The Custis Trail is a popular urban route that links Virginia's D.C. suburbs with the District itself, connecting to both the
W&OD Railroad Regional Park Trail at the latter's 4-mile marker and the
Mount Vernon Trail at Roosevelt Island.
The trail can be difficult for the aerobically challenged—its hills are quite a workout and more so if you are traveling east to west. The Custis Trail parallels I-66 but concrete barriers keep the traffic noise down. In places the trail is narrow and has a few blind curves, so cyclists should take them slowly to avoid colliding with the many runners and walkers you'll encounter.
The trail begins in Rosslyn at the intersection of Lee Highway and Lynn Street and follows a wide sidewalk up the hill as it heads west. Beyond the Key Bridge Marriott Hotel, the trail turns to asphalt and becomes more narrow; the uphill climb is a grunt. The trail then crosses over I-66 and follows it to where the Custis hooks up with the W&OD Trail. From this area you can also cross the W&OD to the
Four Mile Run Trail. Linking all these trails together provides more than 70 miles of non-motorized corridor.
Public (paid) parking is available in Rosslyn and free parking is available at Roosevelt Island parking lot off George Washington Parkway (access only heading N/W bound). You can also park at Bon Air Memorial Park in Arlington.
The Custis Trail is a very well maintained asphalt trail. On our ride of Saturday 10/6/12, it was not crowded at all. Parts of the trail ware through nice wooded areas, while other parts were side roads to major roadways. The trail is HILLY!!! Lots of ...
I like to include the custis trail as part of what I call the "bicycle beltway". I start at the Eisenhower connecter beltway exit at the clermont access bicycle ramp. Next its on to the cameron run trail toward ramsey nature trail. from there its thru ...
The section of this trail from Theodore Roosevelt Island / Rosslyn to about Glebe Road is almost all up hill. The first mile or two from Rosslyn to Veitch Street is a just wide sidewalk. The total vertical rise from Rosslyn to Glebe Road is about 300 ...