DC Tours By Tracy D

07/12/2023

15/09/2023

18/08/2023

Happy birthday ladies!!!

04/08/2023

Absolutely Amazing! She keeps picking the worst spots, hopefully this one will last a few days 🤞🏼

21/07/2023

Big morning at the DC courthouse. Garrett from NBC news looking sharp this morning!

08/05/2023

Playin some soaking up our last few days of vacation. Love you honey, happy 10th anniversary!

08/04/2023

The tulips 📷:

27/03/2022

Amazing!!! 110 years ago today!🌸💚🌸

07/03/2022

I think it’s one of the most beautiful monuments in the mall…. It’s very unique and includes the only bronze statue to a 1st dog and 1st Lady! A very unusual memorial that offers great perspective to what it was like about 100 years ago! Let’s book a tour! Cherry blossoms are about to be at peak!

Elected in a landside during the Great Depression, one of the first priorities of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's presidency was restoring confidence in the economy. During his March 4, 1933, inaugural speech, FDR placed the blame for the economic crisis on bankers and speculators. "Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men." Now, he needed people to calm down and act together.

The next day, Roosevelt and his advisors finalized plans to address the banking crisis. Closing all banks for a banking holiday gave FDR and Congress a pause to pass legislation and educate the public. Once the Emergency Banking Act passed, guaranteeing deposits, people put their money back into banks. With the economy stabilized, FDR launched an unprecedented surge of legislation to bring relief, recovery, and reform during his first 100 days in office. Speaking directly to the American people on the radio, Roosevelt made them feel informed and involved. His New Deal programs forever changed the role of government.

The first two rooms of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial on the National Mall help tell the story of FDR's response to the Great Depression through sculptures, water features, and quotes. It's a wonderful place to take a stroll and learn more about one of our most influential presidents.

Photo by National Park Service.

14/01/2022

The snowy owl at Union Station has been getting a lot of attention recently, so we want to remind you of another D.C. celebrity bird: the peregrine falcon at the Washington Monument. Often spotted perched on high places, peregrine falcons are skilled hunters and daring fliers. Snatching smaller birds from the air, they can exceed speeds of 200 miles per hour during a hunting dive. Our rangers commonly find the remains of this amazing bird's prey around the monument grounds. This weekend, Ranger Gracie Housman snapped this incredible photo of the peregrine falcon flying over the National Mall. That is so cool!

14/01/2022

40 years ago today, a terrible tragedy unfolded near the National Mall. Taking off from nearby National Airport on a cold and icy day, Air Florida Flight 90 stalled and crashed into the 14th Street Bridge and sank into the frozen Potomac River within view of the Jefferson Memorial. Most of the passengers and crew – as well as four motorists on the bridge – died on impact

A small number of survivors clung to the tail wreckage, the only part of the plane visible above the river's icy surface. Heroic efforts were made to reach the survivors from the shoreline, but they were unsuccessful. Rescue became possible when Eagle One – the U.S. Park Police helicopter – arrived on the scene. Pilot Don Usher and paramedic Gene Windsor dropped lines and began pulling survivors to the shoreline. At great risk to themselves, the helicopter crew made several trips, once going low enough that the helicopter skids went below the waterline. Returning to the wreckage a final time, the helicopter crew found the final survivor – an older man who had passed the lines to others so that they could be rescued – had sunk below the water and was lost. He was later identified as Arland D. Williams, Jr. A span of the 14th Street Bridge was renamed to honor his heroism and sacrifice.

With news cameras on site, people across the region watched the event unfold. Dramatic footage of the rescue was recorded by Chester Panzer of WRC-TV, earning him finalist honors for the Pulitzer Prize. The image below is a still shot from his coverage, courtesy of Chester Panzer.

23/08/2021

Ten years ago today, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake occurred 84 miles southwest of Washington, D.C. As the earth shook, the Washington Monument sustained damage to its marble exterior and granite core, but remained structurally sound.

The National Park Service methodically conducted a stone-by-stone damage assessment of the entire 555 foot-tall obelisk and found approximately 665 linear feet of cracks. Repairs took just under three years and cost $15 million, half of which was paid for by businessman and philanthropist David Rubenstein. The project involved scaffolding the entire structure and included crack repair, securing and patching stones, repointing joints, securing cracked interior panels with steel anchors, and the replacement of the lighting protection system. The monument reopened to the public in May, 2014.

