Geese at the Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary

Leader: Steve Palincsar

Members: Patricia Sanders, Denny Miller, Anonymous User

Guests: none

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45162320 or rather, that's what we planned.  But when we got to Brooks Church and took a short but much needed break, Denny said he was cutting the ride short.  Patricia went back with him, staying on Baden Naylor to Croom, then Candy Hill to Molly Berry and North Keys back to the Park, while Anon. and I took Tanyard and Nottaingham to Fenno and a rest stop at Merkle.  We'd discussed a shortcut earlier, backtracking on Fenno to Nottingham then continuing on Candy Hill, and after the break that idea seemed very tempting and we went that way for a total of 30.5 mi.

Weather: Overcast, pallid sky, temperature 44-47 degrees, 12 mph wind. There was no warmth in the sunlight, and the wind stole away what warmth there was in the air, leaving a dim and chilly day.

AMS: 11.5

Mechanicals/Mishaps: none

Report: I think this was Denny's second road ride (he'd been riding the IHRT on Fridays) and it was a tough one.  My Garmin recorded 1,937' of elevation gain as our route crossed over Nelson Perrie twice, once coming and once going; went down to the Patuxent at Magruders Landing and climbed back; then rode the rollers north on Croom between Magruders and Bald Eagle School; finally crossing Rock Creek on Baden Naylor.  It was a route perhaps better suited to a mild June day than a wan and chilly late December one.  Even so, it still was fun riding, and our abbreviated route was fully satisfying.

I was pleased to note the road work appears complete on Nelson Perrie. The chewed-up pavement on the climbs has been replaced by smooth new pavement and the shoulders in the work zone have been widened.  Our revised route didn't get close to the work zone on Molly Berry, but we did see detour signs on Candy Hill at Molly Berry, so it's likely the bridge work has started on time.  Here's hoping it's completed on time, too.

Photos by Sabine Hentrich, Sarah Clement and Steve Palincsar

Leader: Steve Palincsar

Members: Ron Altemus, Linda Bankerd, Sherwood Byers, Sarah Clement, Carol Dreher, Rick Hagen, Sabine Hentrich, Ray Luckenbach, Joan Oppel, Lisa Petersen, Janell Saunders and Tom Short.

Guests: Denise Cohen

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/42067181

Weather: Sunny, 7 mph winds, a chilly feeling 48 at the start rising to 58 by noon: a thoroughly beautiful day for the middle of December.

AMS: 12.0

Mechanicals/Mishaps: Linda came with a brand new pair of shoes with brand new cleats.  She'd tried them on at home and they were fine, but she didn't try to cleat in to her pedals until she was in the parking lot at Rileys Lock, which is when she discovered that her cleats, some kind of Look clones, looked fine but simply wouldn't click into her pedals.  The moral is obvious.

Report: We started out with a big group, but by the time we climbed River Rd to Montivideo and climbed the hill on Montivideo past the bridge we were pretty well spread out.  We all came together at K2 and enjoyed a lesisurely, delicious lunch.  Everyone enjoyed the scenery and the route, although some enjoyed the elevation gain (almost 1900 feet, fairly hilly by Southern Maryland standards) more than others.  I'm confident I wasn't the only one trying to remember why it was we only ride in the Montgomery County Ag Reserve once or twice a year.

That is, until the drive home.  The trip down River Rd wasn't at all bad, but once within sight of the I-495 entrance it was clear traffic on the outer loop was at a dead standstill, and there were cars trying to enter backed up all the way to the traffic light on River Rd.

I saw traffic on the inner loop was moving so I went that way.  Although traffic was heavy, at least it was moving... until the lane split before the Wilson Bridge.  From that point on it was a slow crawl until I got past the wreckage in the middle of the bridge.  2 hrs to home, enough time to get from Lancaster PA to the MD Welcome Center on I95. Which is why we only ride here once or twice a year.

