Places to Paddle: Two Gems Just Waiting be Explored and Experienced
Rich Batiuk, AMC Potomac Chapter Paddling Committee Chair and Paddling Trip Leader
Parkers Creek in Maryland and Dragon Run in Virginia are definitely two very unique paddles which need to find a place of your growing list of places you really want to experience via a kayak or canoe or SUP. Given the very special watersheds protecting both waterways, access to each requires some advance planning. Read on for details.
Parkers Creek is located in Calvert County, Maryland, flowing into Chesapeake Bay north of Calvert Cliffs. The American Chestnut Land Trust invites paddlers to join them for paddles up the beautiful Parkers Creek, one of the most cared for and protected creeks on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. The creek is surrounded by the Parkers Creek Preserve, over 3,200 acres of wildlands and natural forests.
The American Chestnut Land Trust provides friendly, expert guides to make your trip fun, informative and safe! They also offer you the option to use their canoes (2 person) or you are welcome to bring your own canoe/kayak. While the American Chestnut Land Trust guides give an orientation on proper canoe handling techniques and can assist beginner paddlers, this is not a canoe training event and is challenging for inexperienced paddlers.
Please note – trips are 3 hours long and can be physically strenuous. It requires regular paddling for two hours (occasionally against wind and tides), and may require participants to help carry a canoe for up to 150 yards over loose sand and gravel to access the creek. Registration is required.
Go to the American Chestnut Land Trust website at https://www.acltweb.org/index.php/get-involved-2/guided-canoe-program/ to find their schedule of guided paddling trips from May through October. Every season provides paddlers with a very different view of this protected ecosystem, from spring marsh plants to amazing fall foliage, this paddling trip is worth returning for each season. And while you are there, you can take advantage of the 22 miles of free hiking trails that are open year-round from dawn to dusk every day. Paddle and hike on the same day—life outdoors doesn’t get much better than that!
The Dragon Run wilderness is a unique ecosystem located on Virginia’s middle peninsula. In a study conducted by the Smithsonian Institution, Dragon Run was ranked second (first in Virginia) in ecological significance among 232 areas investigated in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The unique character of Dragon Run and its natural beauty exist primarily because it is remote. Several highway bridges cross its 40 mile run to the Piankatank River. Most access points are, however, reached only by a one mile or more trek through forests and swamplands and across private property. This natural protection has contributed to its abundant wildlife.
Concerned landowners, who over the years have exercised good land use judgment, can be credited with the conservation of this threatened gem.
Friends of Dragon Run invited paddlers to join them in the spring when the Dragon Run swamp is particularly beautiful with the emergence of flowers and the leafing of the bald cypress. It is also the only time paddlers get to see the prothonotary warbler. They offer paddling trips in April and May when the water levels are high enough to enable paddlers to navigate through this wild waterbody. Check the Friends of Dragon Run’s website at https://www.dragonrun.org/paddle-season-information.html for their schedule of spring paddling trips and more logistics information. Once you experience this nearly pristine ecosystem, you will already be planning your next paddle!
