Alexandria to Charlottesville

"The usual way".

This ride was completed on 2 July 2001. Weather was extremely good.

Miles	  What		Where
0	  Start		Duke St and Taylor Run, Alexandria (6:30am)
			Take Telegraph road South
6	  S		Pass Hayfield High School
10.5	  R		Telegraph Rd meets Route 1
	  X		Cross Pohick Rd. to sidepath
11.2	  R		Lorton Rd.
12.2	  X		Cross under I-95
13.5	  BR		as Furnace road connects from left TRO Lorton Rd.
13.6	  BL		TRO Lorton Rd. as Furnace road goes right
14.3	  L		Ox Road, 123
15.2	  R		Bike Route 1
15.5	  X		Occaquan River on Foot Bridge (7:41am)
			leave town UP Tanyard Hill Rd.
16.4	  R		Old Bridge Rd.
16.8	  L		Minniville Rd.
19.7	  X		Prince William County Parkway
21.0	  X		Dale Boulevard
25.6	  R		234 Dumfries Rd. (8:53am)
27.0	  L		Aden Rd.
27.2	  S		Cross Joplin Rd.
34.0	  L		646 Fleetwood Rd @ Aden store (9.45am)
39.0	  S		611 Sowego Rd. goes off on the right
40.2	  R		609 Courthouse Rd.
42.0	  L		Elk Run Rd. @ store (Brent Town)
46.5	  S		Cross Midland Rd. @ Elk Run store (Closed Monday)
48.4	  BR		TRO 806 (Elk Run Church Rd. 634 goes left)
49.4	  R		637 Razor Hill Rd.
51.2	  S		Cross Rt. 17, now on Shipps Store Rd. (11:20am)
52.3	  R		637 Courtney's Corner Rd.
54.2	  R		651 Summerduck Rd.
56.3	  L		620 Kellys Ford Rd.
56.5	  X		Kellys Ford Bridge, County line
56.7	  L		TRO 620 Edwards Shop Rd.
60.2	  S		Store
62.0	  R		610 Eleys Ford Rd.
62.5	  L		647 Revercomb Rd.
63.3	  S		Cross Rt. 3
63.4	  R		Lignum Rd.
63.6	  L		Batna Rd. (12:39pm)
67.5	  L		TRO 647 Algonquin Trail -- Batna --
73.0	  S		Cross 522 Zachary Taylor Hwy
			TRO 647 Twin Mountains Rd. (1:30pm)
73.7      S		TRO 647 Cross 655 Somerville Rd. Gravel
78.2	  R		TRO 647 Willis Ford Rd. End 4.5 miles of Gravel
78.5	  L		615 Rapidan Rd.
79.2	  S		Old Town Rapidan
79.5	  S		Cross Rapidan River, mill
			leave Culpeper, enter Orange
80.6	 BR		TRO 615 @627
85.0	 S		enter Orange Corporate - 615 now E. Main St
86.0	 S		Orange Grocery (14:49)
			Main St. becomes Rt. 20 southbound
92.6	 S		Cross 231 @ Somerset Store
93.3	 R		Scuffletown Rd.
95.7	 L		644 Ridge Rd. (4:00pm)
99.7	 S		Cross Rt. 33 @ Ehart, 644 now Burnley Rd.
101.9	 S		Enter Albemarle Co (16:28)
102.5	 R		641 Burnley Station Rd.
106.2	 S		Cross Rt. 29 - Construction, danger
109.0	 L		743 Advance Mills Rd., bridges
111.7	 S		TRO 743 Earlysville Rd.
112.4	 BL		TRO 743 Advance Mills Rd/Earlysville Rd.
			662 goes right
118.8    R		Hydraulic Rd.
119.8	 R		Georgetown Rd.
120.7	 R		Barracks Rd.
122.0	 End

Completed the trip in just under 12 hours elapsed time, a quite comfortable pace. The bridge accross Kellys Ford had been closed for a few years, but it is open once again. The construction on Rt. 29 at Burnley Station Rd was not bike/pedestrian friendly in any way. Rt. 29 Northbound traffic merges to one lane just before that crossing, so at rush hour there is hardly ever a break in traffic. Also, the was no gap in the Jersey barriers, so I took the option to climb over them.

Starting out early and travelling counter to rush hour traffic made the trip along Telegraph Rd and Minniville Rd quite smooth. I was hoping for the same entering Charlotteville counter to evening rush, but the traffic load on Earlysville Rd is quite high. (Probably people avoiding Rt. 29 construction zones.) It was quite amazing to turn from the narrow, 2-lane, no shouldered crowded 45 MPH signed Earlysville Rd onto the wide, 4-lane, striped with bike lanes and signed 35 MPH, less crowded Hydraulic Rd.


A. Maitland Bottoms
Last modified: Thu Jul 12 13:40:00 EDT 2001