Trail event today

Civil War re-enactors will hike from Wiehle Avenue to Hunter Mill between 9am and 5pm today.

gravel shoulders

Gravel shoulders are being laid along the newly paved section from MM 15 (Hunter Mill) to MM 17 (Isaac Newton). They're complete from just west of Isaac Newton to Sunrise Valley. Used the marked detour of the bridle trail for the section between Sunrise Valley and Buckthorn.

Great day for a ride

Except for some water puddles, the trail was clear from mile marker 7 (Falls Church) to mile marker 24 (route 28). Heading west into the wind was slow but the return trip was great. Near the Dulles overpass I saw 2 female cyclists riding double using both lanes. The one in the left lane refused to yield to oncoming traffic and forced another cyclist to the edge and 2 pedestrians off the trail. While it is ok to ride double, please yield to oncoming traffic.

a quiet ride

Took my Glider for a spin out to Purcellville today. The debris from the high winds is mostly gone. They've been clearing dead trees, vines, and such from about Cochran Mill Road. Saw the truck at work near Mile Marker 35. The picture is near Mile Marker 36.5 looking eastbound. Dominion has done a nice job.

signs of spring

Rode from Vienna to Purcellville. The cheeping at Difficult Run was deafening. Most of the brush and debris from the recent high winds has been removed. Fountains at Sunset Hills and Purcellville remain off but the others function.

Ding Dong, the ice is gone -- not

The trail west of Leesburg is clear except for two locations: the S curve at Clarks Gap (MM 38+) and underneath 7 along 287 at MM 43+. In those two locations one needed to dismount as snow/ice covered all of the trail. Both sections were short though, under 10 yards. Other than that, lay down on your aero bars and GO!

Tried out the trail today and found it rideable east of Leesburg all the way to Herndon. Some icy patches, with wide tracks through them, in the shady spots, especially from Rt. 659 west. Will be trying out west of Leesburg in the next few days; a couple of days ago there were still extensive snow/ice patches in the shady spots -- some with tracks through them and most without.

Two wheels good, three not so much fun

First ride of the year on the trail, from Sandburg out to Cedar and then to Lee Hwy and back. OK for those on two wheels, but for those of use who have a bit wider track due to having two wheels in front like I do on the trike, there were a few spots where one of my front wheels was riding on the packed down ice & snow- a tad bumpy. Tracks are more than wide enough in all the places I rode for two wheelers. If the weather forecast holds for this week, it should all be gone by the end of the week. Saw a big Red-tailed Hawk swoop in to a tree in the middle of Falls Church right over a walkers head. Lots of people out on the trail.

Ice is melting but continued caution is appropriate

Today I cycled from Falls Church to the west of Herndon. Ice remains on the trail but only 2 sections have place where extra caution is required--just west of Gallows Road and west of Cedar Lane. Otherwise the trail is either clear or cleared tracks are wide enough to use with relative safety. With warming temperatures these areas should soon melt.

Trail Conditions

I cycled from Falls Church to Herndon. The trail was relatively free of ice except for sections between Gallows Road and Route 123 in Vienna, west of Hunter Mill, and east of Old Reston Ave where the trail passes the power substation and golf course. While much of these areas had a small clear path, a section west of Cedar Lane and the section at the power substation had places where a short walk was appropriate. Several places have overhanging branches and brush on the trail.

Conditions in Reston Area

Yesterday I tried riding on the Trail from Wiehle Ave west. There are two narrow tire tracks left by the NVRPA vehicle that are mostly melted. It's a good test of bike handling skills to ride in the 8" or so track. However, there's still lots of ice in several sections even in the tire tracks, especially near the power lines near the old Sallie Mae building. At Old Reston Ave I gave up and rode along Sunset Hills Rd instead. On the return trip I started at the YMCA and headed east and was able to ride OK to Old Reston Ave. Knowing about the ice to the east of there I detoured along North Shore Dr back to Wiehle.