Still the tallest building in our nation's capital, this towering tribute to George Washington is recognized around the world. In a speech written for the Washington Monument's dedication on February 21, 1885, former Speaker of the House Robert Winthrop said, "An earthquake may shake its foundations... but the character which it commemorates and illustrates is secure."

Photo courtesy of Colin Winterbottom.

12/08/2021

Book a tour today!!

Happy 175th birthday to our neighbors on the National Mall: the Smithsonian Institution! Born an illegitimate child to a wealthy English father, James Smithson loved to study science. Making a name for himself as a scientist and innovator, Smithson traveled extensively for much of his life, but never once set foot on American soil. Despite that fact, when Smithson died in 1836, he willed his entire estate (valued at nearly $18 million today) to the United States of America to create “an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge.”

The motives behind Smithson’s bequest remain mysterious. Some have suggested that his gift was motivated in part by revenge against the rigidities of British society. Others have suggested it reflected his interest in the Enlightenment ideals of democracy and universal education. Whatever the reasons, on August 10, 1846, President James K. Polk signed the Smithsonian Act and formally established the prestigious organization that has become the world's largest museum, education, and research complex, with 19 museums, the National Zoo, and nine research facilities. For visitors to our nation's capital, experiencing the memorials on the National Mall and the museums and galleries of the Smithsonian Institution are memories for a lifetime.

Photo of the Smithsonian Castle by National Park Service.

28/07/2021

U.S. Grant, an amazing man and president!!
Book a tour and learn some interesting DC history that pertains to this civil war hero!

The Last Photo of Ulysses S. Grant

This picture shows Ulysses S. Grant reading a newspaper on the porch of his cottage in Mount McGregor, New York. The photo caption stated that it was the last photograph of the general taken just four days before his death. Grant had recently moved to the cottage from New York City following advice from his doctors in hopes that the cooler dry air in the Adirondack Mountains of New York state would provide him some comfort.

Fighting his battle with throat cancer had taken a toll on the former President and “Unconditional Surrender” hero of Fort Donelson. Grant, always the fighter, committed himself to finishing his memoirs to provide for his wife Julia and his family. With the help of Samuel Clemens, known more famously as Mark Twain, Grant would complete his two volume memoir before finally succumbing to the cancer and dying in the early morning hours of July 23, 1885.

Photo: Last photograph of Gen. Grant, four days before death / Gilman, Mt. McGregor and Canajoharie, N.Y. from Library of Congress

22/07/2021

Wow!!

Last month’s pedestrian bridge collapse led to a historic discovery in the ruins along DC-295.

19/07/2021

☹️

Speeding Kills Bear

We get this call a lot. Too much, to be honest. “Bear hit by vehicle, dead on the side of the road.” Sadly, it’s become routine. I log the coordinates into my phone, gather the equipment I may need, and head to the location. This call came in cold; it sounds like the collision happened sometime around noon and it’s 4 pm now. The location is an hour’s drive away, so by the time I get there it’s well after 5 pm. I pull off on the shoulder, lug a large backpack of equipment over my back, and head off down the road. My job here is easy, really: find the bear, move its body far away from the road to prevent any other animals from getting hit while scavenging on it, fill out a report, and collect samples and measurements for research. Then I’m off on my way again with another number to add to the total of bears hit by vehicles this year—data we hope will help prevent future collisions. Pretty callous. However, the reality behind each of these numbers is not.

Per the coordinates I was given, I’m still a few hundred yards off, so I continue down the road scanning it for blood as cars whiz by. I try to remember how many times I’ve done this now and, truthfully, I don’t know. This is not what any of us signs up for, but it’s a part of the job nonetheless. Then something catches my eye. It’s small and artificial, and laying in the middle of the road. As I walk closer, I see that it’s a broken shapeless car part, likely from an undercarriage. More cars whiz past. I turn my gaze from the car part down the embankment on the side of the road and there it is.

A cub. Its tiny light brown body laying just feet from me and the road, nearly invisible to every passerby. It’s a new cub—couldn’t be much more than six months old, now balled up and lifeless under a small pine tree. For a moment I lose track of time as I stand there staring at its tiny body, but then the sound of more cars whizzing by reminds me of my place and my role. I let out a deep sigh and continue on with my task.

