Gravelly Point and Reagan Airport

On our quest to find alternate morning walk routes I searched for options along the GW Parkway - many of which we have been to, but definitely passed by - in our thirteen years of living on Capitol Hill. Two weeks ago we walked Roosevelt Island and last week we strolled Dyke Marsh. Yesterday we stopped at Gravelly Point located next to Reagan airport on the Potomac River. There are always a lot of cars parked in the lot. There is a boat launch, open spaces for picnics and family outings, and the Mount Vernon bike and walking trail that takes you fifteen miles to Mount Vernon one way, and three miles to Roosevelt Island the other way. In between is the city of DC. The place is packed on weekends and holidays. Probably the biggest activity is watching the planes land and take off from the airport. There was a peculiar hint of smoke in the sky so things looked very surreal and weird. After walking two miles we returned to our car and watched for a few planes. Before that, we saw a couple having a barbecue picnic, saw the strobe landing lights with geese and other birds about it, and a few ducks in the water. Since they were taking off we didn’t get to see the up close and personal views of the planes coming in at very low heights. It was an interesting walk but not one of my favorites. There were more bikers than walkers and you needed to be constantly aware you wouldn’t get hit. I’m not sure when we would come back again, but I’m glad we stopped in after all these years.