[freak]

Well folks…!!! Thanks for all your advice and assurances. I will say right up front that I will NEVER visit DC again without taking my bike along. It was absolutely incredible. We could go anywhere and get there quickly. We rode the bike lanes on Pennsylvania Ave. often, rode some roads, rode mall sidewalks and an occasional street sidewalk if I deemed it necessary for my kids safety. I found that cabs and cars with DC plates were very courteous to bikes but you had to watch out for tourists. Tourists were nasty drivers who were lost or not used to the traffic and they would not move over for you at all. That aside it was really fun. We went on a ride with a couple of rangers from the National Park Service and they gave us a tour of the mall. They were great and that tour really helped us tell where we could ride and how to get around. It always made me feel good to see a family with a bunch of tired out kids who had been walking all day. We had it so easy! If everyone knew how much easier touring DC is with a bike you’d have a million bikes in DC. We stayed at the Harrington and while it’s not a 5 star they had no problem with the bikes in the rooms, elevators or lobby. Absolutely awesome trip because of the bikes! Thank you all again!!!
[ATTACH=CONFIG]1323[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]1324[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]1325[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]1326[/ATTACH]

[freak]

Thanks everyone for your advice. This all seems tricky but in practice it’s probably not that bad.

[freak]

@baiskeli 18535 wrote:

Bikes are the best way to see DC. There are some high-traffic streets you want to avoid, but plenty of alternative low-traffic streets, bike lanes and off-street paths to use. You can easily ride around the Mall area, to Georgetown and the cemetery by bike. You can ride on the trails along the national mall, and there are bike lanes down Penn. Ave now.

Here’s a link to the DC bike map: http://ddot.dc.gov/DC/DDOT/On+Your+Street/Bicycles+and+Pedestrians/Bicycles/Bicycle+Maps

Your bikes should be safe with those locks. Bikes get stolen from anyone who doesn’t lock them right, tourist or otherwise. One tip – lock your bikes even when they are in the hotel, because you never know.

Is it likely that the bikes will get stripped? Will they take wheels/seats/computers? Do I need to get rid of skewers and bolt the wheels and seat post?

[Author]

Posts