Tuesday, May 14, 2013

2013 Adventure Run - Pimmit Run, and Potomac Heritage Trail

Yesterday was a good day for a little trail adventure run with some friends.We met up at my house at 8:30, checked our laces and headed out the door.  Our plan was to follow Pimmit Run to where it ends near the Chain Bridge, and then run along the Potomac Heritage trail to Rosslyn.  We stayed on plan pretty well.

2013 Adventure Run #1 - the plan
We've had quite a bit of rain, but the trail along Pimmit Run at the beginning was in pretty good shape.  Beginning somewhere around the Potomac School, the trail became hard to follow - it pretty much comes down to "the creek is running that direction, let's keep following it".  In running terms, it was slow going ...  Jim took this picture near where we crossed Kirby Road.  From the left that's Mark, Erik, Jim (with the camera) and me.

near Kirby Road
Once we made it to Chain Bridge, it was clear that the Potomac had quite a bit of water running down it.  The Potomac Heritage trail had some underwater segments, pushing us further up the bank into more rocks and brush than usual.  The first mile heading southeast from Chain Bridge was a pretty rugged rock crawl.  We pressed on through pretty much without incident or injuries.

Getting into Rosslyn, my Garmin indicated we covered 10+ miles, though the map indicates it was a little shorter.  I think some of the difference comes from all the zig-zagging we did on parts of the trail trying to find the best way forward at times.  In Rosslyn, we wound up taking the metro two stops up to Clarendon for a nice, late lunch at the Northside Social Club, then the metro (and a two-mile jog) back to my house.  Here is the group near the end of the adventure.

survivors
It's always a pleasant surprise to be reminded there are running adventures that can begin practically from my door-step, even though I'm inside the beltway in the country's capital city.  I'm glad the guys came out to run today!

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