Conowingo Fisherman's Park

Well dam… this month’s location is sorta fishy. Get it? Cause we’re going to the Conowingo Dam. This Exelon owned power generating dam is on the Susquehanna River about 5 miles south of the MD/PA border. At the base of the dam is Fisherman’s Park, one of the best places in Maryland to see Great Blue Herons and Bald Eagles. It is also a dam good place to fish, hence the name Fisherman’s Park.

I promise that’s the last pun in here.

Fisherman’s Park is on the southwest side of the Susquehanna. This area is home to approximately 200+ different species of birds and a whole bunch of different types of fish. Anglers wade into the water off the gravel at the end of the wharf to fish for bass, shad, walleye, catfish and more. Fish tend to gather at the base to take the fish lift, which allows them to get upstream past the dam, this makes casting lines here very productive.

 

Keep in mind you do need a fishing license to fish here. The Game Wardens come by quite often to check that everyone has a license. You know what you don’t need a license for here? Photography and bird watching.

I love coming here to take pictures of Eagles. Yeah, there are other plenty of other species here, but this is THE BEST PLACE to get Bald Eagle photos. The best time for seeing them is October to March with a peak in November. So, make a plan this month to go take a look and see them for yourself. It is pretty much the same schedule with the Great Blue Herons that visit here. They like to show up during the cold winter months.

The entire area is mostly a paved parking lot with a 160-foot wharf at the dam end. At the other end is the Wildflower Trail which will connect you to Susquehanna State Park after a couple of miles. This trail is an old rail trail so it is flat and mostly gravel with just the right amount of water views. It is an easy and fun hike, provided you bring some bug spray.

Since the Susquehanna River is about 2,700 feet wide here, combining it with the dam on the north, makes this a bit of a wind tunnel. Make sure to wear a nice windbreaker if you’re down here in the late fall or winter. No need to bring boots, sneakers will be fine.

Henry Avenue Bridge

Wissahickon Valley Park. Beautiful, spacious, exciting. This park is by far the best place to go hiking in Philly. In particular, the area of Wissahickon to the south just off Lincoln Drive. This is where you’ll find places like Hermit’s cave, Lover’s Leap, and the most important (at least, to this article) The Henry Avenue Bridge.

 

Its not the view from the bridge or the design of the bridge, even though it is so absolutely beautiful, it is the supports of the bridge and the graffiti that consumes them. The bridge is made of concrete and every single reachable inch of the supports is covered in a form of paint or ink. The artists that put their work up here make all sorts of designs ranging from inspired social or political murals to complex patterns to people’s initials. I can’t guarantee that all the graffiti will be family friendly, but I have yet to see anything that would be wildly inappropriate.

If you’re a photographer, painter, or poet, the Henry Avenue Bridge should be in your top 5 places to visit before the end of 2021, the amount of potential this place has for inspiration and creativity is insane. If you’re not one of those artsy people, there’s a good chance visiting here will turn you into one.

Getting here isn’t too hard, the best parking is on Forbidden Drive at the Ten Box. Then take the Wissahickon Bike Trail, the closest paved trail to the highway going south, just past the Henry Avenue Bridge and then turn right onto the Yellow Trail and stay on that. This way you stay on a paved path for 75% of the trip and then you have a nice easy dirt trail the rest of the way.

Alternatively, you can also go down Forbidden Drive, cross a small bridge, and turn left immediately onto the Yellow Trail. Going this way means climbing a steep hill on narrow dirt trail with rocks. Much more difficult than Option A.

Middle Run Valley Natural Area

If you haven’t been out to the trails at Middle Run Valley Natural Area, I have one question for you, what are you waiting for? It has everything that a outdoorsy person could want, 15 miles of hiking trails, a beautiful creek, over 170 different species of birds and other forest critters, and most importantly, it is free to visit year-round.

 

Middle Run Valley Natural Area, sometimes called the MRVNA, is known for mountain biking and the wide variety of birds in the area thanks to Tri-State Bird Rescue which is in Middle Run. The Valley is one of the best places to hike or ride bikes in Northern Delaware because of the hilly and bumpy terrain. It has the feel of an Appalachian Trail section from Pennsylvania, except it doesn’t require me to drive 3 hours.

Scattered throughout the trails are obstacles for mountain bikers to test their skills. These obstacles range from logs cut in half to be bumps to switchbacks and sharp downhill turns to stream crossings. As I don’t mountain bike, I don’t personally know how satisfying it is to ride these trails. However, every time I hike here, regardless of it being a nice sunny day or it being an overcast rainy day, I pass people who are riding these trails.

Considering the MRVNA is located between several parks, 2 of which are portions of White Clay Creek State Park, there are several ways to access the trails in here. You can access the main parking lot by taking the gravel road near the end of Possum Hollow road. You can also park at the Pike Creek Bible Church as they have an entrance located on the side of their parking lot. Hiking or biking down from Paper Mill Park in the north is also an option, so is walking the connector trail from Judge Morris Estate, there is a state park fee attached to that one though.

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When I come here, I like to park at the main lot and do a specific loop. This path will take you through some of the best things that MRVNA has to offer and is home to a handful of surprisingly scenic views. Whenever you come across a bridge in Middle Run, take time to stop and watch the creek. Watch as the leaves fall into the water and float past. Watch as the water carves a path through the rocks. Don’t forget to listen to the birds singing their favorite song. This area is special, and this path will show you that.

Out of all the places I have written about so far, this is the best location to bring kids. They might not enjoy the hiking and the walking up hills, but they will enjoy the streams and small wildlife. While the hills might make this place challenging, they also make it fun and give the MRVNA a good amount of variety that other areas in Delaware lack. I fully recommend this place to anyone and everyone. It is just that good.