Purple Haze

The fox kits were out again last night east of Gallows. I try to watch them without turning my head their way: Tim is right, not good for them to become too accustomed to humans. But they are pretty high up on the cuteness scale.

What is that purple stuff out there? Everything! I never realized it before this spring, but lots of the purple wildflowers bloom in April. Of course the rare and priceless bi-colored birdfoot violets that I showed in my last blog. Today I reveal that on that same day I also photographed the less charismatic plain lavender birdfoot (below). Am I a violet snob? Maybe.

The common violets are out in force along the trail now too (top left). Gill-over-the-ground (top center) and Purple-dead-nettle (top right) all add to the low purple haze along the trail.

Finally, Virginia Bluebells carpet the bottomlands near Broad Run west of Rt. 28, and if you look up around mile 10 east of Cedar Lane you will see Wisteria in the trees.

Critters and Blossoms

Well, today was gorgeous out on the trail. In the morning, at around 8:30 - 9;00, there were plenty of dogwood blossoms, like the ones here at the Beltway overpass.

About halfway between Gallows and Cedar, I saw a fox slipping off into the brush to the south. And then, between Cedar and Park, I spotted a young buck crossing the trail. We both eyed each other before going on our way. He went into the brush behind the houses there, to join another deer.



Then, on the ride home this evening, around dusk, I saw a couple standing at the south side of the trail, looking at the bank on the north side, just west of Gallows. Remembering idabike's earlier posts, I stopped and walked back to the spot... and there, on the opposite bank, were three young fox kits, eyeing the humans with curiosity and a measure of suspicion. The other folks and I wisely decided to leave them to their business, as it's best that wild critters not get too used to humans.

No pics of the kits... too dark, and I didn't want to use the flash.

Sweet Breath of Spring

Sweet Breath of Spring is a bush honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima --- great Latin name!). But today, it was in fact the sweet, warm breath of the season that charmed me on the W&OD. Another beautiful long ride out to test my lungs and legs and let my mind spin slowly for a while.

Sound of the day: The toads were calling along Difficult Run. There is nothing that quite says springtime like the call of a toad. It is a clear, rich, musical "Breeeee" at a pitch that a human can imitate quite easily. Here is the URL where you can hear American Toads: http://www.naturesound.com/frogs/pages/amtoad.html/frogs/pages/amtoad.html

Adrenalin Rush of the day: A Black Ratsnake slipped across the trail just as I rode by --- narrowly missing my wheels. Coluber constrictor. Coluber means "snake" and constrictor means... you don't want to be a mouse around this specimen.

Wildflower of the day: Bi-colored Birdfoot Violet. This was a good test of my peripheral vision. There were only a few clumps of the birdfoots, all on the lean clay soil exposed on the north side of the trail just west of Sunrise Valley Drive. Some were unicolor (pale violet), but the bi-colored ones were much showier, and I clambered up the steep slope --- to the astonishment of 'serious bikers' passing below --- to photograph them.

Runner-up Wildflower of the Day: Trout Lily. I had to take a little side trail off of the W&OD to find these. It is located on the north side of the trail about Mile 11, and runs through a little stream valley. The Trout Lilies were surrounded by Spring Beauties, another lovely little spring wildflower. Trout Lilies get their name from their leaves, that are speckled like a trout.

The sweet breath of spring blew me gently home.

An Introduced Species?

Along with the many wonderful signs of spring along the trail already noted, Saturday evening, on my way home from the shop, something caught my eye on milepost 11. Not AT the milepost, on it.

Okay, so it's a kid's toy... still, it made me smile. I hope it wasn't lost by someone.

Earth Day 2007

The W&OD called out all of our senses this morning. Shivering westbound through the Difficult Run valley just after dawn we heard scores of birds: Carolina Wrens, Mockingbirds, Cardinals, Downy Woodpeckers ("Kwerrrrr"), White-throated Sparrows and the ubiquitous Towhees ("drink your TEA!"). A pair of Canada Geese were acting like they were nesting in the wetlands south of the trail (right, photo courtesy FCPS). A Crow chased a Red Shouldered Hawk through the woods east of Reston.

