Trail Snapshot

Trail:

Various paved surfaces ranging in width and bike paths on roads from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. to Lake Needwood Park in Montgomery County, Md. For off-road enthusiasts, Rock Creek Regional Park, at the end of the trail, provides a mountain bike route around Lake Needwood.

Distance:

25 miles

Difficulty:

Easy to mid level. There is some rolling elevation gain if ridden south to north. Cyclists should observe caution, particularly at the dangerous car ramp intersections and the many sharp turns with short sight distances. Cyclists should expect toddlers, pets and other users along the path.

Outdoor Travels Rating:

3.5 out 5 bikes for scenery, access, and proximity to amenities. Our Rock Creek to Capital Crescent trail loop ride rates 4.5 out of 5 bikes. Beach Drive connects with the Georgetown Branch Trail, which is an extension of the Capital Crescent Trail.

Thumbs Up

Monuments, the Potomac and woods

Access to many food and beverage stops

Great commuter route

Thumbs Down

Varied widths and some poor path conditions of path

Potentially dangerous sections

Can be crowded on weekends

Nuts & Bolts

Location:

The Rock Creek Stream Valley. This linear trail extends from the D.C. line north to Rock Creek Regional Park, which is north of Rockville and west of Olney.

Access:

There are numerous parking lots along the trail. Most offer direct access to the trail.

Metro Starts:

From Foggy Bottom Metro station (Orange and Blue Lines), go north one block on 23rd Street NW to Washington Circle, and go 270 degrees counterclockwise around Washington Circle to Pennsylvania Avenue NW toward Georgetown. Go three blocks to Rock Creek Parkway ramp, on left, before the Four Seasons Hotel.

Nearby Attractions:

Watergate Hotel, Lincoln Memorial, Washington Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, The National Zoo, Kennedy Center, Rock Creek Park, Mormon Temple, etc.

Activities:

Walking, Biking, Rollerblading and jogging.

Admission:

None

Contact:

Park Managers Office: 301.948.5053

SmartParks: 301.670.8080 for non-emergency and trail maintenance.

Maps and Stuff:

Rock Creek Park Official Guide available from National Park Service Rock Creek Park Headquarters, 5000 Glover Road NW Washington, DC 20015-1098 (202-282-1063); Rock Creek Hiker-Biker Trail available from MD-NCPPC Community Relations, 8787 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910-3760 (301-495-4600); ADC's Washington Area Bike Map; Lower Montgomery County Bicycle Route Map.

Useful Links

Trail photos

Lots of great photos to give you a good idea of what riding here is like!

2 miles into the ride, 10AM, the first beer!

Riding by the Jefferson Monument

and the Washington Monument

The southern end begins just below the Lincoln MemorialJ

Along the Potomac

Watergate Hotel

Wooded Rocky Creek Park

More Rocky Creek Park

Horse Stable along the trail

Tressle Bridge

Biking

Rocky Creek Trail

Washington D.C.

Classic DC area multi-use trail

Dana Farnsworth, Outdoor Travels

Rock Creek Trail is a classic D.C. area trail. Severing as a major commuter route, the Rock Creek Trail is a loosely strung together heterogeneous combination of narrow older multi-use paths, sidewalk type sections, on road routes and a few parts that will leave you scratching your head and wondering why you are pushing your bike through an automotive tunnel on a 18" wide sidewalk with speeding cars flying by inches away. With all of it's obvious faults, all in all, Rock Creek's 25 miles wind by many interesting sites in the D.C. area. My wife, two good friends and myself began our ride in Alexandria which is a few miles south of the southern trailhead at the Lincoln Memorial. The D.C. area is wonderfully laced with a myriad of multi-use trails. Accessing the Rock Creek Trail from Alexandria meant that we would ride four to five miles north along the Potomac River on the Mount Vernon Trail (reviewed here) and over the Arlington Memorial bridge. The Mount Vernon trail also provided a very early "refreshment" stop for us. At only 2.5 miles into our ride, our guides directed us into the Washington Sailing Marina for a cold beer and some wonderful river-side scenery. I knew our friends were going to make great guides for us!

Once we crossed the Arlington Memorial bridge, we took a little detour to see the Washington Monument, the Jefferson Memorial and then back to the Lincoln Memorial. Finding the Rock Creek Trail is a little difficult here. There is no official trailhead per say. The trail begins less than conspicuously on the Potomac side of the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway that passes by the Lincoln Memorial. Skirting along the Potomac, we passed the Kennedy Center and the infamous Watergate Hotel.

As we headed north, towards the National Zoo, we decided to take a lunch/beer stop diversion. Riding up the Alpe d'Huez-esque hill to Calvert Street we found many nice places to eat, have a beer and relax a little. The post-lunch coast-as-fast-as-you-dare two-wheeled luge run was much more enjoyable. Back on the trail, the National Zoo is not far away. Here we made a inauspicious choice. Our less than specific trail map showed two route choices. Choice one passed through the Zoo, choice two, looked to be more direct. We soon found out that the latter option (our choice) required us to dismount our bikes and gingerly tip toe them along a 18" wide exposed "sidewalk", through a tunnel, into on coming traffic. It became even more precarious when a jogger tried to make her way along the same passageway heading in the opposite direction. To say that this part is bona fide dangerous, would be an understatement.

Things do get better. That is if you are riding during a weekend. Entering Rock Creek Park, you could be surprised by two things: 1. Rock Creek Park is just a few miles from urban D.C., yet appears to be nestled in deep green forest, miles from any major city. 2. Rock Creek Trail, in Rock Creek Park, isn't really a trail at all. The route requires you to ride on Beach Drive. The good news? On weekends and holidays, the National Park Service closes Beach Drive to through motor vehicle traffic from Broad Branch Road to the Maryland line (a few stretches remain open to shared use with cars).

After a scenic ride through tree-lined Beach Drive we arrived to the northern portion of the park. Then we had to do a map check again. We had planned to ride a nice loop that would have us connecting with the Capital Crescent Trail (reviewed here) for our return. Checking our map, it looked like the Rock Creek Trail would intersect with the Capital Crescent trail in short order. After riding through a section of rather confusing trail, by a horse stable, along a widened sidewalk and back on a multi-use trail again, with no Capital Crescent anything in sight, we began to question the accuracy of our map.

Standing in the shadows of the garish white towers of the Mormon temple, we did another map check. Meanwhile, one of our friends had fired up his phone and was accessing Google maps of the area. We had indeed ridden about a mile or so beyond the obscured "intersection" of trails. With the help of modern technology, we had found the Capital Crescent Trail (sort of) - in this area, the trail is currently referred to as The Georgetown Branch trail. See our review for more details.

Rocky Creek Trail continues for a few more miles north to Lake Needwood Park in Montgomery County, Maryland, from this point. With all of the navigation difficulties, hodgepodge trail surfaces and widths and weekend congestion, the Rock Creek Trail's attributes far outweigh its inadequacies. Like many D.C. area multi-use paths, Rock Creek Trail's conglomeration would be frustrating for the racer-in-training group ride crowd and gratifying for commuting, and casual riding that includes landmarks, restaurants and wooded areas. Leave your "how fast can I ride from point A to point B" mentality at home and bring along a camera, beer money a really good map, and a friend with Google maps accessible on their phone.