Cruising in Washington, D.C.: P Street Beach and the Black Forest
A documented queer landmark a short walk from Dupont Circle. The grass is the daytime place; the woods are the part to treat as a city park after dark.
Washington’s outdoor ground is one hillside, not a circuit of beaches. It is also a Pride landmark, which is a reason to know the history and not a reason to treat the park as private.
The grass
P Street Beach is the lawn south of the P Street Bridge, where Rock Creek and the parkway meet. Walk from Dupont Circle. In warm weather the grass is a sunbathing spot, open enough that anyone crossing the bridge can see it. DC’s first unofficial Pride gathering was here in 1972. That fact is in the city’s own queer history. It does not change who else is using the park today.
The slope
The wooded hillside beside the lawn is the Black Forest, the area older guides meant when they talked about the night. It is still Rock Creek Park. US Park Police patrol it. Carry ID, stay on ground you could walk back from, and do not plan the evening as if the trees were a venue with a door.
How to use the day
Go in daylight the first time so the bridge, the creek, and the way back to Dupont are obvious. If you want a beach instead, this is the wrong city: the Miami and Provincetown guides are the coastal version of the same idea. The Washington page has the pin and whatever comments are actually recent.
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