With temperatures in the 90s and soaking humidity in the D.C. area, finding a shady, cool and relaxing place outdoors can be a challenge — unless you know a secret swimming hole.
I found one on Friday. I’ll share it with you, but you have to promise not to tell anyone.
I’m clearly not the only person who knows about Seneca Creek, just off River Road, in Poolesville, Maryland, since it’s on various lists of great swimming holes in our area.
The street address is listed as 16315 Old River Road. The lady at Poole’s Store, whose chocolate lab trotted up to greet me when the bell rang as I opened the door was kind enough to point me toward the unmarked oasis.
During the height of COVID-19, she said cars were parked up and down the tiny road on hot summer days. On Friday, mine was the only car.
She told me to follow the tamped down path, and “head toward those fallen trees.”
![<p>Within a few hundred feet on the unmarked path, I could hear some gurgling water to my right. When I reached the point where a huge fallen tree blocked the path, with the shady creek in sight, it was worth it to bend down and try to propel my creaky body under the tree.</p>
<p>A few more feet, then a butt-scoot down a short, muddy path and there it was.</p>
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<p>By walking maybe 20 steps, in water less than two feet deep, I was standing in the middle of some gentle “rapids” — flowing water strong enough to propel an inner-tube rider at a fun pace, but not strong enough to knock down a child (or a rickety 64-year-old reporter).</p>
<p>Heading toward the River Road overpass, the water gets a bit deeper, with less of a current. Had I brought my bathing suit, maybe I would have sat down to enjoy the cool water. By the way, bring water shoes or an old pair of sneakers, since the creek bed is rocky and slightly slippery.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet tw-align-center">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Uh-oh, the secret’s out. I’ll tell you where to find this swimming hole on wtop-dot-com, and 103.5FM <a href="https://t.co/FtjQ1qJXYE">pic.twitter.com/FtjQ1qJXYE</a></p>
<p>— Neal Augenstein (@AugensteinWTOP) <a href="https://twitter.com/AugensteinWTOP/status/1685011767817076737?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 28, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Finding silent solitude may require a visit during “off-peak” hours. During my late-morning visit, I saw some kids with tubes, and others with canoes, so I was lucky to have the entire creek to myself for a while.</p>
<p>No reservations needed.</p>](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/IMG_2246-1672x1254.jpg)
