Saturday: ACE Hike & Happy Hour

Four years ago, the first-ever ACE Hike & Happy Hour took place at Potomac Overlook Regional Park. A total of four people went on the hike -- The Green Miles, my roommate, and our hike leaders. And I wouldn't have been there if my roommate hadn't dragged me out of bed (I had a wicked hangover and it was pouring rain).

Despite the rain, Arlington County Board Member Barbara Favola showed up to welcome the hikers. We told her she didn't have to hike through the mud with us psychos, an offer she graciously took us up on. The next year, we got sun and a slightly better turnout -- about 10 people.

But last year, we moved the location to Roosevelt Island, and suddenly it was hip to hike. I guest blogged about here at What's Up Arlington (this was wayyyyy back in June 2006, before mild-mannered Miles became The Green Miles). Over 40 people came out for the birding tour of Roosevelt Island and the happy hour at Continental.

We spotted a hawk at Roosevelt Island, who was spontaneously dubbed Bernie the Hawk by The Green Girlfriend, prompting this exchange:

ME: Why Bernie?
HER: It's a nice name.

How can you argue with logic like that?

This year we're sticking with the Roosevelt Island/Contintenal combination, but we're shifting the focus of the hike from birding to invasive plants. Here are all the details:

4th Annual Hike & Happy Hour
Saturday, June 2, 5:00 to 6:30 p.m.
Rosslyn

In honor of National Trails Day, join ACE to explore the invasive plants of Teddy Roosevelt Island with Arlington County's Invasive Program Manager, Jan Ferrigan. Learn how to identify some common invasive and native plants. Teddy Roosevelt Island is accessible from GW Parkway North, on the Mount Vernon bike path, and a three-quarters of a mile walk from Rosslyn Metro. Click here for directions. We'll meet in the parking lot by the footbridge.

After the hike, meet at 6:30 p.m. at Continental in Rosslyn for happy hour. While the hike is for all ages, Continental is 21+. A $10 donation at the happy hour is suggested with proceeds to benefit local conservation efforts. For more information: 703-228-6406 or volunteer@arlingtonenvironment.org.

Hope to see you there!

Great Hike Right Down the Street: Four Mile Run

OK, so it's not necessarily a true hike in the strap-on-your-backpack-and-Timberlands sense of the word. But considering you don't have to leave Arlington to get there, walking the Four Mile Run Trail is a beautiful way to spend a spring afternoon. And it has one thing going for it over some bigger-name trails -- you can't stop for a Slushie in Shenandoah National Park.

The Green Girlfriend and I picked up the trail Sunday morning off a side street in Arlington's Barcroft neighborhood. There were plenty of other people on the trail, but it didn't feel crowded. We spent a couple of hours walking the trail as it meandered through parks, behind apartment buildings, past a snow-cone vendor, and across Walter Reed Drive.

A partial list of the wildlife we spotted:

• A red-tailed hawk
• Grackles
• Blue jays
• A crow being chased by aforementioned grackles & blue jays, who apparently had formed a coalition of the willing to drive the crow away from their nests
• Robins
• Cardinals
• Fish (up to 6 inches long) who apparently have not gotten word Four Mile Run itself is pretty polluted A cat, which may or not have been wild

Unfortunately, we also spotted plenty of invasive plants overpowering native trees. We pledged to bring pruning shears next time we hiked the trail.

Here's a W&OD trail website's review of the Four Mile Run Trail:

Arlington County's Four Mile Run Trail is an asphalt trail parallel to the W&OD from Mile 0.1 to Mile 4.7. Because it is less well-known than the W&OD it gets less through traffic, including bikes. It is ideal for walking. Parallel to the W&OD between Mile Markers 3.5 and 4.5, the Four Mile Run Trail disappears briefly. It takes a while to learn where it goes, but it is worth it. Going west, a good starting point is on Walter Reed Drive at Arlington Mill Road, which is west of the W&OD (Mile 0.5). Eastbound on the W&OD, it branches to the right at Mile 4.8.

Thanks to RunDC.com for the map!