GET ON BOARD WITH FIVE RAIL-TRAILS

March 24, 2000
Washington Post
by Stephen Murdoch
Column: GUIDEPOST—Page N34

In a cold February afternoon just north of Baltimore, I was alone but for a covey of wet and unhappy northern bobwhites. I mounted my bike at the trailhead while the round, awkward-looking birds scurried into the bushes ahead of me. Even the birds were going home and I was tempted to do the same. I had noticed the hilly terrain driving in from the highway and it promised to be a cold, strenuous bike ride. I pedaled my bicycle onto the wide, flat path and was pleasantly surprised. Despite the surrounding hills, the route remained level or ascended slightly, but no more than a few degrees. Lucky for me the trail I rode was originally designed as a railroad corridor, and trains abhor steep inclines and sudden turns as much as I do.

For 134 years, from 1838 until it was shut down in 1972, Maryland’s Northern Central Railroad Trail was a working railway. Abraham Lincoln reportedly rode the Northern Central in 1863 on his way to deliver the Emancipation Proclamation, and his body later followed the same route to be buried in Illinois. Despite their long history, railroads have been on their way out for a while. Only a remnant of the complex network of Washington-area freight and passenger service remains, and the same is true throughout America. Railroad company mergers over the past decade and our ever-growing reliance on trucks, automobiles and airplanes over the last century have drastically reduced our railway system. According to the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a Washington-based nonprofit, in 1916 there were 300,000 miles of railroad tracks in the United States, the most of any country in the world. Today, 140,000 miles remain and tracks continue to be abandoned.

Rails-to-Trails Conservancy advocates converting these long, skinny parcels of land into public paths to promote non-motorized commuting, recreation and open spaces in our communities. These paths are called rail-trails. The first known rail-trail is the Cathedral Aisle Trail in South Carolina, which opened in the 1930s. But it wasn’t until two successful midwestern trails were built in the 1960s that rail-trails really took off. Today, according to the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, there are 1,008 rail-trails in the United States, totaling 10,726 miles. We’re fortunate that five of them are within roughly an hour of Washington.

Especially in urban areas, railway corridors can be worth millions of dollars to railway companies. For example, the seven-mile Capital Crescent Trail, in Northwest Washington and Bethesda, cost about $21 million to acquire. Under federal legislation, some railway corridors, like the Capital Crescent, have been railbanked, that is, preserved for future railway use. The National Trails System Act allows corridors to be converted to trails while reserving the right of the railway company to repurchase the land at market value and resume service.

Rail-trails are more user-friendly because the railway companies sunk resources into their corridors that cities would never dream of committing. For instance, the Mount Vernon Trail in Northern Virginia is not a rail-trail. It’s a scenic and popular path that parallels the Potomac River, and, according to Peter Harnik, co-founder of the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, its users are more likely to have accidents. The trail has more limited sight lines because of twists, and it has bumps and dips that occasionally pitch surprised bicyclists and in-line skaters into one another or the adjoining shrubbery.

The engineering work on rail corridors renders rail-trails ideal for many different uses, particularly when they are paved. Go out to any one of the local rail-trails on most weekends and you will see folks of all ages and fitness levels walking, biking, in-line skating, rolling along in wheelchairs, pushing strollers and even riding horses on some of the paths. During the week, commuters in the early morning and evening avoid traffic by biking, jogging and walking to and from work on the rail-trails.

In addition to recreation and commuting opportunities, rail-trails create much-needed open spaces. According to Harnik, “Shopping centers spawn more shopping centers, but parks and trails tend to spawn more parks and trails.” Paul McCray, park manager for the Washington and Old Dominion Railroad Regional Park, a rail-trail in Northern Virginia, thinks that his trail has created more green space. This is particularly true, McCray says, in parts of Loudoun County, where development is heaviest along the trail. New schools have sprung up along the W&OD, and the county has attached parks, ball fields and woodlands to the trail. “These are all great things that help buffer our trail,” McCray says.

The W&OD Park office advises developers on creating buffers between the trail and their new houses but has met with mixed success. “Usually what we end up getting is some landscaping, and it’s usually some white pines planted along the boundary and that’s it. It’s not very effective,” McCray says.

Hugh Morris, research director at the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, says rail-trails are an antidote to suburban isolation. “People don’t really encounter their neighbors. And I do see that happening on the trails,” Morris says. “Life slows down a little bit, and it allows that face-to-face interaction that is ebbing away.”