The trees were in bloom too. And the young leaves, especially of the Tulip Poplar, were the brightest, gentlest green imaginable. A Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, whose caterpillars feed on Tulip Poplar, floated on the gentle breeze. The caterpillar and butterfly images (left) are also courtesy FCPS.

As the morning grew warmer, the trail filled with riders and walkers and skaters and many many canines. There was an Earth Day festival in Herndon, and the band was tuning up as we rode by. Delectable smells came from several directions.

The sights, sounds and smells of the Earth brought some peace to my badly bruised VT alumnus heart.

Falls Church - Vienna

Lovely day to ride today... sun, birds, and happy people on the trail. The only real "issues" of note are the construction at the soon-to-be Vienna Town Green, and across the street from that, the nice folks who take care of the landscaping around Whole Foods are working, and they aren't too observant of the fact that there's actually a thoroughfare right there. This morning one of them had parked a cart right in the middle of the west bound lane, right by the traffic light. Argh. Ah well, otherwise a great day to ride.

Oh, and the spring peepers were singing again, last night and this morning. They've sort of come and gone and back again as the weather keeps changing.

A damp day

I am learning something about the W&OD trail. If you want the trail to yourself, ride on a cold, rainy day. But my companion and I did not have the trail to ourselves today, despite the 1+ inch of rain that fell during our 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. ride. In addition to boatloads of worms and their avian predators (see "Wormicide" blog March 16) , we were watched by sentinel deer, raced by cottontail rabbits, and honked at by territorial geese. A brash chipmunk catapulted across the asphalt, a Kingfisher chittered in the ashen arms of a sycamore, and a dead vole reminded us that we had missed lunch.

The water ran down the trail. It pooled on the trail. It coursed across the trail. It ran down our arms and legs into our gloves and shoes. The water eased up over the banks of Difficult Run to inundate the floodplain. It gushed down every little bank and swale. It burbled along the bridle path that parallels the paved trail. The water pelted our faces when we turned them up. It drummed on our helmets when we looked down. Broad Run was out of control under the new bridge (left). It swirled angrily around the [detestable] golf course that slew the bottomland hardwoods south of the trail last year. A few Virginia Bluebells held their heads above the brown swirls on the remaining floodplain.

Most of the wildflowers were saving themselves for more spectators, but the Bloodroot was in bloom near mile 12.5 (right), and violets were looking cheery on the thin soil of the Reston plateau. Of course the oaks were blooming too, but seeing their dangling yellow-green flowers required close attention, which we found increasingly difficult after we wrung out our gloves at Smith's Switch and turned for home.

It was a splendid ride, and who needed to fiddle with a backpack hydration system? With the amount of water that collected in our hoods, we just needed a straw.

A deep breath

Wood ducks by Four-Mile run. Bunnies hopping all over the place in Falls Church. Marsh Marigolds blanketing the wetlands near Banneker Park. It may be chilly, but spring is here. As plants leaf out in the Northern hemisphere, the planet effectively takes a deep breath - of CO2! You can almost hear it.

A Summer Day?

I couldn't resist the warm weather on Tuesday, April 3rd with temps in low 80's. A planned errand ride to the bank in Leesburg found me on the way to Hamilton and back. It was very warm and I thought riding West under the canopy of trees would provide some shade. Wrong! The leaves are not fully out yet, especially in the "cathedral" area of Paeonian Springs/Hamilton. Good thing I applied sunscreen. The water fountains at the Old Mill Kennel and near the High School are not "on" yet either. Of course, I had run dry by then. Mother Nature surely can be confusing with these roller-coaster days of Spring.

I did see grafitti on some of the new signs along the way. Thanks for the email link to report it.
wod@nvrpa.org

Keep riding and have fun.

Falls Church - Vienna: Lovely ride!

Well, nothing particularly of note today, aside from the beautiful weather. Surprisingly, I saw very few folks on the trail today on my ride to the shop. I did see one gentleman, who was excitedly pointing out something in the trees... to his dog! It was fun to see... I like when people appreciate the things that excite their pets.

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign...

Eeevvvvrybodddyyy.... sing along!

