D.C. may take pride in its reputation for sultry summertime swelter, but Friday seemed the sort of day for wondering what all the fuss was about and whether the reputation was deserved.
Washington, D.C
11 Fun Ways to Get on the Water This Summer
![11 Fun Ways to Get on the Water This Summer 11 Fun Ways to Get on the Water This Summer](https://www.washingtonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/file-5.jpg)
Whitlow’s on Water is the biggest boat in Sea Suite Cruises’ fleet. Photograph by Jack Walten.
All aboard! A great way to take in the views of DC’s majestic monuments and landmarks is on a boat adventure. Here’s a list of fun water trips to add to your summer plans:
Go hydro biking
Potomac Ave., SE and 710 Wharf St., SW
Boating in DC offers a unique experience: biking on the water while balancing on two floating rafts. The “hydro bikes” are stable pontoon bikes that can be rented at the Wharf Boathouse, and, starting on May 18, at Ballpark Boathouse in Navy Yard (Fri-Sun through October, $26+).
Picnic on a boat
970 Wharf St., SW
![goboat, photo by Lavert Philip - Washingtonian](https://www.washingtonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/goboat-photo-by-Lavert-Philip-.jpeg)
Sail across the Washington Channel—no boating license necessary—in a GoBoat you can rent at the Wharf. The electric boats travel at a speed of about three to four miles an hour, so you can do a leisurely cruise while sightseeing with friends. GoBoats carry up to eight passengers—including pets, for an additional fee. On this ride you are the captain, and are welcome to bring food and drinks (daily, $168+).
Explore on a paddleboard
Multiple locations in DC and Virginia
Test your balance and paddling skills on a standup paddleboard; you can find rentals throughout the area. Just south of Alexandria, paddlers can explore Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve, the largest freshwater tidal wetlands near DC, with paddleboards rented from Belle Haven Marina. Boating in DC also rents boards in Georgetown, the Wharf, Alexandria, and Fletcher’s Cove (daily, $16+ for Boating in DC rentals, $30+ for Belle Haven Marina).
Sail on a historic ship
201 N. Union St., Alexandria
Travel back in time to the 18th century aboard the Tall Ship Providence, docked in Alexandria. History guides dressed in period garb talk about the life of sailors in the Revolutionary War. The floating classroom offers dockside tours, sunset cruises, and tasting journeys on the water ($55+ for daily sunset cruises, Wed-Mon; $24 for dockside tours; $76 select dates for tasting journeys).
Party with friends
Multiple locations in DC
![Potomac Paddle Pub - Washingtonian Potomac Paddle Pub](https://www.washingtonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Side-View-scaled.jpg)
![Potomac Paddle Pub - Washingtonian Potomac Paddle Pub](https://www.washingtonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Side-View-scaled.jpg)
Choose a starting point—DC’s Wharf, Georgetown, or Navy Yard—and invite some friends to pedal across DC waters on a Potomac Paddle Club pontoon. There are 10 cycling stations for guests to get active while passing by sites such as the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge and Pentagon. Boats can accommodate between 16 to 20 people, and are equipped with coolers, USB charging stations, Bluetooth speakers, and a motor if you prefer not to pedal; you can bring your own beverages aboard, too (daily, $35+).
Go on a Classic DC Outing
1501 Maine Ave., SW
Prepare to move your feet on the Tidal Basin’s pedal-powered, four-passenger boats. Boating in DC offers one-hour rentals for this classic DC experience (daily, $38 on weekdays, $40 on weekends and holidays).
Take a culinary cruise
970 Wharf St., SW
Upgrade your boating experience this summer on a yacht. Nautiste— a woman-owned yacht-charter company—launched last year. It offers three options for a luxe water journey: two motor yachts, the 72-foot Patriot and the more intimate 42-foot Independence, as well as the Cru Classé, a 47-foot French sailing yacht. The fleet ports at the Wharf. There are options to add dining experiences such as champagne and oyster tastings, or charcuterie spreads, for an additional price (private bookings, prices vary).
