Summer on the Potomac River

I was born in Washington D.C., and my parents have lived in Bethesda, Maryland since 1993. But until Saturday, I had never been on a boat on the Potomac River. 

The river forms the borders between Maryland, Virginia and Washington D.C. It is the fourth largest river along the Atlantic coast, and it is 383 miles long. 

We jumped on the boat near Lorton, Virginia at a public dock. Once we were on the river, we were in between Fairfax County in Virginia and Prince George's County in Maryland. 

This is the Maryland side of the Potomac. 

 Mount Vernon, home of George Washington, on the Virginia side of the river.

I have not been to Mount Vernon since I was in elementary school, and I did not remember it was on such a beautiful piece of property. 

According to our co-captain, Washington owned thousands of acres of land in Fairfax County and chose this prime spot to build his home.  

 

This was my first trip back to the east coast this summer, and I love the heat. I didn't need a sweater even when the boat was moving fast. We found some coves and explored the more residential parts of the river. 

In San Francisco, I fall asleep to a noise machine playing "summer night", which is the sound of bugs and crickets. I didn't need my machine while I was in Washington, but I had somehow forgotten that some bugs bite. The mosquitoes were out on the flat water. 

As the sun went down, we headed toward the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and the new National Waterfront. 

The Masonic Temple in Alexandria, Virginia was a landmark to me when I was little. I also thought it was enormous. I lived in Alexandria until I was 8 and always knew we were home when I could see it.

 We headed back to the dock at sunset.