Where is everybody?On a late April afternoon, after the workday had ended, bluebells were ringing over the Honey Branch along the Patuxent River Trail. Dozens of warbler species were singing from every treetop and every thicket. Butterflies of every stripe and hue, bees, flies and beeflies danced from flower to flower, stopping to sip from a profusion of blooms: spring-beauties, wild ginger, rue anenome, blue violets, yellow violets, mayapples, dogwood. Sunlight, brushed by swaying treetops, spangled the woods with moving shards of color.

There was only one thing missing from the spring spectacular. I walked along the trail marveling at the sudden emphatic presence of spring, an annual miracle that never fails to fill me with joy of being alive to experience nature in all its complex beauty. This is a special place, preserved forever and the property of us all. It’s a place that enables us to get away from noise, demands and soul-numbing routine. Solitude among the spring flowers was a tonic for me. At the same time I shook my head, saddened that I was the only person on the trail, in fact the only person in the park at all. Where is everybody? Where could there be that is in any way better than here? These woods are not complete without people.

Now is the time to get out and wander the woods. Now – while the flowers are abundant, birdsong is common, and the bugs aren’t too bothersome. There aren’t so many days like these in our lives that we can afford to say, “Oh, I’ll get there next year.” You don’t have to take time off from work (though now is the time when the health benefits of a woods walk are at their peak!) : stop by on the way home. Along the Patuxent and its tributaries are miles of parks and trails. Now is the time to go out and discover what’s out there. The Patuxent River Trail near the Riverkeeper office is a tiny but undiscovered gem of a public park. Near where you live or work or shop, seek out the place that deserves to be honored by your presence.. Experience the beauty and wonder of spring; take it with you in your heart and pass it on. Don’t worry; there will be enough for the next person.

Where are your favorite Patuxent River trails? Let us know and we’ll let others know.

Contributed by:
Susan Charkes
Ex. Dir. Patuxent Tidewater Land Trust
www.patuxent-tidewater.org