The W&OD is a multi-use trail. Please use common sense and courtesy when using the trail. Here are some rules and regulations to make the W&OD a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone:
by the Road Runners Club of America
from the International In-line Skating Association
Users should be aware that regulations do now permit the operation of electric-assist bikes, etc. on the W&OD Trail. Details regarding the decision as well as some additional information may be found by following either this link (to the NOVA Parks website) or this one (to an article published in Arlington Now back in 2019).
The W&OD Trail is a shared-use linear park. Trail users are often unaware of the unique safety concerns of horseback riders on the W&OD. Although horses remain on the bridle path that parallels the paved trail most of the time, they do have to cross the paved trail or merge with bike traffic at times. Here are some facts that will help you understand why bicyclists, inline skaters and others should stop when horses are in a shared trail area.
…horses can see behind themselves because their eyes are set on the sides of their heads?
…what a horse has already seen with one eye may startle it when seen by the other, because the two hemispheres of the equine brain communicate with one another less quickly than those of the human?
…horses have a highly developed flight instinct to escape predators?
…the brain of a horse is only the size of a grapefruit? This accounts for the fact the animal cannot assess the level of seriousness of a threat. When frightened, a tame horse either flees or relies on humans to tell him it’s OK
…horses can panic when approached quickly either from the front or the back?
…any surprise, no matter how small, can cause a horse to panic?
Starting from the southeastern terminus in Arlington, mileage markers have been placed every half-mile along the W&OD Trail. Arlington County has placed an additional set of numbered and color-coded markers every 1/4 mile along the W&OD Trail and the connecting trails in Arlington. Please refer to these markers when reporting to the office on trail conditions, etc., and also when reporting (promptly) to the police any suspicious activity or emergency that you may happen upon.
Please assist the W&OD Trail in its effort to control vandalism by promptly either e-mailing or calling the office at 703-729-0596 if you see any graffiti spray-painted on the trail, bridge abutments, retaining walls, or electrical towers. The park staff itself will remove or cover most graffiti. If an electrical tower has been defaced, we will pass along the information to Virginia Power so they may cover the graffiti with gray paint. Be as specific as possible about the location, including the town, nearest mileage marker, nearby streets and, in the case of the power poles, the number on the metal plate attached to the tower. Also, tell us whether it is a round or a steel beam tower.
Studies have shown that a location from which graffiti is quickly removed is much less likely to attract additional defacement.
With your help, we may eliminate — and can certainly minimize — unsightly and sometimes obscene vandalism along the W&OD.