So it looks like the county is tearing up Sligo Creek Parkway. It's not a great ride (I stay on the road--the MUT is just too busy), but it's VERY convenient to my house, and a couple of laps between University and New Hampshire is a decent ride for an after-work workout.

Unfortunately, they've torn the surface off a section right in the middle, so I'm looking for another ride in the area, preferably starting in or near downtown Silver Spring.

Any Silly Stringers out there with good routes? How is it to get down into Rock Creek on a weekday afternoon?

Traffic's a bit heavier on Beach than on Sligo, but slower and more accustomed to bikes. Not that I'm a huge fan of either one, but they're better than the alternatives between Northeast DC and Silver Spring/Bethesda. You could stay on the upper half of Beach Drive pretty easily by taking Forest Glen/Capitol View/Seminary or whatever is the appropriate combination of those roads, then doing a couple of laps between there and the end of Beach Drive, past Randolph. Lighter traffic there than on the in-town sections.

I ride Beach Drive every day for my commute, and it's probably the best you're going to do if you have to start in Silver Spring. Most of the other roads are either too busy or in awful condition. Beach Drive is not perfect, but it's probably better than any alternatives and I actually enjoy it a lot.

The good:

Rock Creek Park is beautiful. In a lot of sections, it's hard to remember that you're basically in the middle of a city.
Not many traffic lights.
Speed limit is 25mph, so even with drivers speeding they are often not going much faster than a cyclist.
The MD section generally is in good shape (see the bad for more, though).
People who drive on Beach regularly know that it is heavily used by cyclists, so the traffic is more friendly than on a lot of roads (whatever that is worth, because there are still idiots and obnoxious anti-bike people).
Commercial vehicles are disallowed from using it in a lot of places, so you'll rarely encounter trucks, buses, etc.
Lots of other cyclists (camaraderie), including group rides sometimes.


The bad:
The sections that are not in good shape are pretty bad, with very uneven patchwork or large potholes. Once you ride it once or twice, though, you'll know these sections and be ready for them.
Lots of other cyclists. If you want to be alone, you won't be, and there will be people passing you or that you have to pass.
There is an occassionally driver that will take offense when you're on the road instead of the MUT, but I assume this happens on Sligo Creek, too.
Though the tree canopy is beautiful, the shadows it causes can make it dark enough to reduce your visibility to drivers even before twilight has actually begun. I imagine that this is another one that is no different from Sligo Creek.

Thanks guys.

I appreciate the input. I've only gone to Rock Creek/Beach Drive once during the week, and thought it was OK, so I'll give it a try. I go on the weekends frequently, but since it's closed then, I figured I wasn't getting the true flavor. Sounds like it's not too bad.

The sucky part will be getting from East Silver Spring down to Beach. I know a route that's only dangerous or nasty until I get across Georgia, so it won't be SO bad.

I was thinking to get on Beach about a mile south of Candy Cane City, then head north, and maybe make a loop of it, or climb up to Seminary and come back home on Dale Drive.

We'll see--right now it looks so threatening out my window that I'm not sure I'll be riding at all.

And yes, Sligo has the folks who feel it's their mission to explain (usually impolitely) that there is, in fact, a bike path. This is usually after they've been forced to drive behind me for a while because I was already exceeding the speed limit.

I'm actually only a couple of blocks from 16th Street, so I can just go down to 16th and cut through the side streets to North Portal and then Beach. I can see how it is a pain if you're on the other side of Georgia.

The other day I did go the Beach Drive route--I wound my way to the intersection one further south of North Portal and crossed 16th there. Georgia wasn't too bad.

Headed north on Beach, and it was stellar. Traffic, but not aggressive, and most of the roadway was quite smooth. I usually try to get in 15 miles on a weekday ride, and that was really easy to do going north on Beach.

Thanks for the recommendation.

If you do it again and you see a guy with a long ponytail or braid, a big backpack, and on a red Cannondale (wow, I'm a Fred!), it might be me on my way home from work. Have fun!

Just did it last night, actually. It's really good for me for an evening ride--it's 16 miles round trip from my house to the place where Beach hits Rockville Pike and back. Takes around an hour. Perfect.

I saw a number of people last night, but nobody who fit your description. You can look out for me too--big guy on a flat black Cinelli, blue helmet, blue shoes, camelbak, hairy legs (Fred-city).

Do you ever do the Bicycle Place group ride? I did it last Sunday for the first time, and it was fun. I sucked huge wind on the climbs (even with the B group), but the second half is flat, so I did fine there.

I haven't done any group rides. I biked a lot just to get around when I was younger, took about 5+ years off, and then started riding again when I got my current job in 2000. My triplets were also born that year, though, so it is hard for me to get any riding time other than commuting.

Sundays are a possibility, so if I get a chance I will check out the Sunday Bicycle Place ride. 18 years ago, my parents bought me a brand new purple Nishiki from the Bicycle Place, and I was riding it as my main bike up until I bought my new Cannondale R600 at the beginning of July. I wish they still had their store on Colesville. It was walking distance from my work, so very convenient if I needed a spare tube or something.

I'm pretty sure I'm more Fred than you. Hairy legs, no jersey (pockets wouldn't do much good when I have my backpack on), crank bros candy pedals, mountain shoes (so I can walk to the gym, workout, then up to my office to change shoes), specialized mountain helmet (I assume, I didn't even pay attention to whether it was road or not when I bought) and mountain style shorts (lycra underneath baggy outer short).