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About 3/4 mile west on MacArthur Blvd. is the Union Arch bridge, which crosses Cabin John Creek. Just before the bridge is a parking area from which you can see 2 relics of the trolley line; the turn-around and a trestle at Wilson Lane.
If you walk to the trail going down to the Clara Barton Parkway, and then bear to the left, you will come to the roadway used by the trolley. |
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Opposite the intersection of Wilson Lane with MacArthur Boulevard you can see the remains of one of the many trestles on the trolley line. This trestle (as well as all the others has access blocked with fences. At this point (2012) I think that the only thing holding these structures up is the rust on the supports! |
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Just west of the parking area for Glen Echo are the remains of a trestle over Minnehaha Branch. The trestle is visible during the winter, when the foliage is gone. During the year when the trees are leafed, you can walk right by it and not see it (as I have many times!). The trestle is also visible and accessible from the parking area at the Clara Barton site, just west of Glen Echo.
The trestle is visible from western most parking area at Glen Echo (just before the circle on MacArthur Blvd. |
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If you park in the lot at the Clara Barton Historical Site, which is just west of Glen Echo, the trestle is visible from the footbridge connecting the parking area and Glen Echo. According to a sign just south of the footbridge, the area south of the trestle was at one time covered by an amphitheater which has since been removed. If you look carefully, there are brick remnants of the old amphitheater along the creek. |
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Just east of Glen Echo, across from a building labeled "Sycamore Store" is another trestle.
There is a parking area near the trestle, and it it visible from MacArthur Blvd. However, there is also a path that will take you down under the trestle to a walkway down to the Clara Barton Parkway. |
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If you walk under the trestle, there is a circular walkway from which you get a "parkside" view of the remains. |
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At the end of MacArthur Blvd. is another trestle, and some remaining track work hidden in the weeds.
While this is technically not part of MacArthur Boulevard, it is still part of the same line. This trestle is located in Glover Archibald Park and Foxhall Road, at the intersection of Canal Road. |
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From the underneath, one can see just how delicate the remaining structures are. When you look at all of the trestles on the line, you can see that ( compared to railroad trestles) these structures are really very lightweight. |
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There are many places along the route where the path of the trolley line still exists, but they are fading quickly.
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