Key Bridge Boathouse

Key Bridge Boathouse at 3500 Water Street NW is the Georgetown waterfront’s primary paddling and outdoor recreation facility, located directly under the Key Bridge at the Water Street level where the C and O Canal meets the Potomac River shoreline. The boathouse provides the kayak, the canoe, and the stand-up paddleboard rentals that give the Georgetown community and the Washington visitor the direct water access to the Potomac River from the Georgetown shoreline, which is one of the most spectacular urban paddling environments in the American East Coast.

The Potomac River at the Georgetown waterfront provides the paddler with the specific experience of the river that the city of Washington was built alongside: the wooded Virginia shore, the Roosevelt Island to the south, the Key Bridge above, and the Washington skyline that appears from the river’s perspective as one of the city’s most recognizable panoramas. The Georgetown paddler who launches from the Key Bridge Boathouse can paddle the river’s length from the Georgetown waterfront south toward the Kennedy Center and the Lincoln Memorial, or upstream toward the Chain Bridge and the Palisades.

The boathouse’s fitness rowing and fitness paddling programs provide the Georgetown active community with the water-based fitness training that the Potomac River location enables. The Key Bridge Boathouse at 3500 Water Street is one of the oldest continuously operating boathouse facilities in the Washington area.

Hours run from early morning through evening most days of the week. The Key Bridge Boathouse at 3500 Water Street NW provides the Georgetown community with the most direct access to the Potomac River paddling from the Georgetown waterfront. The Georgetown kayaker who launches from the Water Street boathouse and paddles downstream to the Kennedy Center landing can view the Washington monuments from the river perspective that the Potomac provides: the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument, and the Capitol dome appearing in the river’s downstream view as the designers of the L’Enfant plan intended them to be seen from the water.

The Key Bridge Boathouse fitness programs, which include the early morning rowing and paddling sessions for the Georgetown serious athlete, provide the water-based fitness training that complements the canal towpath running and cycling that the Georgetown active community uses as the primary outdoor fitness resource. Hours run from early morning through evening during the paddling season. Key Bridge Boathouse at 3500 Water Street NW provides the Georgetown waterfront community with the kayak, canoe, and paddleboard rental from the canal-level Water Street address under the Key Bridge. The boathouse is open from early morning through evening during the paddling season, providing the Georgetown active community with the Potomac River access from the Georgetown shoreline. Key Bridge Boathouse at 3500 Water Street NW under the Key Bridge provides the Georgetown waterfront community with the paddling access to the Potomac River during the outdoor recreation season from spring through fall.