Today I drove along Hunter Mill Rd and where it crosses the trail it appears that there's a lot of clear trail to the east toward Vienna. The section to the west where it's shady is still ice-covered with some melting in the tire tracks. I'll be glad when NVRPA gets their new snow plow later this month.

Conditions?

Anyone out there care to give a report of trail conditions as of February 4th?

Temporary closure west of Vienna

Signs on the trail between Vienna and Hunter Mill Road indicate that the trail will be closed on Thursday, January 27, 2011 from 5:30 p.m. until 5:30 a.m. the next morning.

Trail Conditions

Today, I cycled from Falls Church (mm7)to Trailside Park in Herndon (mm21). The trail was relatively free from ice. Some slush on trail just west of Gallows Rd and just west of Cedar Lane. The only serious ice issue was east of Old Reston Ave where the cedar tress screen Dominion Power's substation and shade the trail. There the ice was still solid and required cycling on the gravel portion of the trail.

Potomac River Run - 5K

Date: Saturday January 1, 2011
Time: 10:00 am - 11:00 am
Location: Reston Town Center
Notes: January 1st Potomac River Running conducting a 5k on the trail from Reston Town Center down to Sallie Mae / American Dream Way bridge and returning to the Town Center. About 300 participants (maximum)

Trail mostly clear from Sunrise Valley Dr to Vienna

We took a brief walk along the trail today near Sunrise Valley Dr and it appeared to be mostly clear. A cyclist coming from Vienna reported that it was clear from that direction. The photo at the right was taken just east of Sunrise Valley Dr where the trail is shaded. Even there a narrow clear area is present, where the NVRPA truck drove over the snow.

NOTICE for Dec 2 evening trail users!

From the FABB Blog:

Open season December 2 - Fairfax County police will be conducting a "deer
culling" operation adjacent to the W&OD Trail at Clarks Crossing Road where the
soccer fields are located. According to signs posted there, the trail will be
closed on December 2 from 5pm to 5am. As we all know, the trail is officially
closed after dark but many people use it in the Fall and Winter for traveling
between Reston and Vienna.

For more information about the W&OD Trail see the W&OD Trail Report, the Friend
of the W&OD Trail site or the NVRPA W&OD Trail page.

Update - 12:30pm Nov. 30: I just spoke with a county wildlife biologist who
stated that the trail will be closed at 5pm on Dec. 2 and that police will be
using rifles to shoot deer in the area. Cyclists will not be able to get
through, from approximate Clarks Crossing Rd to Hunter Mill Rd. See the Fairfax
County bike map for alternate routes.

Labels: NVRPA, W and OD Trail
posted by Bruce Wright at 11:24 AM #

Trail reopens west of Leesburg

The Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority (NVRPA) is pleased to announce the two-mile stretch of the W&OD Trail between mile markers 36 and 38 west of Leesburg has been re-opened for public use.

This portion of the trail was closed to the public in December of 2009 to enable Dominion Virginia Power to install an underground transmission line. The Park Authority and Dominion worked together to ensure the trail would remain open during the year-long process by arranging the construction of a paved detour. The affected area started at milepost 36, approximately 3/5 of a mile west of the Route 7 trail crossing.

Trail repaving

Beginning November 30th the trail will be repaved starting in the Isaac Newton / Private Drive section of Reston and heading east to Hunter Mill Road. Total time for this project will be approximately two weeks (assuming no weather issues). The trail will be detoured onto the horse trail and signs deployed alerting trail users. As time/funds permit other sections of the trail will be addressed as well. Future projects include paving from Hunter Mill down to Vienna Train station, paving west of Reston into Herndon, and a small stretch near Broad Run Bridge (mile marker 24.5) where the pavement is sloughing off.

Thanksgiving day 5k run

Giving Thanks 5K Run

Date: Thursday November 25, 2010
Time: 8:00 am - 10:00 am
The run will have a maximum of 100 people. It will utilize the trail from Vienna Station to Clark's Crossing.