Anyway, there is new signage and pavement marking going up on the trail. Last night on my ride home I noticed the new "ROAD XING" markings on the pavement, along with pseudo-rumble-strips. Today I noticed an additional signpost at road crossings, announcing the road name and town, such as "Gallows Rd. Dunn Loring". Should be a big help for riders unfamiliar with the trail. And while I think the rumble strips might be silly, at least they aren't too bumpy.

At about 9:30 this morning, the crews were getting set up around Sandburg Road, apparently working eastward.

Tim

Please report graffiti

As the warmth and sunshine have greened the edges of the trail, the annual opening of graffiti season has inevitably followed. The park authority folks try very hard to remove or cover graffiti as soon as possible. Trail users can help out by notifying the park folks of the location of new vandalism. Just send an email message to: wod@nvrpa.org and give a brief report on the location. Photo shows graffiti on shelter at Mile 4.

Beautiful Riding Weather

It would be difficult to imagine more pleasant conditions for a ride on the W&OD Trail. This photo was taken near Mile 40, about five miles southeast of Purcellville, Virginia, that is, halfway between Leesburg and Purcellville. Enjoy!

Dove love

The weekend started in a cloud and ended in a sunbeam. Both days the trail was filled with riders, walkers and birdsong. You could not miss the Mourning Doves. Their soft "Coah cooo cooo coo" coming from all sides. Mourning dove males call to mark their territory and to woo the demure females. The males also choose a nest site, but their nests are notoriously flimsy. Sometimes they don't even bother making one themselves, but instead use old Robin nests! When the two chicks hatch, both parents take turns feeding them crop milk (also called pigeon milk). The babies grow and fledge very fast, and a pair of doves may raise 2-5 or even 6 broods a year. Good thing. They are prey to many birds and mammals. Photo courtesy Fairfax County Public Schools.

Repairs to Broad Run Bridge completed

Repair work on this bridge near mile 24.5 (0.5 miles northwest of Route 28) is finished. It's a great improvement.

Safety Enhancements on Trail

Monday, March 19, 2007. The trail is clear all the way
from Leesburg to Clarks Gap. There's some snow
at the stone bridge at Clark's Gap but very passable.

I noticed these trail markings at all the Leesburg intersections along with rumble strips. This one is just before Catoctin Circle near the high school.

The work crews use hot torches to seal the lettering and I needed to walk my bike around their work at one point.

All in all a great ride with a stiff tailwind westward (uphill when I needed it) with gravity negating the headwind (almost) on the way back.

Frog Thaw

Trail ride today involved a stupefying headwind westbound, and near liftoff eastbound. But as Tim notes, it is clear clear clear all the way. If you ride through the Difficult Run Valley west of Vienna, listen for the Wood Frog. We heard them today: a kind of quacking or tapping call. The frog has a little bandito mask, like a raccoon, and is one of the few animals that can freeze but not die. When winter comes it buries itself and then goes into a deep hibernation where it stops breathing and its heart even stops. It becomes a frogsicle! When it warms and thaws, it starts calling right away. These little guys are found all the way up to the Arctic Circle. Photo courtesy of Kidzone.

Vienna to FC - All Clear!

Pretty amazing what a difference 10 hours can make. This was taken Saturday evening, at about 6:30, on my way home. It's around mile 10.5, as I recall, and as you can see, the trail is clear. The whole stretch from Vienna to Falls Church was clear and dry, with the exception of the bridge over the beltway, which had some ice on the right hand side (heading east), but still had plenty of clear, open surface.

This picture shows what the bridge looked like tonight at around 6:45. Not bad at all, especially compared to this morning!

Crunchy AND Slick

Well, it's no longer like pineapple sorbet! This morning, at around 8:30 - 9:00, the trail was covered with a thin crust of ice/snow, with a texture like cornflakes. And it's about as loud as that too. Kind of slippery, but not deadly slick. I was glad to have the studded tires, but it's probably manageable without, as long as you're careful. There are clear patches, but most of the trail was covered this morning. By later today, depending on sun and temperature, it should be better, but still messy.

To the right is a shot from just east of the bridge over the beltway, near Virginia Lane. If you squint, you can see the fence on the bridge in the distance.