Throw a tiki party
3100 K St., NW and 355 Water St., SE
![AVO_4820 - Washingtonian](https://www.washingtonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/AVO_4820.jpeg)
![AVO_4820 - Washingtonian](https://www.washingtonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/AVO_4820.jpeg)
If you’re looking for a booze cruise, Potomac Tiki Club has you covered. These Potomac River explorations feature a tiki bar where guests can purchase drinks; guests can also sip beverages they packed from home. There are two boats to choose from: a smaller boat that fits up to six people and leaves from Navy Yard, and a larger boat departing from Georgetown that fits eight to 18 people (daily, $45+ for Georgetown cruises, $350+ for Navy Yard).
Visit a local bar on a boat
3100 K St., NW and 1492 4th St., SE
The local bar Whitlow’s recently launched a 48-passenger tiki boat cruise in collaboration with Sea Suite Cruises. Whitlow’s on Water— which has televisions, music, and an open-air bar mixing up summery drinks—sails the Potomac River. The boat is also available for private charters (daily, $40+, Georgetown, Navy Yard). (Here’s more.)
Paddle the Anacostia River
4601 Annapolis Rd., Bladensburg
Spend some time exploring a quiet stretch of the Anacostia River by yourself in a single kayak, or take a serene canoe trip. Rentals can be booked from Bladensburg Waterfront Park through October (daily, $25+ for Prince George’s and Montgomery County residents, $33+ for non-residents).
Enjoy sunset views
3000 K St., NW and 580 Water St., SW
Capitol River Cruises and City Cruises are great boat options for sunset tours, date-night dining, and monument sightseeing around DC. On City Cruises, you can have a three-course meal and dance to a live DJ while overlooking the Potomac; on special occasions there are firework shows, too. Capitol River Cruises ship out around 8 PM for 45-minute journeys past the Kennedy Center, the Jefferson Memorial, the Capitol, and the Lincoln Memorial (daily, $25+ for Capitol River Cruises; daily, $52+ for City Cruises).
Voyage to Mount Vernon
145 National Plaza, National Harbor; 0 Cameron St., Alexandria
Tickets will be available soon for this experience that includes spending time at historic Mount Vernon. First, patrons cruise to George Washington’s former estate by way of a water taxi, which departs from Alexandria and National Harbor. On-board guides provide narration as guests pass sites such as Fort Washington. After the boat ride, passengers have three hours to tour Mount Vernon before the boat ride back (schedule TBA, $56+).
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/np-logo.png)
Washington, D.C
D.C.’s Friday weather seemed special for being ordinary
![D.C.’s Friday weather seemed special for being ordinary D.C.’s Friday weather seemed special for being ordinary](https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-apps/imrs.php?src=https://arc-anglerfish-washpost-prod-washpost.s3.amazonaws.com/public/AZSILVEBCMI6XPRCGLJTDWDVGA.jpg&w=1440)
But Friday failed to inflict on the District the harsh meteorological extremism of many days earlier this month — including the four with temperatures above 100 degrees.
However, if averages mean much, they may suggest that days such as Friday cannot readily be relied on to appear here always or often in July.
The average temperature in Washington on Friday’s date now stands at 90 degrees. So it would seem that part of Friday’s allure lay in the five-degree gap between its temperature and the District’s average July 26 temperature.
Possibly Friday’s sense that summer had a benign side, might have been earned physiologically. The many days of extreme and above average temperatures this summer have likely caused acclimatization and a process of adjustment.
But cloudy skies also played an obvious part in moderating Friday’s conditions.
For much of the day, clouds shielded the city from the wilting effects of the summertime sun. It is just a little more than five weeks since the sun was at its absolute annual acme.
Feeling its full late-July strength for protracted periods in the glare of streets without shade, with solar rays reflected from concrete and marble would have made Friday seem far less comfortable than it did.
A major contributor to Friday’s welcome as a well-behaved emissary of summer was the humidity. Or the relative absence thereof.
When summer seems to be at its most intolerable it is ascribed to the joint effect of severe heat and oppressive humidity. Friday was neither too hot nor too humid.
