Hello Saturday Long Runners!
Finally! A Saturday morning without rain! We were originally going to do the Big Loop this weekend at the request of a couple of folks running Boston, but I heard rumblings that it would be a little too far for most people and because the cherry blossoms are still (somehow!) blooming we're pulling an audible! Now let's get into it:
The Route: This week we'll be treated to a nice tour of the Wharf and the southern portion of the Anacostia Riverwalk as we take on Southeast DC (strava, gps, pdf). We'll head into the city via the Memorial Bridge, head down L'Enfant Plaza and through the Wharf to get to the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge (new and improved as of a few years ago), make our way up the Anacostia Riverwalk and across the Sousa Bridge (named for the inventor of the Sousaphone), before heading to the Capitol via Pennsylvania and back to North Meade Park via the Mall.
Want Something Shorter? Coming back across the 11th Street Bridge and heading back via M Street will get you around 12.5 miles instead of the normal 14. There's also the option to take the metro back ($2 on weekends!) from a number of stations including Potomac Ave, Eastern Market, Capitol South, and Smithsonian!
Need a Longer Route? The Anacostia Riverwalk is great for adding additional mileage (and is super flat too if you need a workout)! For 18 miles, consider doing the full Anacostia Riverwalk Loop. Another option for around 16 miles is to take the East Capitol Street Bridge back across the river and continue down East Capitol Street all the way to the Capitol to head back. Hains Point is also still blooming and beautiful, so a detour there for a few extra miles never hurts!
Thirsty? We don't have any volunteers coming up for drinks (insert Bernie Sanders "I am once again asking" meme here) and as the weather gets warmer we'll need them more and more. As far as drinks along the route go, the water fountains along the Mall are (somehow!) turned on as of this week (thanks to Jill for scoping them out)! Other than that there is a fairly dependable fountain near the pirate ship playground at mile 7.7 that is a good bet.
Need a Bathroom? Along the Mall you'll find the usual selection at the Washington Monument. There are also some very well-positioned ones also at 7.7 near the playground. Otherwise along Pennsylvania Ave. there are a lot of restaurants and shops that generally will let you use their restrooms if you ask nicely. My personal favorite restrooms are the ones in Capitol Hill Books in the foreign language section.
We're in a bit of a downtime for the club as many of the other popular spring races (Cherry Blossom! Boston!) take center stage during April! This makes now the perfect time to start a training block for the Bunion Derby series, come out to Wednesday Night or Thursday Morning track for a great workout and better camaraderie!
Happy Running!
Anna