Hi Mom!

As commutes go, last night's introduced me to new bicyling territory. From Arlington to Falls Church the sleet and freezing rain kept me very alert --- not to mention exfoliating my complexion. At about the Rt. 7 bridge, the ice began to build up on Idabike, including cables, which I discovered turn out to be fairly important to braking ability. But who needed to brake anyway? I began to get a good workout as the ice collected around the brake shoes and dragged on the wheels. It was like riding through pineapple sorbet while towing a shrubbery. I was long overdue at home and my son walked out to the trail to wait for me. While he was waiting, he made a sign in the slushy ice on the trail.

Wormicide

35 F and a driving rain for my commute this morning. I kept puzzling over why I had the trail entirely to myself. Then it hit me. I was in the company of tens of thousands of earthworms, all driven from their burrows by the rain, all moving across my path. I could not avoid all of them. It was Serial Wormicide. Obviously people were avoiding the trail to keep from killing worms. The flocks of Robins in Falls Church and Arlington had no such compassion. They had eaten so many worms they were barely able to fly. Some just stood by the trail in a stupor, eyes half shut, like a teenager that has just finished off a large pizza and a root beer float.

Trail user alert: Four mile run was bank full when I rode by this morning (left photo about mile 4.5). I have had to ride through water over the trail at this spot, so be careful to wear your water wings if your commute takes you this way tonight.

If you make it that far west, pause by Cedar Lane to see the Pussy Willows (right photo just west of Cedar, almost mile 10).

Vienna to Mile 30

Wednesday was a great day for a ride, and lots of folks were out enjoying the trail.

Bridge work continues at Broad Run, but it looks like it is nearly complete. Here's hoping that will be done soon. The new surface is much, much better.

Tree trimming was happening around mile 26, and I'm assuming will continue for a while.

Just west of Vienna, the marshes were alive with spring peepers, and some other species of frog with a deeper sound. Not one I recognized, but perhaps our resident expert (that's you Penny) can clue us in. Also spotted and heard a number of hawks, including Broad Winged and I think Red Shouldered. Oh, and one ground hog seemed completely unimpressed with our presence... he sat right at the edge of the trail, less than 3 feet from me, and just looked bored as I went by him.

Marsh Marigolds and Spring Peepers

The trail was very crowded today as the warm weather and late light brought people out of their homes and cars. Take care: many of these folks are not familiar with trail etiquette and some have a tendency to wander all over the place, allow their dog leashes to stretch across the path, and let their youngsters wobble into oncoming trail traffic.

The wildflowers are starting to show themselves. Marsh Marigolds are in bloom in Banneker Park near Mile 5 (left). Better yet, the Spring Peepers (right) are calling evenings in the wetlands along the trail. Actually, it is the males that are calling. In case you don't know what these little frogs sound like, this Fairfax County web site has a couple of good recordings and numerous photos. http://www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/spring_peeper.htm

Pack of Cats Sighted on Saturday

Catrikes, that is! Our Saturday ride consisted of all Catrikes from an early model to the latest Catrike 700 & Expedition. The cats prowled the trail from Rt. 28 to Leesburg and back. If we got all of our group together, there'd be 8 Cats! Have fun out there!

FC to Vienna - tree trimming and hawks!

Well, the trail is clear, the weather was gorgeous, and people are slowly starting to emerge from their winter burrows. There was a crew trimming trees along the trail, near mile 10, as I recall. Not completely blocking the trail, but blocking one lane. It's that time of year, so keep your eyes peeled all along the trail for trimming.

Just east of Park Street, I saw a red-shouldered hawk alight in a tree. Stopped to watch for a moment, when he was joined by another one. After a few moments, the second one flew off to another tree, where they apparently have a nest. It looked like she might be feeding young, but it's kinda early for that, so maybe not.

Vienna to FC - Clear trail and PEEPERS!

Rode home from the shop Saturday evening, just after dark. No snow on the trail any more, just a little on the sides. And near the Cedar Lane crossing, I heard my first spring peepers tonight! Woo hoo!

Progress on Broad Run bridge repairs

Repairs have been completed on one side of the bridge located near mile post 24.5, about 0.5 miles northwest of Route 28. Crossing the bridge is now safer and no longer bone-jarring, but still restricted to one lane.

