During 2022 our hiking group continued to burn up the trails! We went on 108 hikes for a total of around 500 miles; averaging about 4.6 miles per hike. That’s not much different overall from last year, but this year featured more events of a slightly shorter distance.

During the first three months we saw wood ducks in the Rappahannock Canal, spoke with Civil War soldiers at Marye’s Heights, and enjoyed the cherry blossoms on the Tidal Basin in Washington DC.

During April through June we hiked through the bluebells at Seneca Park, got a view of Alexandria from the George Washington Masonic National Memorial, and hiked at Stony Man in the Shenandoah Mountains.

In late Summer and early Fall we saw eagles along the Potomac near Jones Point Park, went on moonlight walks in Alexandria, and watched the sun set over Fredericksburg from Chatham Heights.

As late Fall and Winter arrived, we enjoyed the beautiful leaves at Prince William Forest National Park, enjoyed a brisk hike at the Great Falls of the Potomac, and closed out the year seeing a pair of muskrats frolic at Government Island.

Of course, I couldn’t possibly have run all these hikes by myself! Jim Bovard, the well-known author and perennial public policy hooligan, hosted 39 hikes; around 200 miles. Many were along the ever-popular C&O Canal, but he also spent a lot of quality time reintroducing folks to the beautiful scenery in Washington DC.

What a great year for hiking, and we’re already looking forward to 2023!