Yesterday morning, I woke up with sneezes and woke up Brandi by accident. After taking an allergy pill I felt all better. Brandi and I chatted a bit in the morning, and I had another slice of her amazing banana and strawberry bread. After we bid farewell, I started my ride to Chevy Chase, hoping to get breakfast there.
The ride was mainly on the roads with the morning commute. When I got to a bagel shop in Chevy Chase, I wasn’t hungry. The tricky part was getting on the trail to Bethesda. There was a gate at the trail that said “No Trespassing, Trail Closed,” but the gate was open. I decided to give it a shot and see if I can just ride it anyway. The trail was very muddy and bumpy so I had to go slow. By the time I got to the end, there was another another gate, only this time it’s locked and I can’t get out. I was disappointed and thought I might have to ride my bike back to Chevy Chase and find another way. But then I saw a side gate and it’s unlocked for some reason. So I opened it and got out of the closed trail. That was a close one. I guess sometimes when one gate is closed, another one is opened. Such is life.
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| When one gate is closed... |
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| ...Another one is opened |
In downtown Bethesda, I ordered a hotdog wrapped in a bagel at Bethesda Bagels, a place recommended to me by Brandi. After this quick breakfast, I found the Capital Crescent Trail nearby and rode it all the way to DC. The trail is nicely paved. There were a lot of joggers and bicyclists in the morning. I stopped by the Lincoln Memorial for a photograph then continued on the trail to Alexandria. It was a beautiful day to ride along the Potomac River. I rode on some wooden bridges over some marshes. Around 12:30 PM, I arrived in Old Town, Alexandria, VA.
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| Bethesda Bagels in downtown Bethesda, MD |
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| Lincoln Memorial |
At Thanida Thai restaurant, I ordered a plate of spicy Drunken Noodles. When the dish came out, I thought they didn’t give me enough. But with the spiciness of the noodles I was glad to have finished the whole thing.
I then went to the Wheel Nuts bike shop around the corner of the restaurant. Not really sure what I needed, I asked the owner a bunch of questions regarding chain repair and bike shipment. He told me to not worry about the chain since most likely it will not break. I just have to change it every 2000 miles. He recommended a service called Bike Flights to ship my bike. I’ll have to look into that later.
I decided to check out downtown Alexandria, even though I’ve been there before. I saw a CVS, so I printed out additional postcards to give out. Since I want to be at my host Adrian’s place by 5:30 PM, I had to get going. Alexandria is a nice town to vacation in, I just don’t have enough time today.
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| One of many wooden bridges I rode on the trail |
After getting off the trail at Mount Vernon, I biked mainly on the sidewalks or the shoulders. I had to cross a six lane road to get the trail on the other side. I thought I would never get across since there wasn’t a traffic light. I walked my bike up a hill and to my surprise, there is a Wegmans grocery store. I used to love Wegmans before their prices went up. I bought a bag of beef jerky, some dried fruits, and granola bars. That’s about all I can fit in my panniers. Then I rode off to Adrian’s place.
I arrived right on time at 5:30. Adrian greeted me and showed me his minimalist apartment. Adrian is a helicopter mechanic in the army. He has been to a lot places and loves to bike, hike, scuba dive, and climb mountains. He and I talked a lot of biking, how to repair things, and even how an emergency blanket works. That would have came in handy during my camp out behind the fire station a few nights ago.
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| Me and Adrian |
Adrian cooked some salmon, rice, and broccolis for both of us. After taking a shower, we talked more into the night. I ended up going to bed at 10 PM.
I didn’t sleep that great since I was a little cold in my sleeping bag. Not as cold as the time I spent behind the fire station, though. So this morning I told Adrian that I need to buy a better sleeping bag since the one I brought is basically a fleece blanket that has a zipper. He will take me to REI later today.
We just had breakfast, which consisted of coffee and oatmeal. Not sure where I will be staying tonight, I’ll probably camp out some where.
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