The Gravel Roads of Loudoun County, Virginia, USA: Leesburg & Beyond!

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"Loudoun County (/ˈlaʊdən/) is located in the northern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. In 2019, the population was estimated at 413,538, making it Virginia's third-most populous county. Loudoun County's seat is Leesburg. Loudoun County is part of the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area." - Wikipedia.org
Loudoun County is also known for its beautiful historic gravel roads, some of which are in danger of being lost to development, see americasroutes.com for more details on efforts to preserve these roads.
"Leesburg is the county seat of Loudoun County, Virginia. It was built in 1740, and it is occupied by some of Virginia’s most famous families, being named for Thomas Lee, ancestor of Robert E. Lee. In the War of 1812, it became the temporary seat of the United States government, and in the Civil War, it changed hands several times."
Leesburg is situated at the base of Catoctin Mountain and adjacent to the Potomac River, 33 miles (53 km) northwest of Washington, D.C., for which it has largely become a commuter suburb.
Other towns spotted in this video:
"Waterford is an unincorporated village in the Catoctin Valley of Loudoun County, Virginia, located along Catoctin Creek. Waterford is 47 miles (76 km) northwest of Washington, D.C., and 7 miles (11 km) northwest of Leesburg. The entire village and surrounding countryside is a National Historic Landmark District, noted for its well-preserved 18th and 19th-century character."
"Brunswick is a city in southwestern Frederick County, Maryland, United States. The city is located on the north bank of the Potomac River; Loudoun County, Virginia occupies the opposite shore."
"Lovettsville is a town in Loudoun County, located near the very northern tip of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. Settled primarily by German immigrants, the town was originally established in 1836."
"Purcellville is a town in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. The population was 7,727 according to the 2010 Census. Purcellville is the major population center for Western Loudoun and the Loudoun Valley. Today, many of the older structures remaining in Purcellville reflect the Victorian architecture popular during the early 20th century."
In this video, JOM of the Gravel Cyclist crew rides a route of approximately 66 miles / 107kms starting and ending in Leesburg, and venturing through the towns mentioned above. This route has it all; beautiful scenery, historic towns, country estates, horse farms, historic gravel roads, and endless hills. A challenging ride, bring your low gears!
The Route - ridewithgps.co...
More Routes available at www.gravelcycl...
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Links of Interest:
America's Routes - americasroutes.com
Leesburg, Virginia - leesburgva.gov
Taylorstown, Virginia - en.wikipedia.o...
Brunswick, Maryland - brunswickmd.gov
Town of Lovettsville, Virginia - lovettsvilleva.gov
Potomac River - en.wikipedia.o...
Sage Titanium Barlow Unboxing & Features Video - wp.me/p4V4se-bcY
ENVE G23 Wheelset Review - wp.me/p4V4se-6Ay
Panaracer Gravelking SS Review - wp.me/p4V4se-aaf
Orange Seal Endurance Formula Sealant Review - wp.me/p4V4se-2t4
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20 сен 2024

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Комментарии : 47

@aregee7121 Месяц назад

Having lived and ridden in this area for many years, I thoroughly enjoy your very informative and entertaining videos. Your out of towner pronunciation of many of these areas is simply charming. Thank you. Good on ya, mate.

@randallsmith7885 3 года назад

Wonderful that you were riding in our back yard? I ride up Old Waterford Road from Leesburg to Waterford several times a season - on a fixed gear! I do end up walking the 13-14% ramps. Thanks for the terrific video. Come back again when you can stay a while!

@99thObsidian 2 года назад

I live near Leesburg and was inspired by your video to ride Old Waterford Rd. I went a day after our last snow and I rode thru gravel, mud, and snow on my hardtail mtb. I really enjoyed the views and sparse, slow vehicles. Will be doing more Loudoun gravel once I put 32mm gravel tires on my endurance bike. Cheers mate!

@axxxxman 3 года назад

great to see it, I live in MD and work in VA but I don't know about the dirt roads. I have ridden the paved trail from Leesburg to purceville and back. I don't mean to change the subject, but could you map out some routes in Citrus/Marion county FL, my vacation house is in Beverly Hills FL. Summer time you can ride the C&O canal on the md side and take the ferry over to Leesburg. Cheers

@charlesphelps2730 3 года назад

What you saw on Thomas Mill Rd. was Washington DC. Love those gravel roads you rode. There are close to 300 miles of Historical Routes in Loudoun County.

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

Hi Charles, thanks for clarifying the city. I too love these gravel roads!

@charlesphelps2730 3 года назад

@@GravelCyclist As I said in your last video, come up an do the 1725 EX Gravel grinder in June. Also you can do the Transvirginia bike route.

@mtwedt 3 года назад

Thank you for this video. I love your channel. I love those gravel roads and I ride them all the time. I do hope we can preserve them and all of Loudon Counties nice scenery and riding.

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

You're a lucky man!

@secularist1969 3 года назад

I lived in Loudoun County for 30 years...used to ride all through Western Loudoun although rarely on gravel back then. Beautiful to see how some things have changed, but many things have stayed the same...downtown Leesburg looks the same still. The area is so wealthy that they actually choose to keep their roads gravel instead of paved...might need to move back there!

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

I have noticed several former gravel roads are now paved :(

@secularist1969 3 года назад

@@GravelCyclist I'm sure that the suburbanites moving out to the sticks all want everything paved, but there's a strong enough core of really wealthy folks in Loudoun that have always fought back against the developers. "Don't Fairfax Loudoun!"

