Go Take a Hike!
Remember when our mothers would tell us to go outside and play? It’s still good advice! Getting outside for some fresh air is a free, safe activity that’s good for your body and your mind.
You can make it good for the environment too if you take a bag with you to pick up litter along the way! Need a sturdy trash grabber, safety vest, and gloves? A Deluxe Cleanup Kit can help — see how to get yours!
Virginia offers some beautiful places to hike, with trails that are good for all ages and all abilities. Peaks of Otter Recreation Area has one of the easiest hikes with its Abbott Lake Trail. It’s only about a mile long, and it is ADA Accessible and kid-friendly. As the name indicates, the trail includes open paths, woodland paths, and views of Abbott Lake.
Speaking of getting your kids outside, the TRACK Trail program is a network of kid friendly self-guided trails on or near the Blue Ridge Parkway. The website also has resources for teachers and parents, including a Winter Hide and Seek activity page that can be used outside anywhere.
You can find level, sandy trails at the Pleasure House Point Natural Area in Virginia Beach. Besides being a natural sanctuary, it’s to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Brock Environmental Center, an eco-friendly building that is certainly worth a visit, but check ahead for COVID restrictions or closures.
If you’re willing and able, there are more adventurous hikes in the Shenandoah National Park. Their Dark Hollow Falls trail is a popular and crowded destination in the Summer, but if you go there during the Winter months, you can see the 70-foot cascading waterfall without the crowd. The addition of snow and the sometimes frozen waterfall would be a frosty treat.
So listen to your mom, or to us, and go take a hike! *And take a bag with you!!