Adventure on the beach and DC! Have any of you been to either of these places?

[BenOnAdventures]

Good morning fellow adventurers, I've been traveling all week to VA Beach and Washington DC both of these places are amazing in their own right! I wrote about it in my blog: https://benonadventures.wordpress.com/ what do you think about these places? Have you been to either? Any tips for traveling in em? Let's talk!

[Pedaling Fool]

I was born in D.C., lived in Maryland and stationed in Norfolk, Va (lived in Va Beach). D.C. is a nice place to visit, but that's about the extent of it and Maryland taxes you to death (I think they are in the top 5 or 10 states for most taxes); they even tax you on the rain that falls on your property.

BTW, I'm visiting in Maryland now and will probably do some hiking this weekend and hope to do more later.

[Coffee]

Secret to living in DC is to live in Virginia right next to DC to get the same amenities without the high taxes.

[B4its2late]

The DMV (as it's called) is a great place to live. There are so many things to do and see. There is a HCOL, but there are trade offs. I personally don't like living in rural areas and enjoy city living. Plus there are beaches and mountains within 90 minutes. Great place to live.

[Namtrag]

I have lived in VB area most of my life. Just make sure you have plenty of time when you drive here from DC...it's 200 miles but can take 7-8 hours easily. It's a nice place to live overall, but the cost of housing is exorbitant when compared to what the average person makes. The Navy is a blessing and a curse because the housing market is based on the fact they get a housing allowance. So if you are in the Navy it's great, but if you are a civilian, not so good. I have heard anecdotally that our salaries are about 3/4 of those in Richmond, yet the houses costs more here.

The funny thing is, I have lived here most of my life, yet I hate going to the beach, and much prefer the mountains. But job and family have kept me here. At least I am within 3 1/2 hours of the mountains (if the tunnel out of town isn't blocked)lol

[Coffee]

I like very urban areas and very rural areas but absolutely hate the suburbs. So I live in a very urban area and recreate in mountains. It seems to work for me.

[Slo-go'en]

On my way to Harpers Ferry May 1st I was stuck in DC from 6 AM to 4 PM so I hiked the Mall loop from Union station down to the Lincoln Memorial and back, visiting each memorial in turn. With my pack, as they wanted too much $$ to stash it at the train station. Unfortunately since I had my pack, I couldn't go into any of the museums and I got sculled by a security guard when I tried to leave my pack at the top of the steps of the Lincoln Memorial for a few minutes.

It had been a long time since I was last in DC to see the memorials, so it was nice to do that loop again.

[Pedaling Fool]

...another thing that sucks about D.C./Maryland area are the roads. They are trashy, poorly marked, parking is a bitch, jam packed and unkept, i.e. large cracks and potholes.

I was on I-295 the other day and went to take an exit (exit #1 to Bolling AFB) and the sign is directly over a painted exit point, but that point only takes you on the other side of some barriers and then kicks you back out to the main highway, only to enter the next exit point, which is the actual exit 1....W T F....:mad::confused::mad:

I could go on and on about the issues in this area...where do the taxes of these people go:confused::mad:

And the bike paths (actually MUPs) are death traps, there's been tons of accidents despite a speed limit being imposed; I saw one just the other day between two cyclists...that was kind of funny:banana


Having said that, a bike is the way to go, but maybe I'm just a biased pedaling fool;)

[Studlintsean]

Yup, been living in the DC area all my life. Currently live in the suburbs west of the city (40 min from SNP) and ride the commuter train into L'enfant plaza 5 days a week. I enjoy the area but have considered looking elsewhere after I finish my MBA.

[Coffee]

And the bike paths (actually MUPs) are death traps, there's been tons of accidents despite a speed limit being imposed;

LOL, speed limit? On weekends we get the weekend warriors out there acting like they are in the Tour De France with no regard for runners! I think of this every time I read about how mountain bikers are a problem on the Colorado Trail (they aren't)!