Leader:   Ron Altemus

Members:  Jackie & Randy Schoch, Gene Villiva, Darrell Meyer, Donaro Gardner



Route:   the Friday fav - Indian Head Rail Trail, Livingston Rd parking lot east to White Plains and return

Weather:  Brilliant blue skies due to plenty of low angle sunlight;  temp range of 45-56; 5-7 mph air movement out of the WSW

AMS:   as usual for a Friday ride, varied by participant

Mechanicals/Mishaps:  none

Report:   we moved the start time to 10:30 in hopes of some warmer temps and were well rewarded.  We'll keep the 10:30 am start through the end of February 2024 at least.

As per the last several weeks, not a lot of other trail users, but we certainly enjoyed ourselves.  Minimal wildlife sightings, also.

Leader:   Ron Altemus

Members:   Darrell Meyer, TRL, Gene Villiva, David Van Ameyden

Route:   Mount Vernon Trail to the 14th Street Bridge to cross into the District, SW Ohio Drive around the Tidal Basin onto Raoul Wallenberg Pl and then Jefferson Dr to reach the Botanic Garden.  Return basically followed the same routing, except using Madison Dr for travel on the Mall.  22 miles 414' elevation change. 

Weather:  pleasant as temps ranged from mid/upper 40s to mid 50s with mostly sunny skies and breezes out of the south

AMS:   low 11s(?)

Mechanicals/Mishaps:   none

Report:   A "destination ride" in that we were cycling to view the holiday exhibits at the Botanic Garden, both outside and inside.  We encountered a large number of users on the MV trail given that it was a weekend, but vehicular traffic on the Mall was sparse.  Within the past two weeks, protected bike lanes on SW Ohio Drive were completed and they made coming off of the bridge and onto Raoul Wallenberg Pl very easy (and safe).

The Botanic Garden outside display featured model locomotives and boxcars chugging over trestles and past models of pollinators such as giant bees, butterflies and flowers, and scenes that include a lemur pollinating a flower. Inside, the conservatory is full of models of the Capitol, Lincoln Memorial, Library of Congress and other Washington landmarks made from plant material, as well as almost 2,000 colorful poinsettias.

Leader: Catherine Ade

Members: Steve Palincsar, Janet Shipko, Harry Kidd, Linda Bankerd, Sherwood Byers, Tom Short, Joan Oppel, Lisa Petersen, Rick Hagen, Walt Roscello

Guests: David Wendland, Mackenzie Love

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44840964

Weather: Partly to mostly cloudy with 7 mph winds.  Temperature 42 degrees when we started, rising to a high of 56 by 2 pm.  

AMS: 13.2

Mechanicals/Mishaps: Steve has been having an on-off problem with the 1x drivetrain on his Alchemy throwing the chain about every thousand miles or so.  Today, the Alchemy threw the chain twice.  He says he’s looking into a chain keeper, if he can find one that fits the bike.

Report: 

We left the parking lot as one large group, with Sherwood leading the B riders out in front. The first dropped chain occurred within a half mile of the start but was quickly remedied by a few CC riders hanging out at the back of the pack. By this point we had divided into two distinct groups, with the B group well off the front at this point. The first half of the ride was beautiful and uneventful, providing the perfect opportunity to introduce our guests to some of the great roads southern Maryland has to offer. We stopped briefly to allow Steve to fix his fender mount before blasting down the hill towards South County Café. 

 At the café the B group was waiting outside, taking advantage of the unexpectedly mild weather for mid-December. We noticed one of our guests had not made it to the restaurant. They eventually arrived at the end of our lunch stop, clocking in several bonus miles resulting from a wrong turn that leas them to follow an unrelated group of cyclists. 

 At this point we formed three groups: one consisting of the faster B riders and two CC groups that left the restaurant at different times. Our guest took a few minutes to use the facilities and recover from the bonus miles before heading out with the later CC group. We meandered through the Franklin Manor neighborhood, stopping for a few minutes to walk out onto the pier that extends out into the Chesapeake Bay. Our guests had never been here before, and we took the opportunity to take some pictures of the shore in addition to some gratuitous Chesapeake Bay selfies. 

