SIX TOP PICKS FOR SUMMER EXCURSIONS By Dylan Roche
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h, summer—a season of warm weather, long days, sunny skies, green trees and endless opportunities to explore. It’s the perfect time for your family to leave the house and enjoy some exercise together outside. After all, the ongoing pandemic means there are still a lot of restrictions on this year’s social activities, so there’s no better time for your family to undertake an outdoor adventure, whether that’s hiking, biking, canoeing, kayaking or maybe even nature watching. The best part is that you don’t have to travel too far when there are plenty of spots within a 30-minute drive of Annapolis to explore. What’s more, they all have plenty of space to roam so you can safely keep your social distance. While some of the amenities, such as visitor centers, may be closed (Check websites before you go), the parks themselves are still open.
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JULY 2020
On that note, it’s probably worth going over a few reminders for health and safety: • Yes, you want to keep your social distance, but being outdoors is one of the healthiest activities you can do. In fact, the Rails to Trails Conservancy, a national organization dedicated to creating community around use of trails, reports that many people have turned to the outdoors during the pandemic for physical activity and mental respite. In March 2020, the use of trails was up by nearly 200 percent compared with the same time in 2019. • Keep your groups small. Ideally, it’s going to be just the people within your household, but if you choose to include a friend or two, make sure your group doesn’t exceed five or six people. When you’re in large groups, it becomes harder for you to keep your distance in public places, especially on trails where others
might be trying to pass you. • If you are passing someone on a trail, announce yourself by saying, “On your left.” Then pass them on their left-hand side. If you hear someone announce that they’re passing, keep as far to the right as you can. If you are walking or cycling as a large group, it’s best to go single file or two at a time so that there’s plenty of room for someone to pass you. • Carry hand sanitizer and moist wipes with you in case you need to touch a potentially germy surface. • It’s also important to observe other health and safety practices you should observe even when you aren’t in the middle of a pandemic: wear your helmet when cycling, wear sunscreen and insect repellant, and carry cold water to stay hydrated (especially on hot days). If you’re observing wildlife, remember that you can take photos, but don’t interact with or feed the wild animals.
