#22: [09-Aug-22]

#21: [06-Feb-16]

#20: [09-Jun-11]

#19: [28-Apr-11]

#18: [10-Apr-11]

#17: [18-Apr-10]

#16: [03-Apr-08]

#15: [16-Jan-08]

#14: [05-Jun-07]

#13: [08-Apr-07]

#12: [07-Dec-06]

#11: [30-May-06]

#10: [05-Apr-06]

#9: [01-Oct-05]

#7: [28-Mar-04]

#6: [22-Jul-03]

#5: [17-Jun-03]

#4: [12-May-02]

#3: [24-Sep-01]

#2: [03-Nov-99]

#1: [16-Jan-97]

#8: [27-Feb-05] (incomplete)

28-Dec-2024 -- Visiting the DC area over the final weekend of 2024, I met up with a couple friends who live in the area (Ben and Jack), and the three of us set out on a journey around Maryland to satisfy some quirky geographic interests. We took a dreary Saturday to knock out a nearby confluence and clinch a few nearby counties–both of these niches being new and interesting to my companions.

Luckily, there is a confluence very near to DC–39°N 77°W, which is located in a quiet neighborhood of Silver Spring, an inner-ring suburb in eastern Montgomery County, Maryland. Furthermore, based on previous visit reports and a cursory glance on Google Maps, this confluence is very easy to reach. This made our decision of which confluence to visit quite simple. A short drive from our rendezvous point, we used Interstate 495 to access the confluence’s immediate area. As Craig Hall alluded to in his April 2006 visit, the journey to the confluence from the ten-lane I-495 is quite straightforward and way less stressful than big-city freeway driving! The approach utilizes a short distance each of Maryland Highways 193 and 320, both of which are standard suburban arterials, well-signed and -maintained, that wind through hilly Silver Spring. Notably, MD-320, running just south of the confluence, seemed to have just completed a major change, with construction of a median hosting train tracks just finishing up, which I later learned will be a part of the Washington Metro’s new Purple Line. However, the road was freshly paved and marked. Also new to the road, at least compared to my Google Maps Streetview planning in the few days prior, is a traffic light at the entrance to Flower Branch Apartments, in which the confluence is located--this made turning left out of the complex after our visit much easier than expected. Turning into Flower Branch, it quickly became very clear that most were understandably home on this gloomy Saturday morning in between two holiday weeks–we had to loop around to find one of the only free parking spots.

We then proceeded to walk to building 8664, which has made quite a name for itself in the previous 22 visits as being one of the rare buildings in the world to host a degree confluence point (it likely lies amidst some unknowing resident’s apartment). While I appreciate the efforts of Woody Harrell in December 2006 to attempt to get to the exact zero point via contacting management about roof access (and unintentionally succeeding!), we decided to play it quiet and settle for the 100-meter radius. That being said, a roof visit, or even better, a living room confluence visit, would be quite the story–maybe next time when I am bolder! As we approached the building, we first stood on the front walk, crouched over our GPS app, as the postman dropped off mail to the building–I wonder if he thought anything of us. We then looked at Google Maps yet again and realized the back of the building may get us marginally closer. We navigated the concrete paths of the complex to walk around the building clockwise and wound up standing right behind the building staring at our GPS again. While walking we took note of a lovely public library within sight of the confluence–these residents are quite lucky to be within a 30-second walk of both a confluence and a beautiful library! Standing on the sidewalk just behind the building, we were able to get within 30 feet (10 m) according to our GPS app and stand exactly on 77° West (after a little confluence dancing), the time being roughly 10:45AM on this final Saturday of 2024. I wasn’t too keen to get closer to the building in the grass, as I had no intention of remotely disturbing or concerning any of the residents trying to relax and enjoy their Saturday morning at home on the other side of the windows. With this in mind, I discretely took the required photos and a screenshot of the GPS app, making sure to keep any nearby visible windows out of the photos. While this was my first time intentionally standing on 39°N or 77°W, my eighth successful confluence visit (and more importantly, Ben’s and Jack’s first) was done!

Despite a wintry start to the holiday week for the DC area, as temperatures on Sunday and Monday had struggled to reach the freezing mark while Tuesday saw a glaze of freezing rain, conditions this Saturday were fairly standard for early winter if not slightly warmer than average. At the time of the visit, there was a light mist and temperatures hovered in the mid-40s F (~7°C), a bit lucky because we happened to be in between two of several waves of steadier rain for the area that day. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t attempt a confluence visit on such a rainy day, but knowing this was one of the few where any outdoor activity would be limited (heck, the parking lot is well within range), this DCP can be attempted in any weather safe for driving (or public transit).

Satisfied with this visit and hoping we didn’t attract too much attention to ourselves in an otherwise peaceful suburban apartment complex, we headed on our way to southeastern Maryland to clinch a few of my unvisited counties and hopefully sneak a hike in on this chilly, rainy Saturday. A great day indeed, and I look forward to a 2025 full of geographic adventures!