I wound up spending a lot less time than I expected to at the Washington DC location of Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum on Wednesday afternoon. Outside, it was a beautiful day, with puffy white clouds and plenty of blue sky. I wanted to spend a little more time sightseeing and was thinking about going up to the Lincoln Memorial at the west end of the Mall. But it was a long walk for such warm, humid day and I wasn’t sure whether it was worth taking a Lyft.

I started walking and, within a block, came to a place where five battery operated scooters were parked in a row. I used to have a scooter very similar to these so I was familiar with the way they worked. These were for rent and it seemed as if it might be a good way to get where I was going without the long walk. So, with in a few moments, I had downloaded the app, entered the information they needed for the rental, scanned the code on the unit closest to me, and started the rental. After a little bit of test riding, I was speeding west on the south side of the Mall on a fine gravel walkway, headed toward the Washington monument in Lincoln Memorial.

The walkways along either side of the mall are very wide and, on a weekday in September, had very little foot or bicycle traffic. I was able to move at a good clip without endangering myself or annoying others on the path. Before long, I had reached the Washington Monument. If it had been open, I probably would have stopped there to go in, but it was closed for renovation. (I think there are structural issues after an earthquake some years ago.) I continued on my way to the Lincoln Memorial, stopping only for a moment to take these photos.

What a gorgeous day for this tourist shot!

Lots of folks were relaxing in the shade or cooling off their feet in the World War II Memorial’s fountain.