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This page
contains driving directions that you may need:
Click here for photos of
support stations.
DIRECTIONS
TO THE TRAILHEADS:
Thompson Boat
Center (100K)
The trailhead for the 100K
is the parking lot of Thompson
Boat Center at 2900 Virginia Avenue, NW, Washington, DC (intersection
with Rock Creek Parkway), right across the parkway from the Watergate.
Thompson's Boat Center is marked on any good map of Washington, DC, and
driving directions can also be obtained on the Internet using the
address above. It's best to get a ride to the trailhead. Parking at
Thompson
Boat Center is metered so you cannot leave a vehicle there.
Whites Ferry (50K)
The trailhead for the 50K is
on the C&O canal towpath at mile 35.5, 6.1 miles west of Poolesville,
MD.
Driving instructions:
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From Maryland Via River Road:
From the Capital Beltway take Exit 39, River Road west, Rt. 190, and
go 3.5 miles into Potomac; then continue another 8.3 miles on River
Road west to a T-junction where Rt. 190 ends. Turn left, still on
River Road west, and go 1.4 mi. Turn right onto Partnership Rd
for 3.9 mi and bear left onto SR-107. Travel on SR-107 through
Poolesville [Whites Ferry Rd/Fisher Ave/Whites Ferry Rd] for 8.5 mi to the
Whites Ferry parking lot. Distance from the Beltway: 25.6 miles.
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From Maryland Via Route 28:
From the Capital Beltway take I-270
north for 6 miles, and take Exit 6B, Rt. 28 west. Go 11.5 miles on
Rt. 28 west to a fork in the road. (This fork is 0.5 mile beyond the
bridge over Seneca Creek.) Take the left fork, onto Rt. 107, Whites
Ferry Road. Go 5.0 miles into the center of Poolesville, and
continue on Whites Ferry Road for another 6.1 miles to the Whites Ferry parking lot. Distance from the
Beltway: 22.6 miles
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From Virginia Via Car Ferry at Whites
Ferry:
Proceed North on Rt. 15 from Leesburg, turn right on Whites Ferry
Road, approximately 4 miles northeast of
Leesburg, VA. Take the ferry across the Potomac River; fee $4
one-way, $6 round-trip.
The Ferry runs continuously from 5 am to 11 pm. After getting
off the ferry, proceed a short distance uphill to the parking lot on
the left, just before the C&O towpath.
The Whites Ferry parking
lot is privately owned, and it
is not advisable to leave a car overnight. Hikers should plan
to have someone drop them off at Whites Ferry or drive to Shady Grove
Metro stop off I-270 and catch the One Day Hike shuttle to Whites Ferry. If you plan to do this,
submit the shuttle reservation form to reserve space on the shuttle and
to receive information about
where to catch the shuttle at the Shady Grove Metro Station. See
this map of major roads in the Whites Ferry area.
DIRECTIONS TO THE END POINT
Bolivar Community Center, 60 Panama Street, Harpers Ferry, WV
25425
See this map of the driving
approaches to the Community Center.
·
From Maryland: From the Capital Beltway (I-495), take I-270 north for 31.5
miles to the outskirts of Frederick, MD. At a Y-intersection (US 15
left; I-70 right), take the right fork for I-70 west. Go 1.3 miles
and exit right, at the sign for US 340 west. Then curve left at a
Y-junction and go 0.7 mile to enter US 340 west. Follow
US
340 west for 18.1 miles. (Near the end of this stretch you cross the
Potomac River, continue another 1.7 miles, then cross the Shenandoah
River, still on US 340. Go 0.9 mile farther beyond the bridge to
Washington Street.) Turn right
at the light onto Washington Street and into the town of Bolivar.
After 0.6 miles turn right onto Panama Street, where the Bolivar
Community Center (BCC) is on the right at #60 Panama Street. Note that
the limited parking near the BCC is reserved for volunteer vehicles and
immediate pickups. Additional short-term parking may be found nearby by
continuing on Washington Street past Panama Street and making the next
left (0.7 miles from US340) onto Cleveland Street, and then left into
the parking lot. Total distance from the
Beltway - about 52 miles
·
From Virginia: From the Capital Beltway (I-495) you
can go to Leesburg by either Rt. 7 west, which is free but very
congested, or by the Toll Road/Greenway, which has 2 tolls but is more
scenic and less congested. These directions assume the latter choice.
