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There are so many wonderful trails and parks in the Bethesda, Chevy Chase and Potomac area and yesterday, my daughters and I visited Cabin John Regional Park.
We started by parking our car at the large parking lot by Locust Grove Nature Center and the County Tennis Center and spent a little time reading the trail and park map. The park itself offers over four miles of natural surface trails and two miles of hard surface trails. We decided we would hike from there to the farthest end of the park (without crossing any streets) to the play ground area so we started-out on the Lower Meadow Trail then met-up with the Stream Valley Trail. Click here to view a map of the park.
My older daughter decided to bring a bag so we could collect any trash we found along the way. Unfortunately, she's seen her Father return, after hiking around Cabin John Creek, with large garbage bags stuffed full of trash he gathered there.
The trail is easy to navigate although there are outcroppings of roots that may trip younger hikers, if not careful. The areas where you walk alongside the creek are especially scenic and surprisingly quiet for being in such close proximity to Tuckerman Road, Seven Locks Road and Democracy Boulevard. There are places where you can easily walk down to the edge of the creek for rock skipping and minnow viewing. A few families were wading in the creek, at various points, but we didn't bring anything to dry our feet and the girls were motivated to continue on to the playground.
There are numerous things to view along the trail, some expected and some unexpected! One of the largest sycamore trees in our area is along this hike which has a picnic table underneath, as are a number of blue bird houses, which seemed to have a lot of activity. If you'd like to stop for a rest, we spotted a few benches but the trail elevation increases past the sycamore tree and also becomes more narrow. The girls were particularly excited to see blackberries starting to grow as well as interesting tree trunks. We spotted many varieties of beetles, dragonflies and butterflies but the highlight for everyone was a snake I just happened to notice off of the path among some low-lying brush. It was a banded water snake but they share a couple of common markings with copperheads so my older daughter insists we narrowly escaped a snake attack. The snake wasn't the least bit interested in or concerned by us so we just moved along (quickly, even still)!
If you have very young children, I wouldn't hike much past the sycamore tree. If you do, just keep in mind that you obviously need to walk back the same distance that you have already walked! We made the mistake of not bringing enough water but once we arrived at the playground, there are two working water fountains. We didn't feel we had the time this hike but will likely take a train ride (adjacent to the play ground) next time. It is important to note that we saw a lot of poison ivy so it is not a good idea to venture off the trails.
If you decide to hike one of Cabin John Regional Park's nature trails (or already do), please let me know what you saw and if you have any tips for the rest of us!
Locust Grove Nature Center, 7777 Democracy Blvd, Bethesda, MD 20817.
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