Yards Park and the Anacostia River Views

Every once in a while we head south towards Yards Park, Navy Yard, and the Anacostia River for our morning walk. This time was because we needed to stop at the new Whole Foods store to pick up some lettuce and odds and ends. When we moved here twelve years ago, none of it existed except for the Department of Transportation and one Marriott Hotel. Nationals Park soon followed. The construction is mind boggling and it will become one of the must populated neighborhoods in DC. So we reached the Anacostia and saw all the pop art presidents portraits on one of the restaurant walls. The sun was in just the right spot - the river was sparkling and shimmering on a crisp clear day. The seagulls were hanging around the dock where a navy battleship used to moor. I had never noticed the sign by each of the manhole covers - “confined space entry by permit only.” Someone obviously tried to get into one so now we all need reminders. A rainbow was reflected on the gravel cement path and our shadows looked as interesting there as well as on the river by the tunnel. Passing the baseball stadium the construction was suspiciously quiet because of the holiday but the cranes were moving at a brisk pace overhead. My husband says whenever he walks this way it feels like “our” neighborhood compared to the National Mall that is “everyone’s” neighborhood. I suppose you could look at it that way. And it keeps getting better. 

Anacostia Riverwalk 

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Yards Marina 

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The Yards Park Red Azaleas

The cherry blossoms have been replaced with red azaleas - at Yards Park. Along the Anacostia riverfront is the new neighborhood that keeps getting bigger. On one end is the historic Navy yard, and on the other is the Nationals Stadium - all connected with a river walk. It was still a little cloudy and cool yesterday when we took a turn...and the azaleas were simply beautiful. Several new restaurants and condominiums and apartments are under construction. In the summer the area is packed with locals - particularly on Friday evenings for free concerts and for the kids to splash about the pools to cool down from the heat. And of course, during the baseball season, there are crowds everywhere. Washington is such a pretty place in the Spring and this is a great place to wander and contemplate, or bring the dog for a run in the dog park. None of this existed when we first moved here nine years ago! The area between our house on Capitol Hill and the waterfront has completely transformed. And it's all within walking distance.  

 

  

Yards Park Construction

A lot has changed since we moved to Capitol Hill eight years ago. The area south of the freeway doesn't look anything like it did. The Department of Transportation was the only occupied building in a sea of old warehouses along the waterfront. The baseball stadium was under construction. Now the area has Canal Park ice skating, green space, several high rise apartments and a huge area of residential townhouses. But the cranes are still up everywhere. A Harris Teeter is near completion, more apartments and restaurants are being built in every direction, and the place is highly trafficked with every Nationals game. It's a nice thing to be a part of an up and coming community - if you like that sort of thing. I much prefer the more suburban feel of our very old 1890's tiny condo tucked in at the end of a traditional block of authentic town homes. But I like having the opportunity to live just steps away from all this activity on the south side, and also have the option to head north towards the Mall and Pennsylvania Avenue. The vibe is very different on either side, so our mood dictates the direction we head when we walk out the door.