@robertmcmillan7746 3 года назад

How did you miss the brewery in Brunswick? Smoketown has some great ones on tap. Great to see my backyard roads.

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

I didn't miss it, you don't see everything on camera ;)

@walcottav 3 года назад

Ok, you were riding in my former backyard, so to speak, demonstrating a dramatic lack of traffic. Many signs of development, but it was nice to see those beautiful roads - for the most part - remain unpaved. I lived in Oakton, in Fairfax County, and would pop on the W&OD rail-trail in neighboring Vienna, head out to Leesburg, Waterford (quite the Underground Railroad history there), Purcellville, enjoying gravel on 25 or 28mm tires before it was a thing. The W&OD was my two-wheeled lifeline for commuting west to work in Reston and beyond, or east to Arlington and DC. More great riding to be had in the Frederick Md area into the Catoctin Mountains. The climbs are character building, particularly in the full heat and humidity of summer - whew! Thanks for the memories.

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

Ran out of time to ride around Frederick / Cacoctin Mountains, next trip I hope to accomplish that.

@hansschotterradler3772 3 года назад

@@GravelCyclist the gravel roads in Frederick/Catoctin Mountains can be quite chunky as they are not quite a well maintained as the ones in Loudon.

@perieka 3 года назад

Yes, some of those gravel climbs around Frederick beat up anyone, especially in the heat and humidity... the bugs are so annoying when you are crawling on a steep climb!

@JimSBR 3 года назад

Me as well. 15 years down the W&OD in Ashburn and now in Houston. Brought a tear to my eye to see this and the prior video with all the great roads that I so miss. Perhaps a trip to LoCo next year with my Houston gravel crew is in order. Many thanks. Great video.

@MarylanderX 3 года назад

This article mentions a bit of the efforts to avoid the paving of loudoun... wamu.org/story/20/10/30/loudoun-county-cyclist-save-miles-of-historic-gravel-roads/ Nice to see a video where I recognize 99% of it. :)

@chrischristakis3744 3 года назад

Great video!! Thanks for riding through my Town of Brunswick, MD and my street. It's a great starting point for Gravel, Mixed Surface, Mountain Biking and Road Rides. Nice shots of Beans & the Belfry Coffee Shop, Three Points Cycle and Boxcar Burgers. We also have an awesome brewery called Smoketown.

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

Hi Chris, I wish I had more time to poke around in Brunswick, I simply ran out of time during this trip. However, I will return, LOVE riding in this area, ever since my first time around 2012 / 2013.

@traezer 3 года назад

Sorry I missed you! Lots of fun riding out past Leesburg!

@vahpr 3 года назад

My regular route/s for the past 20 years! Sad that there's so much more traffic now than there was just 5 years ago, and encroaching on the gravel too. But still, gravel cycling in this region is the prettiest and among the most challenging I've ever ridden.

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

Agreed about traffic. My first rides there happened in 2013, so many huge houses proliferating the countryside nowadays.

@mikewilson0 3 года назад

Beautiful setting for a wonderful ride!

@gravelcompromise7935 3 года назад

Let the gravel be gravel!

@JibbaJabber 3 года назад

That town's got a British vibe going🤔

@walterkasper467 3 года назад

Another great video. Nice rout !!!

@walterkasper467 3 года назад

The traffic seems very light is it always like that or is like that because of the pandemic?

@randallsmith7885 3 года назад

I live and ride here in Loudoun County. The traffic is normally pretty manageable - especially on the gravel roads. Traffic did diminish due to Covid, but it has gradually increased. Also, if you are a roadie, Skyline Drive is also close by.

@lundoftheeast219 3 года назад

Always enjoy your thorough tours. Any plans to ride over in the pacific northwest? You will want well below a 1:1 ratio if you do!

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

It is on my list once I can fly again... driving cross-country would be interesting if I had a few weeks in hand.

@yoofiao 3 года назад

Love the content! Question: what is your go-to strategy for warding off aggressive loose dogs? (When a sprint isn't an option)

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

I'm not intimidated by dogs, which helps. I find most dogs are having a game with the average cyclist, the chase is part of their fun. I generally confront the dog, and will stop to do so if necessary. Most of my confrontations will involve me verbally berating the dog in a fun manner, or a little more aggressive if the dog doesn't get the hint. I need to assemble a video of all of my dog interactions, there are many I have captured!

@yoofiao 3 года назад

@@GravelCyclist thanks! And yes, I would love to see how you handle those interactions. Encountering dogs is one of my biggest reasons for not exploring gravel routes by myself.

@iluvbiggirlz420 3 года назад

So can you drive the whole route?

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

I would think so, but honestly, you're better off riding it on a bicycle. So many details are missed whizzing along in a vehicle.

@iluvbiggirlz420 3 года назад

@@GravelCyclist Understood thanks for answering.

@dave7936 3 года назад

Chances are I was the guy in the amazon truck, That was my route back in Nov

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

Hi Dave, that is pretty awesome. Thank you for all of the hard work you do, I don't think folks realize the workload you, UPS, DHL, and Fedex drivers knock out nowadays on some very tight schedules.

@dave7936 3 года назад

@@GravelCyclist ya it was one of my fav routes, I’m actually trying to get into biking that’s how I found the video lol, I’m having issues finding a starter bike my size

@GravelCyclist 3 года назад

Global supply and demand issue is a total PITA for a lot of cyclists, and everyone else at the moment.