Melvin C Hazen Park

Nice little park in DC. Prob Won’t knock anyone’s socks off, but as far as urban parks, it cuts the mustard.
Hiked (very liberal use of the term) in from foxhall and had a picnic at one of the tables near the main entrance. It was pretty dead for a gorg day, but I was really irritated by all the unleashed dogs. Mine isn’t great with other dogs, so I don’t take her to dog parks or let her off the leash outside the yard. During our time there, three different dogs approached her with the owner not even being close enough to intervene. It made it stressful. Don’t be a jerk, people. Leash your dog or take it to a dog park. If you’re too lazy to do that, at least stay, like, kind of near your dog in areas that have leash laws. Kthanks

I used the trail as a connector from CT Ave to the Rock Creek Trail. The trail was not well marked, and there was several split offs that had me confused, but got me to where I was headed. I had to double track once in order to get back on track to the Rock Creek. If you are a runner, this trail is difficult and hazardous to run with many opportunities to turn an ankle. If you are a walker or hiker, no big deal. Seems to be a nice nature trail respite in the midst of an urban area.

Beautiful park along a tributary into Rock Creek Park… Great way to access the park, about a mile in length if you include both halves of the park… Connecticut avenue runs through it. Love to start my hike here!

3.75 stars.
.This is perfectly safe. It is pretty too. Nothing spectacular but you get some quiet and green away from the city with no effort and easy access to RCP. The trails, I found, were actually well marked and it is impossible to get lost. You can get a few nice shots of nature. Short by itself, extend your hike into RCP. Comparable to soapstone, I did not find a huge difference between the two, perhaps a slight nod to soapstone trail.

This is just a little tributary of Rock Creek with a trail running along it. A nice way to access Rock Creek from Cleveland Park. However, the nearby Soapstone Valley is a slightly quieter and much more aesthetically pleasing tract of land; this one is pretty boring by comparison.

This park isn’t well marked nor is the trail. I found it when I was looking for a running trail to go into Rock Creek Park – which it does, and quite a nice way in, too. However, there weren’t many people along the trail (I saw four – two were St. Albans kids running through) and it just didn’t seem particularly safe. I could be paranoid, though.