The route back to the parking lot had us taking some terrific back roads. Steve’s chain dropped once again, which was fixed within a few minutes. On these winding, rolling back roads our guest’s bonus miles caught up with them, and they needed to slow down take it easy for the last 10 miles. 

Thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate my birthday and helped me lead my first ride!

Leader - Randy Schoch

Members - Darrell Meyer, RL Randy, Ron Altemus, Janell Saunders,  Gene Villiva, Donaro Gardner.  Not pictured -Dan Donahue, who met us at White Plains

Route - IHRT

Weather - Cool and breezy (40's)

AMS - Varied per/rider

Mechanicals/Mishaps - None

Report - Several regulars plus Darrell and Janell. Jackie hasn't been feeling great this week so she went to lunch today with "the girls". Janell had use or lose leave and decided a bike ride was an excellent way to deal with that. Not many trail users this morning and very little wild life. Donaro is getting very close to his year end millage goal (I think he said 6K). We all enjoyed the an easy pace with lots of "comradery". We didn't stay long at the White Plains Rest Stop and headed back to the lot and on to our daily activities. A good ride and anticipating lots more through the winter season. 

Leader: Joan Oppel

Members: Particia Sanders, Steve Palincsar (photorapher), Donaro Gardner

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45106315  39 mi, miles from Livingston Road trail parking lot. Straight out Chicmuxen to Riverside, then Sandy Point and Jacksontown to Liverpool Point. We made a stop at the Nanjemoy Store, then took Adams Willett to Hancock Run to Rt 6. Poseytown and Bowie led us back to Rt 6, Mason Springs, Pisgah Marbury to Bicknell and Marbury Run, then back to Chicamuxen.

Weather: Sunny, temperature at start 43, rising to 46, then settling to 44 for the final 15 miles. 

Mechanicals/Mishaps: none

Report: It was chilly at the start but we were all dressed for the weather.  Once again, there was a notable lack of traffic until we were returning on Chicamuxen around 1:30. It's fun to ride in a scenic area and be able to chat with riding companions. On Rt 6, Don and I marveled at a bald eagle that flew next to us and just above our heads for a few feet and then flew low across the road just in front of us.  

We stopped at the Nanjemoy Volunteer Fire Department but no one was there. Steve pulled in to the Nanjemoy Community Center. The rest of us followed him but spent our time in the parking lot examining the new "portable" Charles County library station. (The last time we were here, a bookmobile with 2 employees was in attendance.)

At the sign on Poseytown Road that tells the history of the historic 19th century Poseytown community that thrived here. The nearby cemetery contains graves associated with the community.

There is always a lot to see and explore in the Nanjemoy area. 

Leaders:  Ron Altemus& Joan Oppel

Members:   Denny Miller, Walt Roscello, Joan Oppel, Darrell Meyer, Chapman family descendant, Janell Saunders, Harry Kidd, Steve Palincsar, Steve Perakis on the front steps of Mt Aventine



Route:  from Indian Head Village Green, we used Strauss, Lower Wharf, MD-210, and Chapman's Landing to journey to Mt Aventine.  Retracing to Lower Wharf, Hawthorne and Chicamuxen took us over to Smallwood Park.  Final leg retraced on Chicamuxen/Hawthorne to the IHRT and then back to the start.

Weather:   another "not as advertised" kind of day - dense fog finally lifting to full overcast, temp range of only 50-52, slight breezes from some direction.

AMS:   low 11s

Mechanicals/Mishaps:   Darrell incurred two (2) punctures riding across a field at Smallwood's Retreat.  As he was using tubeless tires, the sealant worked and he was able to complete the ride without any problem.

Report:   the aforementioned dense fog was exceptionally bad on the drive down to the Village Green.  Just south of Bryan's Road on MD-210, visibility was practically nothing.  Though it hadn't lifted by the time we started riding, we encountered little traffic on Strauss, and the crossover of 210 to Chapman's was accomplished without incident.

