There’s no shortage of green spaces in Montgomery County, MD. Lots of parks around, big and small, county or state or federal, for hiking, being near water, just plain being somewhere with lots of squirrels, geese, and deer. Over the past several weeks, as the season slowly changed, I visited many of them.
One of them, one I have a much longer history with, is Black Hill Regional Park in Boyds. Whether it was walking my dogs on some of the trails back in the 1990s, or looking for a sunset-soaked location for a nice after work hike.
First place I went was one I hadn’t checked out before, outside of the main area of the park. One day in late February, still frigid and plenty of crunchy snow all around, the still-early sunset was fast approaching, so I figured this roadside spot by Little Seneca Lake, across it from the main park area, would work well. Despite the, again, frigid temperatures and crunchy snow and looming sunset, a couple other cars pulled into the small lot around the same time I did, myself the third one. One took a picture of the lake and left. Another wandered down to the shore. I did the same at another lakeside spot away from them.
Oh, by the way, this was the lake.
Frozen over from the deep freeze we’ve had recently. You can see something walked across!
After a bit of this, I turned around and crossed the street to the nearby trailhead for Ten Mile Creek Trail.
A bit snow-crunchy and muddy.
I didn’t have a lot of time, what with the sun quickly setting and not wanting to be caught in the dark in the frozen forest. Some guy jogged by while I was on this trail, though, so maybe he wasn’t so worried or maybe he lives up that way.
The sunset over the frozen lake and through the leafless trees was still amazing.
But it was time to head back for today.
Later that same week, after a couple other intended destinations didn’t quite happen, I ended up in the main park, through the main entrance on Old Baltimore Road.
Along the road near the entrance, there’s a weird house inside a fenced property with a bunch of pro-Orange Thing banners on the gate. Oh, well, I support people’s right to adorn their homes with whatever garbage they want. Still, though, ew.
Followed the main park road past a number of trailheads I’ve hiked in the past, beyond some picnic areas, and parked at the nature center lot and walked down the path from there toward the boat dock area.
Boathouse doing its RFK Jr’s brain impression.
Wow!
The lake was mostly still frozen over, but the area closest to the docks was liquid. I took a short walk along the lake shore and followed a path through the woods, the golden sunset casting rays through the trees.
This fallen tree I could easily step over blocked the path forward, so I figured I’ll turn back toward the dock now.
Back over to the lake, beside a wooden walkway out over the water. I remember this spot. It was June 2001, almost 25 years ago, between my sophomore and junior years of college. I’d come over here one morning, wanting to rent a canoe and get out on the water, only to find the rental place wouldn’t open for another couple of hours. So I just hung around here until then. Thinking back on that now got me remembering the sort of things that were weighing on my mind then. What became of what I was worried about. What I had zero ability to change and shouldn’t have blamed myself. What I should have done differently. And, of course, what I still don’t know what I should have done differently.
I was waiting for some other people who were out on the boardwalk to leave before heading over myself. They left, so I went over there to enjoy more lake sunset views myself.
When I finally turned around and headed back, some woman was passing by. She commented that it’s a beautiful view, and I agreed. Then for some reason she asked if I had been vaping. No, I don’t do that shit! Also, weird ass question from a total stranger.
Third visit to the park in recent weeks was again from along Clarksburg Road like the first one, just a bit further up the road. It was a rainy dreary day but a little bit warmer than it had been. Hoyles Mill Trail, which itself passes through three different local parks, stretched across this area to the right and left. For now, I followed the path forward a short way, leading to yet another spot on the shore of Little Seneca Lake.
Still frozen.
I followed the path along the lake shore for a bit until it turned back through the trees and met up with Hoyles Mill Trail. Saw some deer go by on the way back to the car.
The following week, after Daylight Saving Time began and made sunsets much less of an issue, I returned to the Ten Mile Creek trailhead.
Lake’s not so frozen now!
Ten Mile Creek trailhead’s not so muddy and slushy now!
So it was a bunch of long sad grass under that snow!
I followed the path a bit farther this time, having more time to do so.
Oh, it’s leading somewhere. An old house.
Historic.
What’s that over there? Trail maps?
Nope. Historical plaques about Boyds. Middle of a hiking path by a lake is as good a place as any.
“There used to be gold mining in the county.”
“Attempting to do so yourself is prohibited.”
DST made sunset not much of an issue for these after work walks, but this mid-hike read up on local history sure ate up some time. So time to head back. Ten Mile Creek Trail extends much farther from that point, but maybe another time.
A couple weeks later, just before the equinox, I went into the main park again.
This time I took Hamilton Trail, along the lake a bit north of the boat rental dock.
Stopped and turned back when the trail would cross Black Hill Road.
Speaking of which, the week after that, I went along that road to one last walk in this park this spring.
I followed a rather overgrown path along this further north section of the lake, coming to a wider path I probably could have taken in the first place. I came to a narrow peninsula that stuck out in the lake, following a path along it.
The end of it seemed to be a fishing area, with some more views of the lake on three sides.
After this, I followed Cabin Branch Trail a short way, a wide grassy path with clear tire tracks in the dirt. There was a conservation meadow area.
It’s a park I’ve been to so many times before, but this spring did include a couple of new areas I hadn’t explored before, plus some trails I did not see but I’d been on them a long time ago. It’s a nice place to get out into nature and totally free of charge to visit.
Of course, there’s another rather large green space around here…