Find the top rated dog walking trails in District of Columbia, whether you're looking for an easy short dog walking trail or a long dog walking trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a dog walking trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
This trail is good for people who want an urban experience, especially on a weekend morning as the city slowly awakes. Lots of places to stop for food and drinks - even shopping - along the way.
This trail is really nice to run, walk, and bike. It has wide asphalt paths with a few quick hills.
This is one great trail to go on. Occasionally there will be a glimpse of the roads and every so often a small hill to climb, but other than that, it’s a trail worth doing over and over! Did I also mention that the scenery is breathtaking?
Very nice and well maintained trail lined parallel by a creek for most of the ride that hugs multiple DC neighborhoods. Plenty of access points to the trails so you don't feel boxed in. Last night a pretty strong storm came through DC so there was some debris and one downed tree that made the ride a little tricky, but I don't blame the trail or mother nature ha. Short 4-miles, so super family friendly. Enjoy!
Rode the C&O 6/14/2020 from Lock 23 to Edwards Ferry and back on trusty 2003 Gary Fisher Marlin MTB. My road bike would have been shattered to bits with the gravel, rocks and mud. Did try a small section of the resurfaced trail north of Edwards Ferry. WOW! They can’t resurface Swains Lock to Edwards Ferry fast enough for me. I’ll be making a donation to the project today, even with the COVID Shutdown. Find out more on trail status at https://www.nps.gov/choh/planyourvisit/towpath-resurfacing-project.htm
Everything you can ask for in a Bike trail capturing the best of the city of Bethesda, to the C&O canal, to the heart of Georgetown!
Rode C&O canal towpath from mile19 to mile36 and back in early June 2020. Experienced both surfaces (improved and original). I would say that the original is more visually appealing and friendly to walkers (less dust), and the improved is more friendly to bikers elbow and butt (less vibrations). On weekday there is not many people there and it’s great to enjoy the nature, get some exercises, and meditate, yes meditate!
I have been enjoying the C&O Canal towpath since I was a boy -- but I went for a bike ride yesterday (May 10, 2020) at the Monocacy Aqueduct and the path is now paved (I assume it's considered crushed stone). Yep, it's now "new and improved" -- not. One problem is that the trail now has a lower shoulder than the paved road. If you happen to get too close to the edge or pull off, you've got a bit of a dropoff which could be problematic. Another problem is that some of my fellow bicyclers seem to love the new surface as they now go flying even faster than before. Hiking on the paved trail is certainly not as nice as the previous dirt path. The feeling of getting away from it all has diminished and the trail has lost some of its charm. It no longer appears to be a path in the woods from a bygone era, but simply another bike trail. Pedestrians beware.
Got on part of this trail, while on western Maryland trail
After reaching the eastern terminus of the Great Allegheny Passage, I picked up the C&O Towpath in Cumberland, MD back in 2018 (perhaps the Towpath has improved since then). Unfortunately, rainy conditions really seem to impact this path/trail more than other trails. Its gravel surface (which rides nothing like the crushed limestone of the GAP) was a mess back in July 2018. Rain aside, this trail is really, really bumpy which really had a negative impact on progress (I usually tour around 15mph, and struggled to make 9mph on this path). As soon as I had the opportunity, I departed this path for the Western Maryland Rail Trail without any regrets. In my touring experiences, the conditions on the C&O Towpath were some of the worst that I've ever encountered. It's truly a shame: this path would be so much more enjoyable if it were better maintained.
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