The open house at Mt Aventine was graced with the presence of a descendant of the Chapman family.  His great grandfather was the last family member to own the property.  We were able to tour the house, parts of which reflect the various years of construction and previous owners.  In 1954, a Hungarian princess purchased the property and the kitchen was outfitted with metal cabinets and a GE "Automatic Dishwasher."  Other areas of the house retained their colonial charm.  Refreshments included coffee and hot chocolate, fruit, muffins, and plenty of cookies.

The fog had mostly lifted by the time we headed over to Smallwood's Retreat and our travels were uneventful.  The "Colonial Christmas" events included a Revolutionary War encampment with demonstrations, candle and wreath making opportunities, caroling, and tours of the house.  We were treated to hot (really hot) apple cider and more cookies.

When entering Smallwood Park, we noticed signage indicating that the Mattawoman Art Center was also hosting a holiday celebration.  A number of us added a visit there to our itinerary while Harry led those with time constraints back to the Village Green.  The Art Center had a juried exhibit of local middle school artists, all showing artistic talent.  And of course there were more cookies and apple cider.

It was most enjoyable having a ride that was planned for extended stops to enjoy and participate in the festivities being offered.  Everyone had a good time.

Leader:   Ron Altemus

Members:  Robin Garnett, Donaro Gardner, Darrell Meyer, Randy & Jackie Schoch, Gene Villiva

Route:   Friday's fav - Indian Head Rail Trail from Livingston Rd parking lot east to White Plains trail head and return

Weather:  mostly overcast with sun weakly breaking through at times but not adding any solar warming so temp range of mid 40s to low 50s; some breeze out of the south

AMS:   varied by rider

Mechanicals/Mishaps:  none

Report:   Darrell joined us after being off the bike for a while.  He was looking for a relaxing. flat ride with enjoyable company and our Friday outing fit all requirements.  We were the only cyclists on the IHRT today; there were less than a dozen other users encountered over the length of the trail.  Trees are even more devoid of leaves than last week and a couple more wasp nests were seen though it really depends on which direction you are riding to notice them. 

Morning weather forecasts had predicted rain in the early afteroon so our plan was to not tarry at White Plains for an extended rest stop.  Upon arrival at the trailhead, we consulted our favorite weather apps via cell phones and the all indicated rain as early as noon.  Our return moved along smartly, and we were just finishing at Livingston Road when it did start raining.  Donaro would have been the only one who got wet as he rode extra miles to the Village Green and back.

Leader:   Ron Altemus

Members:   Denny Miller, Janell Saunders, Patricia Sanders at the end of Fenwick with the Potomac River and Hallowing Point in the background.



Route:   Regular Tour de Accokeek route to Mathews then a tour of Bryans Road neighborhoods (South Hampton, Bryans Village, and Timber Ridge).  Descent of Marshall Hall Rd to an out and back on Fenwick continuing to a rest stop at Marshall Hall boat launch.  Return included an out and back on River, the climb up Barrys Hill, another out and back on Old Marshall Hall Rd skirting Moyaone Reserve concluding with Accokeek Rd/Livingston Rd to the firehouse.

Weather:   temp range of 38 to 43; plenty of sunshine; 6-7 mph breezes out of the northern quadrant

AMS:   low 11s

Mechanicals/Mishaps:   none

Report:   with the coldest start temperature since mid February, there were a few cancellations prior to the ride.  Those that did show up had to spend a bit of time figuring out what would be the appropriate attire to combat the chilly temps.  Fortunately, once we got moving heading south, we had a tailwind and it didn't feel quite as cold as in the parking lot at the firehouse.

The neighborhoods that have sprung up in the Bryans Road area continue to grow with new roads and townhouses increasing the size of the developments.  Probably next year, we'll be able to offer an extended extended version route to include these new roads.

As always when doing this route, the views and scenery change with the seasons.  Pomonkey Creek was visible from several different locations on Fenwick, and Crosswake House, near the end of Fenwich, was also easily viewed.  Two large pigs were present on a farm off of Marshall Hall Rd near Moyaone Reserve while sheep and goats grazed further down the road.

Today's ride was Denny's longest and we all gave him a bit of support when needed.  A most pleasant ride with a congenial group.