On February 16, 2003, I was in Washington, D.C. on business. I was staying in a suburb near Andrews AFB on the eastern side of the city. I was supposed to be flying out of Reagan around 6 a.m.
A major winter storm was expected on Sunday, and I took a look at the radar before retiring around 10 p.m. Snow was developing to the west over West Virginia. I decided to get up at 2:30 and check out the situation. As I looked out the window, I saw about 8 inches of snow already on the ground. Uh oh. I am a pure Southerner when it comes to driving on snow, and the situation did not look good. I did not want to be stuck in D.C. though, so I dressed hurriedly and headed to my rental car. I knocked off the snow and gingerly made by way to the Beltway. I could not tell where the road started or ended. Fortunately, there was no traffic except for the snowplows, which were zooming along at about 60 mph.
Another piece of good news was that I had one of the Magellan Neverlost GPS units in the car. But I could not see where to go and ended up in Lanham. I contemplated checking into a hotel there, but trekked onward, being kept company by a bluegrass show on the NPR station. I ended up on US-50, New York Avenue. This surface street would be my refuge as I plodded my way into the city, free of crazy snowplows and even crazier drivers trying to follow them at what I considered dangerous speeds.
I have never been so happy to see an airport as I was when I arrived at Reagan some two hours later, after what should have been a 20 minute trip. But the airport was closed, all flights cancelled. I struggled to a nearby Marriott Courtyard in Crystal City and was glad to get a room.
I would stay there for the next two days, happy to have power and internet, a warm place to sleep and three meals. But you know, I found it contemptible that some guests complained vociferously about there being no room service. A total of 16.2 inches of snow was reported at National Airport, a low amount compared to other locations. Baltimore picked up a record 28.2 inches.