Falls Church - Vienna: Mostly Clear and Bluebirds!

The trail is in pretty good shape from Falls Church to Vienna. As you can see to the left, the bridge over the Beltway still has a fair amount of snow/ice on it, but the north side is clear. Most of the trail is wide open and dry.

No surprise here, but the section between Gallows and Cedar still has some messy spots in the shade. On the right is the area by milepost 9.5, where you can see the snow is still edge to edge. It's mostly just packed snow, but there is some ice, including some hiding below the snow. Luckily the surface isn't too bumpy from footprints, so it's not terrible riding. And the fully covered stretches are pretty short, walkable if need be.

On another note, as I was approaching Cedar from the east, a flurry of 4 or 5 bluebirds zoomed across the trail and lighted in and around a tree by the parking area there. If I can get the picture I took cropped down to something usable here, I'll post it.

Skunk Cabbage in bloom

The trail is clear and the earliest signs of spring are showing up. Fox den west of Gallows has at least one kit. Pair of raccoons taking up housekeeping in hollow tree near mile 10.5. Spring Peepers (frogs) calling in wetland east of Cedar. And the Skunk Cabbage is in bloom in the wetlands along Difficult Run.

Broad Run bridge repairs

The surface of the bridge over Broad Run is undergoing repair. The bridge is located at about mile 24.5, about 0.5 miles west of Route 28. The rough surface of RR ties is finally being replaced with a smoother surface. This was a dangerous bridge that only the foolhardy would cross without slowing down. I've found many a water bottle, tail light, and other bike gear that had been shaken loose from the bikes of unsuspecting cyclists. Currently there is a narrow passageway on one side of the bridge.

Boulder Drop in Leesburg

The Leesburg area of the trail is wonderfully clear except for some wet spots, inclduing the Rt. 15 underpass. Here's a picture of a large boulder that fell down in the ditch alongside the trail just before Tuscarora Creek. Looks like NVRP marked it pretty well. The creek was roaring from all the rain, as was Goose Creek. Despite the wind, it was therapeutic to finally ride again after the ice and snow.

Hats off to Tim and others who braved the white stuff and reported. It made waiting for the big thaw bearable! Let's hope it lasts.

Falls Church - Vienna: Basically Clear

Friday morning, around 9 am, the trail was almost totally clear of ice and snow. Between Gallows and Cedar, there are still patches of snow, but even in the worst of these, there are clear paths where a truck passed through several days ago. I'm sure today's sun and high temps did a lot to eliminate what little snow was left.

Piney Branch bridge detour

Many people have asked us about the status of the Piney Branch bridge repairs. The bridge was washed out back in June 2006. According to the Friends of the W&OD Trail website:

Torrential rains in late June of 2006 severely damaged the sesquicentennial stonework supporting the bridge over Piney Branch (just east of Hunter Mill, between mileage markers 13.5 and 14). Repairs should be completed this spring.

We recently asked NVRPA staff about the repairs. They expect construction to start in a couple of weeks, lasting approximately 3 to 4 months. This would mean the new bridge could be in place by July.

Vienna to Reston

From Church St in Vienna to Sunrise Valley Dr in Reston the trail is mostly clear. There is still a little slush in the usual places; just west of Hunter Mill Rd and just east of Sunrise Valley Dr. The rain tonight should melt most of what's left.

Falls Church - Vienna: Much Better!

Well, this morning most of the trail between Falls Church and Vienna was clear. The usual areas still have ice and snow and slush, however. To the left you'll see what it looks like from the Vienna side of the Gallows crossing, looking westward. Most of the messy stretches have truck tire ruts that are mostly clear and rideable, if somewhat narrow. A few areas, such as just this side of Cedar, have not fully melted in the ruts, so you have a layer of chunky ice at the bottom of the rut, making it a little tricky to navigate. Unless you have studded tires, I'd suggest walking these stretches, or "scootering" with one foot. They are very short patches, so it shouldn't slow you down too much.



