Rave Run: Chesapeake & Ohio (C & O) Canal Towpath and Potomac River Waterfront (Georgetown)
Why a post on running within a blog that concentrates on business and technology? My first post in this series explained that one habit that I picked up on the road as a consultant over the years is always inquiring about local running paths while visiting unfamiliar locales for the first time. And I find running a pleasurable way to explore new places. Other posts have commented on how running has been a gift to me from an early age by helping me focus and providing stress relief. So in the spirit of a regular spread in Runner's World magazine called Rave Runs, I began a series of posts here to share interesting routes with other runners.
This past March, I was fortunate to visit Washington, DC for the first time. Unlike some other recent travels, such as to a Detroit area client this past month, I had time to check out the area for running opportunities ahead of time, and the Lonely Planet Washington DC City Guide made me aware of the Chesapeake & Ohio (C & O) Canal Towpath and Potomac River waterfront, which includes the recently expanded Georgetown Waterfront Park, a spot that over the course of my weeklong visit became one of my favorite landmarks for this course, which varied a bit but started from my stay at Avenue Suites Georgetown just east of Rock Creek.
The start of this course starts rather unassumingly on Pennsylvania Avenue NW, and can either continue west on M Street NW through the heart of the Georgetown shopping district, or south along the ramp for Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway NW. This latter variation is what I discuss here. The first morning I ventured out for a run, I headed through the shopping district. Although I continued my habit of running early, which not only misses all the shoppers and most other runners, I soon unsurprisingly found that I would much rather hit the trails at the beginning of my runs than the uneven historic cobblestone streets running through Georgetown.