Fletcher's Boathouse to Chain Bridge with E-bike Lovers.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/34512774
16.7 miles. Picnic at Potomac Overlook Regional Park, 12.9 miles into the route. Toilets are in the beginning, middle, and end.

We meet at the parking lot at Abner Cloud House at Fletcher's Cove. Please use care entering the single lane leading to the lot.

Remember: Start time for Wednesday rides is 10:30 am. We leave @ 10:45 am.

For this popular Wednesday route, we bike from Fletcher's Cove towards Georgetown, cross the Potomac and find our way along the Mount Vernon/Custis Trails to the Chain Bridge to return to Fletcher's Cove.

The group stops a few times for slower riders to catch up. The distance will be around 17 miles or shorter any time you are fully satisfied with biking for the day.

Please bring some snacks, lunch and plenty of water. Our bikes will be always in our sight. No additional locks are required to keep your bike safe on this trip.

Please charge your battery. Although this is a relatively short ride, there are some hilly stretches and climbs. As always, analog bike riders are most welcome.

Fletcher's Cove
Fletcher's Cove, called by many customers "Fletcher's Boathouse," has been in this location since the 1850s and is renowned as a fishing and recreational area.

After 145 years of business, the fourth generation of the Fletcher family retired in 2004, and Guest Services Incorporated, a National Park Service concessionaire, assumed responsibility for the operation of the concessions. The area surrounding the boathouse was then officially named Fletcher's Cove, though most people still call it Fletcher's Boat House.

The C&O Canal
The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal operated from 1831 until 1924 along the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., to Cumberland, Maryland. The canal's principal cargo was coal from the Allegheny Mountains.

The canal’s roots begin with George Washington’s dream of a waterway trade route. 74 locks were built along 184 miles.

Abner Cloud House
The nearby Abner Cloud House is the oldest building on the canal. Abner Cloud, a miller from Pennsylvania, built the house in 1801. Cloud's mill was about 200 yards upstream. The basement of the house was used by Cloud to store grain and flour, and the family lived in the upper floors.

The Labyrinth
One of the most interesting features in the park is the labyrinth, located towards the western end of the park. Labyrinths, which date back to ancient times, encourage contemplation on the journey from the outer edge along a circular path to the center.

The TKF Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes urban green spaces to facilitate community healing, provided funds for constructing the labyrinth and for a teak bench and a diary for visitors to use to record their experiences there.

Ride With GPS for E-Bike Lovers
Membership of the Ride With GPS E-bike Lovers club is now for free as www.ebikelovers.com generates sufficient income from ads to cover the costs.
Here is the link to activate your free membership:
https://ridewithgps.com/auto_approve/Club/6746/Zwa5jhttF5mJrFbN
More information about using GPS files: https://ebikelovers.com/2021/03/15/download-our-trails-and-never-get-lost/
More information about e-bike ranges:
https://ebikelovers.com/2020/12/31/e-bike-longer-and-happier-15-smart-strategies-to-reduce-your-e-bike-range-anxiety/

For the E-bike Lovers group to be successful, we need to grow our membership carefully. Please feel free to invite other E-bike lovers, spread the word, and let's have fun responsibly.

DISCLAIMER
LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE PURSUANT TO APPLICABLE LAW, NEITHER GREGORY MAASSEN, NATHAN MERRIS, RICHARD CAMER, TRIP COORDINATORS, THEIR AFFILIATES, FAMILY AND FORMER AND CURRENT EMPLOYERS NOR ANY OTHER PARTY INVOLVED IN CREATING, PRODUCING, OR DELIVERING E-BIKE LOVERS GUIDES, OUR MEETUP EVENTS, AND THE GPS E-TRAILS IS LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF A USER’S ACCESS TO, OR USE OF THE E-BIKE LOVERS GUIDES, OUR MEETUP EVENTS, AND THE GPS E-TRAILS.

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