To know the absolute temperature was to know the “feels-like” temperature. Through the day, they were close to identical, meaning that humidity declined to make an 85-degree day seem worse than it was.
This was reflected in the day’s dew points, which were confined to the 50s, a location regarded as comfortable.
Washington, D.C
D.C. Bars and Restaurants Getting Into the Olympic Spirit
![D.C. Bars and Restaurants Getting Into the Olympic Spirit D.C. Bars and Restaurants Getting Into the Olympic Spirit](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ymK3CEFAEwy6RHwLczpMSNZgvn0=/0x301:4200x2500/fit-in/1200x630/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25547430/ASTRO071824_0006.jpg)
During the last Summer Olympics in Tokyo, we were just emerging from the pandemic and the competition was played in front of a mostly empty audience. Fast forward a few years, and Paris is the backdrop for sport’s biggest stage and millions are expected to descend upon the City of Lights to watch their country hopefully bring home a medal.
For those opting to remain stateside, there are plenty of restaurants in our nation’s capital getting into the Olympic spirit. Think fabulous French bites, themed beverages, and live broadcasts of select events. There are enough participating spots to visit a different one every day of the Games (July 26-August 11). Eater just obtained D.C.’s list of 74 bars that got the okay to stay open around the clock — and serve alcohol from 6 a.m. to 4 a.m. — during the duration of the Olympics, which includes well-known names like Service Bar, Vera, Mission, Capo Deli, and Midlands.
Scroll on to find out where to cheer on Team USA’s athletes while partaking in limited-edition food and drinks.
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Washington, D.C
Bigger, stronger, safer: DC’s new Douglas Street pedestrian bridge reopens – WTOP News
![Bigger, stronger, safer: DC’s new Douglas Street pedestrian bridge reopens – WTOP News Bigger, stronger, safer: DC’s new Douglas Street pedestrian bridge reopens – WTOP News](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/IMG_3170.jpg)
The Douglas Street pedestrian bridge’s construction took three years and $17 million to rebuild, after it collapsed in June of 2021 after being struck by the load of a large truck.
Thousands of pedestrians in Ward 7 will be safer Thursday thanks to the reopening of the Douglas Street Pedestrian Bridge over Kenilworth Avenue.
“It’s safer, it’s wider, and it’s better lit,” said D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser at the bridge’s grand opening on Thursday. “It has improved sidewalks.”
At the inaugural walk across the new bridge, the mayor — joined by the city’s Department of Transportation and members of the community — pointed out that people of all abilities will have an easier time using the bridge.
“Whether they are using a cane or a wheelchair, they will be able to access this very important pedestrian asset,” Bowser said.
The bridge crosses over the I-295 corridor in Northeast and will help those that live in the neighborhoods of Parkside, Mayfair and Eastland Gardens get to the Deanwood Metro station.
The bridge’s construction cost about $17 million.
“I’m 61 years old, I don’t like going all the way around,” said Claude McCain, of Kenilworth. He told WTOP that the new pedestrian bridge will save him 40 minutes of extra walking a day.
The original Douglas Street Pedestrian Bridge was built in the 1950s and had become structurally damaged and was deteriorating, according to D.C. officials.
“It was low. It ended before the service lanes. It was really unsafe for pedestrians,” said Sharon Kershbaum, acting director of D.C.’s Department of Transportation. “This is an upgrade in every sense of the way.”
She told WTOP that nearly $14 million of the $17 million bridge was funded by grants from the federal government.
After the inaugural walk across the bridge, Mayor Bowser expressed appreciation to the members of DDOT that were in attendance.
“I want to say thank you to all the people you see in the yellow jackets because they were able to get this bridge up and keep the highway open,” Bowser said.
WTOP’s Ciara Wells contributed to this report.
Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the Douglas Street Pedestrian Bridge collapsed in 2021. The Lane Place bridge actually collapsed in 2021 after being struck by a truck. Our article has been updated with the correct information, and we apologize for the error.
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