From the Beltway take Va. Exit 45, Rt. 267/Toll Road/Dulles. (NOTE: this
is a LEFT exit if you are heading north on the Beltway, a RIGHT exit if
you are heading south.) Go 0.6 mile and pay the first toll, 75c
for a car in April 2007. Stay on the Toll Road
(Rt. 267); don't take the Dulles Access Road. Continue for 12.2
miles, going past Dulles airport, to the toll plaza for the Greenway
road. Pay your second toll - $3.00 for a car on weekends in April 2007.
Take the Greenway west for 12.1 miles to its termination, in the
outskirts of Leesburg. Stay in the left lane (Exit 1A), which curves
left and merges onto Rt. 7 west. Take Rt. 7 west for 4.9 miles,
and take the exit for Rt. 9. Go 0.2 mile up the exit ramp and turn right
onto Rt. 9 west. Take Rt. 9 west for 10.0 miles, and take the
right fork onto Rt. 671 north. Take Rt. 671 for 7.6 miles to its
termination at US 340; turn left onto US 340 west. Go 2.6 miles,
crossing the Shenandoah River bridge, and
turn right at the light onto Washington Street
and into the town of Bolivar. After 0.6 miles turn right
onto Panama Street, where the Bolivar Community Center (BCC) is on the
right at #60 Panama Street. Note that the limited parking near the
BCC is reserved for volunteer vehicles and immediate pickups. Additional
short-term parking may be found nearby by continuing on Washington
Street past Panama Street and making the next left (0.7 miles from
US340) onto Cleveland Street, and then left into the parking lot. Total distance from the
Beltway - about 51 miles
DIRECTIONS TO HARPERS FERRY HOSTEL
Harpers Ferry
Hostel,
19123 Sandy Hook Road, Knoxville, MD, 21758. If you spend the
night here, you may want friends or family to pick you up.
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From
Maryland: From the Capital Beltway (I-495), take I-270 north
for 31.5 miles to the outskirts of Frederick, MD.
At a Y-intersection (US 15 left, I-70 right), take the right
fork for I-70 west. Go
1.2 miles and exit right, for US 340 west. Follow
US 340 west for about 16 miles.
Watch for, but don’t take, the exit to the right for Rt.
67. From this point go
0.8 mile farther on US 340 and take the first possible left turn, at
a highway sign pointing toward Keep Tryst Road. After
that turn you quickly make another left turn to get on Keep Tryst
Road. Go 0.3 mile and
turn right at a 4-way intersection onto Sandy Hook Road. Go
downhill about .15 mile to the hostel on your left.
It is a white building, with a well-marked entrance.
Total distance from the Beltway - about 48.5 miles.
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From
Virginia: From the Capital Beltway (I-495), you can go to
Leesburg by either Rt. 7 west, which is free but very congested, or
by the Toll Road/Greenway, which has 2 tolls but is more scenic and
less congested. These
directions assume the latter choice. From
the Beltway take Va. Exit 45, Rt. 267/Toll Road/Dulles.
(NOTE: this is a LEFT exit if you are heading north on the
Beltway, a RIGHT exit if you are heading south.) Go 0.6 mile and pay
the first toll, 50c for a car.
Stay on the Toll Road (Rt. 267); don’t take the Dulles
Access Road. Continue for 12.2 miles, going past Dulles
airport, to the toll plaza for the Greenway road.
Pay your second toll - $1.75 for a car on weekends.
Take the Greenway west for 12.1 miles to its termination, in the
outskirts of Leesburg. Stay
in the left lane (Exit 1A), which curves left and merges onto Rt. 7
west. Take Rt. 7 west
for 4.9 miles, and take the exit for Rt. 9.
Go 0.2 mile up the exit ramp and turn right onto Rt. 9 west.
Take Rt. 9 west for 10.0 miles, and at a junction take the right
fork onto Rt. 671 north. Take Rt. 671 for 7.7 miles to its
termination at US 340; turn right onto US 340 east. Go 0.8
mile, crossing over the Potomac River Bridge, and take the first
possible right turn, marked as Keep Tryst Road. Go 0.5 mile to
a 4-way junction, and turn right onto Sandy Hook Road. Go
downhill about .15 mile to the hostel on your left.
It is a white building, with a well-marked entrance.
Total distance from the Beltway - 49.1 miles
SUPPORT FROM FRIENDS AND
FAMILY
Many hikers enlist the support of friends and
family to cheer them on. Directions for driving from one support
station to the
next can be downloaded here.
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