I pick up the cub—it couldn’t be much more than 25 pounds—and begin carrying it off into the woods. I have no certain destination; I’m just walking until I can no longer hear the hiss of the road behind me. I see a grassy spot surrounded by a semi-ring of down logs and gravitate towards it. The least I can do is find it a nice place to be laid. I lay it down in the grass protected by one of the nearby logs and sit back on the log opposite of it, slightly relieved that it looks far more in place now than when I found it earlier. I take another moment and then continue with my work.

I slide off my backpack, remove a binder, and start the assessment. It’s a female. This immediately triggers thoughts of the life this bear may have lived—perhaps she would have had cubs of her own—but before I finish that thought I hear a stick break and look up. Just beyond the ring, there’s a familiar figure intently staring back at me. It’s another bear. Surprised, I stand up quickly and the bear runs off into the brush but stops not far off and looks back at me. Acting on instinct, I pick up a stick and smash it over a tree to scare the bear further away. I stand there quietly, listening as I hear the bear’s footsteps tapper away.

A few silent minutes pass, and I settle back into my task. Timely coincidence, I think at first. It could be a bear coming to scavenge or this could be a common crossing area for whatever reason—we did have another bear hit and killed not far from here last week. But then I hear it, and it changes my mind completely. From behind me there’s a deep toned but soft sounding grunt. I immediately know what it is. It’s a vocalization, the kind sows (female bears) make to call to their cubs. I turn and look in its direction and there she is, the same bear from before intently staring back at me. It’s no coincidence. I can feel the callousness drain from my body. This bear is the mom, and she never left her cub.

My heart sinks. It’s been nearly six hours and she still hasn’t given up on her cub. I can just imagine how many times she darted back and forth on that road in attempts to wake it. It's extremely lucky that she wasn't hit as well. The calls to the cub continue, sounding more pained each time. I glance back finding myself hoping it would respond to her call too, but of course, nothing. Now here I am, standing between a grieving mother and her child. I feel like a monster.

I get up, quickly pack my bag, and get out of there. It is time to go even though my task is not done. Quickly, I set up a remote camera. Why? Every year we report the number of bears that get hit by vehicles, but numbers don’t always paint a picture. I want people to see what I saw: the sad reality behind each of these numbers.

So please, remember this. Remember that when traveling through Yosemite, we are all just visitors in the home of countless animals and it is up to us to follow the rules that protect them. Go the speed limit, drive alertly, and look out for wildlife. Protecting Yosemite’s black bears is something we can all do.

Learn more at http://keepbearswild.org/vehicle-bear-collisions/.

14/07/2021

Call me today too book your tour!

Did you know Gerald R. Ford, born on July 14, 1913, is the only American President to have served as a park ranger? In the summer of 1936, Ford worked at Yellowstone National Park​ directing traffic, supervising campgrounds, and greeting guests at the Canyon Hotel and Lodge. He later recalled that it was, “One of the greatest summers of my life.” Learn more at www.nps.gov/people/gerald-r-ford.htm

Image: Gerald Ford at age 23 in his uniform as a seasonal ranger at Yellowstone National Park. /Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives and Records Administration

08/07/2021

It’s so hot!!! Why walk around DC when you can ride with me in an air conditioned vehicle!!
Call me anytime to book a tour! 410-507-6367

02/07/2021

Planning on heading to Washington DC for the 4th of July?! Make sure you get there early!! Call me if you need any suggestions or assistance planning your holiday! 🎆🎇

30/06/2021

Shout out to the Boy Scouts!!❤️

On behalf of Manassas National Battlefield Park, thank you to Omar Thondique and Boy Scout Troop 505 from Alexandria who braved the morning rain to construct a 40-foot stretch of boardwalk along the Deep Cut Loop trail.

This Eagle Scout project will allow visitors to better access and walk in the footsteps of the largest Union attack of the Second Battle of Manassas.



Image: group stands on a newly placed boardwalk with an open, grassy field behind.

27/06/2021

This is cool! Check out the last photo of the “inspector”. Could you imagine?!! Book a tour today and let’s see the Tidal Basin in its current form… surrounded by Cherry Trees and two fabulous monuments to two great men!