-shoeing, but haven't looked into it yet.

Liberty, Roundtop and (further afield) Snowshoe, Canaan Valley, and a few others in WV. Wisp is arguably a "resort" as it's a 4-season vacation spot at Deep Creek Lake. Actually, a pretty neat area.

Most places will have xc skiing on a nearby golf course if the snow is there. Wisp actually gets the most natural snow of all the local areas. The option most folks opt for seems to be tubing, cuz you can do it on slopes with machine-made snow.

[JmcG]

If it snows, you can always xc ski on the C&O towpath. I work across the street from the towpath in MD and in the wintertime always see xc ski lines on the towpath, so people do it. But I don't know of any groomed trails you can go on around here. (I also see people who skate on the canal, but I wouldn't trust that.....)

As for riding anywhere and everywhere, it's really easy and lots of fun through Gtown, Dupont, Adams Morgan, etc when it's bumper to bumper traffic and you can just speed along through it all! I live in Old Town Alexandria and work in West Bethesda and can easily commute to work. I also have ridden to Silver Spring and Poolesville, in MD on trails and roads, and down to Purcellville, VA on only trails. You really don't need a car in this area unless you want to get far away.

Good luck on your move and settling in.

[madscot13]

maybe I am jumping the gun on the whole skiing thing, but I will miss it so much. But it sounds like I can bike in DC and that there are at least a few paths for it! I think I am going to have my bike shipped out there and avoid airplanes and friends who may or may not be headin out there.

[7rider]

Hey can you cross country ski anywhere around there?

SURE! You can XC ski! Cuz, it's not like they know how to PLOW around here!

The only xc skiing I've gotten in around here since moving to the D.C. area has been on my neighborhood streets after a storm when the plows don't show up - sometimes for days - and the residents are too afraid to leave their houses. "EEK! Snow!! Quick - to the store. Gotta load up on bread and eggs!"