Leaving DCA to the North on Foot

Google Maps thinks it takes half an hour to walk to from DCA to Crystal City, but you can actually do it in fifteen minutes. I really like leaving airports on foot. There's something about it that feels like it shouldn't be possible: between an airplane and your destination there should be some other kind of vehicle, no? It reminds me of the first time I boarded a plane without using a jetway, where walking out on the tarmac just felt wrong. I was in DC the past two days for meetings (my first time wearing a suit in a work context) and I was staying in Crystal City. I looked at Google Maps to see if I could walk: Walking south to go north doesn't seem great. Can we do better? I asked the volunteer at Information and they said the only way to cross the George Washington Parkway was the bridge to the south. Looking on the map, though, it seemed like the Mount Vernon Trail crossed under the Parkway to the north. And you could do something like: This is still not ideal; you could save…