WASHINGTON & OLD DOMINION RAILROAD REGIONAL PARK

From Shirlington off I-395 to rural Purcellville in Loudoun County, the 45 mile W&OD is the longest and most diverse trail in the area. At its eastern terminus in Arlington County the trail is decidedly urban. As I parked my car and began to unload my bicycle, some young guys thought I had stopped to buy marijuana. They seemed surprised when I shook my head, and I felt like a nerd putting on my helmet. The pot vendors appeared perfectly friendly, but I decided to move my car a few blocks away. The first concrete-surrounded mile ending at the busy Columbia Pike intersection didn’t help my initial impression of the W&OD.
I was relieved, then, to enter Glencarlyn and Bluemont Junction parks. After a few miles, however, the W&OD emerges again from the green and parallels the noisy Interstate 66 for a while. And so it goes, alternating between pretty and utilitarian, the path becoming nicer the farther west you go. The suburbs seem to stretch for a very long way, but the ride is still pleasing and the western terminus at Purcellville is blissfully rural.

Information: Washington and Old Dominion Railroad Regional Park Office and Friends of the W&OD, 703/729-0596, W&OD Trail Guide with maps available.
Web sites: www.wodfriends.org; WODTrail@erols.com; www.commuterpage.com; http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Trails/9401/.
How to get there: Take I-395 south to Exit 6 and go north on Shirlington Road. The trailhead is at the intersection of Shirlington Road and Four Mile Run in Shirlington (opposite the Village of Shirlington Shopping Center).

Length: 45 miles, from Shirlington to Purcellville, Va.
Surface: Paved with an additional horse track alongside for much of the way.
History: Railway first incorporated in 1847 and completed to Purcellville in 1874. Passenger service ended in 1951 and the line was abandoned in 1968. In 1974, the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority opened a 1.5 mile section of the trail in the city of Falls Church. Because of its popularity, the Park Authority acquired the property of the W&OD Railroad from Alexandria to Purcellville in 1978 and opened the completed trail in 1988.
Pro: The longest and scenically most diverse trail in the area.
Con: Our sprawling development sullies portions of what used to be a great rural trail.

CAPITAL CRESCENT TRAIL AND GEORGETOWN BRANCH TRAIL

The Capital Crescent Trail feels remarkably free of traffic and development throughout most of its seven miles despite its location in Northwest Washington and Bethesda. The paved trail begins in Georgetown, providing excellent views of the Potomac River for a few miles. Just after crossing into Montgomery County it enters a 1910 brick railroad tunnel, passes the Dalecarlia Reservoir and Little Falls Park and finally empties into downtown Bethesda. For a relatively short trail in a highly populated area, the Capital Crescent is wonderfully rustic and varied. Despite the hordes of people using the trail every weekend it is worth visiting and revisiting.

The Capital Crescent Trail becomes the Georgetown Branch Trail at Wisconsin Avenue, connected by a wide, well-lit, tunnel underneath the busy street. The Georgetown Branch Trail’s crushed gravel surface prohibits in-line skating and the skinniest bicycle tires. A trolley line is planned to run on this route, but at present it is hotly contested as the right-of-way runs through expensive properties, including the Columbia Country Club. While the trail isn’t as scenic as the previous seven-mile Capital Crescent, it’s a pleasant enough ride and it connects to Rock Creek Park in Silver Spring.

Information: Coalition for the Capital Crescent Trail (202/234-4874) provides maps.
Web sites: www.cctrail.org; www.citybikes.com/local/capital_crescent_trail; www.bethesda.org/about/capitalcrescent
How to get there: The southern trailhead is under the Whitehurst Freeway and Key Bridge at the end of K Street in Georgetown. The northern terminus is in Bethesda at the intersection of Bethesda and Woodmont avenues, just west of Wisconsin Avenue.
Length: 11.2 miles (including the Georgetown Branch Trail, which runs for four miles east of Wisconsin Avenue), from Georgetown to Silver Spring.
Surface: Capital Crescent is paved, Georgetown Branch Trail is crushed gravel.
History: Railway was completed from Silver Spring to Georgetown in 1910 and service discontinued in 1985. Trail opened in 1996.

Pro: The scenery is so nice it’s hard to believe you’re in downtown Bethesda and Northwest Washington.
Con: Sometimes it’s so crowded on the weekends it’s hard to believe you’re not on the Beltway.

BALTIMORE AND ANNAPOLIS TRAIL

The Baltimore and Annapolis Trail is a good suburban trail, especially in its southern portion. Betty Vermillion grew up in the house that was later converted into the B&A Trail ranger station, and she now works there on the weekends. She says the area has changed considerably since the days when the freight train rattled close by. “If there were five or six cars in a morning that would be a lot of traffic,” she recalls. Now, there are traffic jams. Despite these developments, the dense trees lining the path insulate the B&A from traffic and the backs of houses. The B&A has a popular, community feel about it as locals of all ages run, bike, in-line skate and push baby strollers along its length.

Information: Ranger station, 410/222-6244.
How to get there: Southern trailhead begins in Annapolis. Take Route 50 to Annapolis, cross the Severn River and take the first exit ramp to Route 450 south; there is a parking area a few hundred yards from the ramp.
Surface: Paved.
Length: 13 miles from Annapolis to Glen Burnie.
History: Railroad began service as A&B Short Line Railroad in 1887. Passenger service stopped in 1950 and freight stopped in 1968. B&A Trail opened in 1990.
Pro: Very pretty in its southern portion.

