Cherry Blossom

About 5 level miles round trip from the Jefferson Memorial. About 100
yards of walking if you drive: very kid-and-elderly-oriented.

Walk, run, ride, roll, or drive past the Jefferson Memorial to the
southern tip of Hains Point, following the signs for East Potomac Park.
This is a wonderful open area with vast views of the river and is
marvelously refreshing to jangled nerves from the hustle bustle of
Washington.

Just north of a most surprising statue is a playground. The Cherry
Blossom Letterbox lives in the golf course fence line north of the
mound and the restroom. At the fence on a service road, exactly lined
up with the eastern face of the restroom, take 18 steps easterly,
probably 1/4 of the way along the mound. The northeast corner of the
bathroom is at 194 degrees. Facing the fence, the box is just to the
west of a smooth bark beech tree on the other side. Good luck!



Roosevelt Island

A single letterbox on an easy flat one mile hike with fantastic views.

At the Roosevelt Island National Park in the Potomac River near
Arlington National Cemetary, cross the footbridge and pick up a map at
the info board. Go right, south, with the trail and visit the memorial
to this great conservationist. Head south on the Woods Trail to the
southern tip of the island under the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge. Turning
north, you have three equally-appealing trails to choose from to reach
the northern shore of the island. Turning west down near that northern
shore, after the Upland Trail and the drinking fountain, follow a
narrower footpath along the water. You'll find a large group of rocks
jutting out northwards into the water. From these
rocks, the old Jones family boathouse is framed to the left in the
second arch of the Key Bridge at 327 degrees (you did bring your
compass to DC with you?). The more modern boathouse with ramps to the
water is to the right at 092 degrees. Just on shore before these
particular rocks is a faded path to the left (left when facing
northwards towards the rocks and the water, a path
tending northwest). The Teddy Roosevelt Letterbox is hidden in the ivy
on the right a few steps up the path.