To the right is a shot of one of the messier bits right at mile 9.5 (that's the milepost at the right of the frame). You can see there's still a lot of snow and ice there, and no real totally clear path in the right rut. Fine, you say, I'll take the left rut! Well, just a little further down the path the left rut is at least as bad.

We're supposed to have warm temps and rain today, so a lot of clearing will probably happen. Just watch out at night and early morning for icing.

Some clear, some messy

Rode home after dark on the trail tonight. There are already some long stretches that are basically clear, due to the relatively warm day we had. On the other hand, significant stretches are pretty well covered with snow and slush. Apparently a truck drove the path after the snow, and in some areas helped it to melt faster in the tire tracks. However, in the areas where it did NOT fully melt, the truck tire ruts make for additional challenges. While it succeeded in packing down the snow a bit, it left a distinct "wall" on the edges of the ruts, which can really make it interesting if you let your front wheel wander into it. And while it looks like the tire ruts are single ruts, apparently the truck had dual wheels on the back, so you get two narrow ruts separated by a ridge... also challenging. So while some stretches are clear, there are pretty major stretches you may find yourself walking, or at least struggling to ride, especially in the usual Gallows to Cedar area.

Silence on the trail

The trail is muffled in about 5 inches of glorious snow. Every twig is picked out pretty in white. It is mid-afternoon on Sunday and the fine cold drizzle has started. Here is the trail at about mile 10 looking east (left) and west (right).

Mostly clear from Reston to Vienna

The trail is mostly clear of snow and ice from around mile 16 near Sunrise Valley Dr in Reston to Vienna. Just east of Sunrise Valley is a patch of snow where I had to walk a few feet. For most of the stretch I could ride in the tracks of a truck that had passed through. Once through that stretch it was clear up to Buckthorn Lane and almost to Hunter Mill Road. The photo at the left is looking west from the Hunter Mill Rd./Trail intersection. There's a stretch of less than a 1/4 mile that's still icy and required walking. From there east to Vienna it was clear sailing. It sure felt good to get back on the bike.

Actually worse, in some ways...

Some areas, like that shown at right (the hill to the 66 overpass on the Vienna side), are virtually clear and fine to ride. However, just west of here, including the Cedar to Gallows stretch (far right), there is a considerable amount of heavy slush and wet snow still on the trail. It was actually harder to keep going today than it was when it was all frozen over, so I cut over on Sandburg to Cottage and rode in to the shop that way. If I had had the time, I would have stuck to it and made it a learning experience, but John likes it when I make it to work.

The studs helped a bit, but the big challenge is just the sheer density of the slush. Really hard to make any headway, and still slippery as heck. I can't honestly recommend riding the trail at this point, unless you want a challenge.

Not for the faint of heart... or strong of brain?!?!

Perhaps Pooh said it best... "I am a bear of Very Little Brain..."

But today I decided to ride in to bikes@vienna from home in Falls Church, including about 3 miles (8.5 to 11.8) on the W&OD. The picture at left was taken around 9:00am on Friday the 16th, just on the Vienna side of mile post 10.5.

As you can see, the trail is covered in snow... and it's a hard, crusty snow at that. If it weren't for my studded tires, I'm not sure I'd have been able to do it, as it seems the best bet is to pick a path to the side of the trail, where the crust is unbroken (and remains so, even under about 200 lbs of me and my bike... note the absence of tire tracks behind my bike). It was sketcy in some places, where the path is narrow and completely broken up with footprints, but most of the way there was smooth riding to the side.

While it was fun, in a weird way (I like challenges), I can't recommend it to most folks, unless you want to a) do a lot of work, including the mental work of picking a good path and b) invest in some studded tires... mine are 106 stud Nokians, which seem great. They really helped me feel secure on even the icy parts of local back streets.

Oh, and since the riding took so much concentration, the only wildlife report I can give is to say I heard a woodpecker of some kind enthusiatically going at his work near Cedar Lane.

Re: Intersection at Gallows

I have seen this kind of behavior at other lights at Trail crossings. I tend to get mad. But not for too long. I try to get a good look at the type of vehicle, the driver, and the license plate number. I then visit the Fairfax County Police Aggressive Driver Report Form where I describe what happened. I've been told that a letter is sent to the vehicle registrant about their bad behavior.