Con: The parking lot at the southern terminus is easy to miss and fills up on weekends.

NORTHERN CENTRAL RAILROAD TRAIL

At just an hour north of Washington, the Northern Central Railroad Trail is a gem of a rural trail and well worth the trip. According to the Gunpowder Falls State Park ranger station at Monkton Road, people see white-tailed deer, raccoon, beaver, red fox, box turtle and numerous bird species along the way, as well. After 20 miles of rolling hills and small communities, the Northern Central enters Pennsylvania and becomes the York County Heritage Trail for another 21 miles.

Information: Gunpowder Falls State Park (410/592-2897).

Web sites: www.dnr.state.md.us/greenways/ncrt_trail.html

How to get there: Take I-95 north to I-695 west. After skirting Baltimore, take I-83 north to Exit 20 on Shawan Road. Go east to York Road and turn right, then left on Ashland Road, which dead ends at the trail parking lot.

Length: 20 miles to the Pennsylvania border from Cockeysville, Md. The York County Heritage Trail in Pennsylvania is 21 miles long.

Surface: Crushed limestone.
History: Railway began in 1838, service stopped in 1972. Trail opened in 1984.
Pro: Beautiful rural location just an hour away from the Beltway.
Con: Going north the trail is relentlessly uphill.

WESTERN MARYLAND RAIL TRAIL

The Western Maryland Rail Trail—a broad, well-paved path sandwiched between I-70 and the Potomac River—runs through the kind of community I like to escape to on the weekends. I didn’t see a soul in Big Pool, Md., home of the trail’s eastern terminus, but the Coke vending machine in the front yard of one house and the handwritten “Brown Eggs for Sale” sign in front of another intimated small-town interconnectedness. Sadly, for most of its 10 miles the Western Maryland is exposed and hugs I-70, making for a noisy experience. I visited in winter, though, and perhaps at other times of the year vegetation protects the trail from the sights and sounds of the highway. Nevertheless, unlike the nearby C&O Canal Trail, the Western Maryland’s paved surface is excellent for in-line skating or wheelchairs.

Information: Fort Frederick State Park Manager’s Office, 301/842-2155.

Web sites: www.hancockmd.com/visit/rail/
How to get there: Take I-270 north to I-70 west toward Hagerstown. Take Exit 12; the trailhead is just south of I-70 in Big Pool. There is parking provided at both terminuses, Big Pool and Hancock. If the Big Pool parking lot is full, there is additional parking three-quarters of a mile away in Fort Frederick State Park.

Length: 10 miles, will be extended to 20.3. You can do a return trip on the C&O Canal Trail after going one way on the Western Maryland. The C&O trail and the WMRT run parallel for the WMRT’s entire length. At C&O mile markings 117 and 119 you can cross back and forth between the trails.

Surface: Paved.

History: Big Pool train station constructed in 1892, line extended to Hancock in 1904. Trail opened in 1998.

Pro: Great smooth surface for in-line skating and wheelchairs. The eastern terminus is near the fascinating colonial Fort Frederick.

Con: It’s right next to the noisy I-70.

MORE RESOURCES

WASHINGTON DC’S URBAN ATB PAGE — A Web site for all-terrain bicycles, is an excellent source of detailed information on all the local rail-trails: http://www.his.com/~jmenzies/urbanatb/index.htm. The site includes maps of the trails and notes on food, stores, lodging, bike shops and connecting bike rides along the way.

GREATER WASHINGTON AREA BICYCLE ATLAS, 5TH EDITION — A book put together by the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, includes good information and maps on all the rail-trails except the newest, the Western Maryland Rail Trail.
RAILS-TO-TRAILS CONSERVANCY— A non-profit promoting rail-trails. 202/331-9696. Web site: www.railtrails.org.

MANNERS ON THE RAIL-TRAIL

1. Stay on right side of path (yes, even you in-line skaters), unless passing.
2. Pass on the left, watching for oncoming traffic.
3. Before passing slower parties, give a verbal warning (“On your left”) or ring the bell on your bike. Do so politely and sometime before your front bicycle wheel rips into the pedestrian’s shoe.
4. As the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy says, “Wheels yield to heels.” Bicyclists and in-line skaters yield to other users, and pedestrians yield to equestrians.
5. Rail-trails are multi-use. Even at their snail-like pace, pedestrians have the right to walk two abreast and enjoy themselves (as long as they remember rule No. 1).
6. Slow down when the trails are crowded.
7. Pets should be on leashes.
8. Bicyclists and in-line skaters should be cautious around children, whose behavior can be even more unpredictable than dogs.
9. Bicyclists and in-line skaters should wear helmets.
10. Do not disturb any wildlife (leave the flowers, birds and other animals where they are, unmolested).