Summer Guide: Adventure Sport It Out

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MOUNTAIN BIKING ALONG the red cliffs of Moab. Whitewater rafting on the Snake River in Utah. As the weather warms up, far-flung outdoor adventures sound pretty hot.

But it isn't necessary to catch a westbound jet to paddle, pedal or scale rocks. There are plenty of adventure sports you can engage in just a short drive from D.C. — ask the nationally known athletes with local ties what they would suggest.

» WHITEWATER RAFTING:
When 2004 Olympian Brett Heyl, 25, phones, he's about to leave for Slovakia to compete in a whitewater slalom-kayaking contest. The onetime GWU student and 2005/2006 U.S. national kayaking champion travels globally to roll and paddle. But these days, Heyl seems most excited about a course closer to home: the one at Adventure Sports Center in McHenry, Md.

The man-made course on a mountaintop, about three-and-a-half hours from D.C., features a 1,600-foot waterway, which can be adjusted to produce whitewater from class I (wussy) to IV (pro). "The scale of the thing is incredible," Heyl says.

The center opens to the public May 25, and will host both solo kayakers and guided raft trips for groups. "There are so few courses like this in the U.S.," says Heyl. "Having one so close to D.C. is great. A lot of times, to find good whitewater you have to go out into the wilderness, which is nice. But sometimes you want to drive on a paved road, have a changing room and be able to take a shower when you're done." The center also boasts a climbing wall and mountain biking at the adjacent Fork Run Recreation area.

» Adventure Sports Center, McHenry, Md.; 877-300-ASCI. Rafting trips: $50 each adult, $100 for a group of three adults, and $35 for kids (ages 7-11) with an adult. It's $40 each for groups 12 and over. Solo kayakers, $15 a day. Open Thu.-Sun., 9 a.m.-6:30 p.m. through June; Wed.-Mon., 9 a.m.-6:30 p.m. July-Aug.

» HORSEBACK RIDING:
Virginia horse-country sports usually involve hounds or thoroughbreds. But it's also possible to have a Montana-esque Western riding experience, says Olympian equestrian Kim Severson. "The most important thing is finding a reputable barn," she advises. "When you're looking for an instructor, you want to get people who have been riding for a long time and who are competent and safe."

One more-than-OK corral: the Marriott Ranch, where President Reagan regularly saddled up. Today, it features riding for experienced cowpokes and greenhorns alike. Located about an hour west of D.C. in Hume, Va., the former digs of hotel magnate J. Willard Marriott offers horseback rides daily (except Mondays) over its 4,200 acres of rolling hills. Depending on your posse size, you can also sign up for overnight trips or cattle drives that fence in the ranch's longhorns.

» Marriott Ranch, Hume, Va.; 540-364-3741. Regular guided trail rides: Tue.-Fri. 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m., $32; Sat.-Sun. 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m., $36.

» ROCK CLIMBING:
Any local rock climber will say you don't need to visit Yosemite to scale cliffs with crampons and trip wires. Great Falls and Carderock in Maryland both offer daredevil opportunities on their boulders. If you're looking for something off the beaten trail, Elkridge, Md.'s Tori Maisey, 17 — ranked the top female boulderer in the country by USA Climbing — suggests Seneca Rocks, W.Va., about a four-hour drive from D.C.

"That was my first climbing area," she says. "Because it's one of the older areas that was developed, the ratings of the routes tend to be a bit stiff. You'll get on something that's supposed to be easy and find it's not." The craggy quartzite outcropping, dramatic both for climbers and those merely gazing up at them, can be conquered with the help of the Seneca Rocks Climbing School. The outfitter has guides and teachers to help you get scaling.

» Seneca Rocks Discovery Center, Elkins, W. Va; 304-567-2827

» MOUNTAIN BIKING:
Mountain-biking routes are plentiful in the hills of Virginia and Maryland. Pro Chris Eatough, a 32-year-old from Ellicott City who's won six world and three national 24-hour solo bike races in the last seven years, even prefers the area to Western wilds. "Colorado is well-known for mountain bike riding," he says. "But you don't get as dense a woods as you get here. So, the riding tends to be not as technical, because you're not in the trees or on the rocks and roots so much."
One of his favorite local places to single-track: Patapsco Valley State Park in Ellicott City, Md. "There are steep hills, and it's got lots of rocks, roots, trees and other obstacles," he says. "It's not for beginners. I like the trail off of Hill Top Road. It's steep and technical."
» Patapsco Valley State Park, Ellicott City; 410-461-5005.

Photo courtesy Adventure Sports Center