In this case, I hope the motorist was decurled.

Slitherin'

My ride home last night was an exercise in balance. The trail was covered by an inch or so of wet snow and ice and my bike wanted to slither. I inflated my imaginary confidence balloons and pedaled through the white night. This morning we have several inches of heavy snow, capped with an ice crust. Mile 10 looking East (left) and West.

Intersecting at Gallows

This morning I had a little excitement at the Gallows Road crossing. I had the light, and was actually into the intersection, when I was joined by a motor vehicle blasting North along Gallows Road. The vehicle did not even slow down: it even passed a car that had stopped for the red light. Fortunately, I had just had my brake pads replaced by my pals at Bikes at Vienna and was able to stop neatly several inches shy of the white behemoth SUV. I got a close look at the driver, a woman with dark hair attractively curled.

So, be careful if you are one who sprints to best Jan Ulrich in the time trial, soaring into that intersection as the clock ticks down, pumping your fists into the air past the finish line, modestly donning the yellow jersey for the remainder of your commute.

And who among us has not?

I didn't get mad at the woman. I just used the special magic that all bicycle commuters posess to take all of the curls out of one side of her hair. I expect she'll notice that.

Sunday Feb. 11, 2007 Leesburg

The trail is practically clear from Belmont Ridge to Catoctin Circle in Leesburg. Some patches of snow/ice near Tuscarora Creek but nothing to worry about. Goose Creek Bridge is clear as is underpass at Rt. 15.

38 degrees, light winds and sunny made for a decent ride today. Get out your winter gear and ride. Looks like weather is moving in later this week......

Mary

One day later

What a difference a day makes. Even though it was cold yesterday, there was quite a bit of melting on the trail. Take advantage while it lasts: Monday we are due for more snow. These are from ~mile 10. Left is looking East toward Cedar Lane, right is looking west.

West of Cedar Lane to Park

Still a lot of snow on the trail, although open areas are increasing. There are plenty of icy patches now. Be careful out there. Here are some photos I snapped this morning.

Looking west about mile 10 (left) and east (right)

Mile 8.5 to Mile 11.8 (Virginia Lane to Church Street)

There's a thin layer of more or less packed snow on major portions of the trail here. Luckily, it's not so deep that serious ruts have formed, nor is it terribly icy. It's rideable with care, but I was happy to have my studded tires today. Watch out for the transition areas where the snow stops and the dry pavement starts... those areas are icy, and will get icier as the sun melts things today and it freezes up later. As usual, the worst stretch is between Gallows and Cedar, and the clearest is that tiny section between Maple and Church in downtown Vienna. I guess that's the one upside of them having cut all the trees down in preparation for the town green.

I'll have to try to remember to snap a picture next time.

Icy west of Hunter Mill Rd

It's still pretty icy and snow covered just west of Hunter Mill Rd. This spot gets almost no sun and will likely remain like this until there's a long warm spell. East of HM Rd it looks relatively clear.

When I got ready to leave work at around 7:15 p.m. I was glad that I wasn't going to be riding along the icy trail in 20° weather.

Seen from a distance

Just back from a trip to sub-zero South Dakota. The snow on the W&OD looks very pretty from a distance. It's definitely a lot warmer here, but commuting will be chancy for a few days except for people with knobby or studded tires and elbows.

Bright, cold, mostly clear

Yesterday and today, patches of ice that are easily avoided. The W&OD is greened on either side by Japanese honeysuckle (scientific name Lonicera japonica) during winter. Honeysuckle is evergreen, even though the leaves look like those of deciduous broad-leaved plants. Red-tailed hawk soaring over Vienna, and a little lower, a Turkey vulture tipped to examine us. We're not dead yet!

Seeing stars

Ice on the trail late morning in Vienna area was flat, mostly visible, rice krispy-sounding. No worries.

Tonight: glittering stars on the pavement as ice crystals formed. Full moon.

moonrise

The moon will not be full until tomorrow, but riding west on the W&OD last night it was bright over my shoulder. I like to cover my headlamp for a few moments and enjoy how it lights the night. Weather coming in today. Ride well.