A new year, a new start. While some began the first day of the new year purging their homes of holiday decorations, or mapping out plans to achieve new goals and resolutions, or even recovering from antics of the night before, others stepped into the new year by walking the serene trails of Belle Isle State Park.
Open from 8 a.m.-6 p.m. daily. The park offers 9.45 miles of marked trails. There is a $5 parking fee.
Park manager Katie Shepard was our guide for the First Day Hike, a tradition established by Virginia State Parks years ago. She said she’s been working at Belle Isle for seven years now and this was her sixth year leading the First Day Hikes.
“I’m really excited so many people came out and joined us for our First Day Hikes. It’s really a great tradition the park system celebrates,” she said.
There were a dozen of us that had joined Katie for the 1 p.m. hike which began at the Canoe Launch parking area and followed the shore of Mulberry Creek to Mud Creek Trail. Katie said six people showed up for the 10 a.m. hike. Folks of all ages from different parts of the state were in company to take some of their first steps of the new year alongside the waters of upper Lancaster County.
Youngsters Thomas and Charles Trivette were eager to begin the hike alongside their parents as they held a pair of binoculars and wildlife classification pamphlets and books in their hands.
The boys said First Day Hikes are an annual family tradition and highlight.
As we began making our way down the trail, Katie reminded hikers to keep their eyes peeled for signs of wildlife to spot and identify.
She began looking for signs of fox dens in the woods and asked hikers if they knew which animals within the park hibernated. After several guesses from the crowd including squirrels, deer and beavers, one guest chimed in with the correct answer: groundhogs.
Despite it being the first of January, the mild temperatures for the day paired with an eerie afternoon fog made for favorable conditions to decompress from the stresses of the holiday season and look toward a new beginning.
As I was walking alongside the familiar running waters I’ve come to know and admire while growing up in Lancaster County, I was reminded that the simple beauty of the area is not a daily sight for all.
Julie Appleby and Doug Steele are friends from the Richmond area who have embarked on a mission to visit each of Virginia’s 42 state parks in 2022. Neither of them had been to Belle Isle and were unfamiliar with the surrounding area.
Doug was particularly enamored with the versatility of the park’s trail and said he and Julie will come back to bike the paths.
Julie and Doug are documenting their adventure through the app “TrailQuest” which serves as a log to keep track of their travels. Users of the app receive virtual badges for visiting different parks.
“It’s like being in fifth grade again earning little badges,” Julie said.
As we continued the guided walk, Katie led us to an observation dock where we spotted an eagle’s nest and several species of waterfowl.
“From here you can usually see where the creek meets the Rappahannock, but the fog today is a bit too heavy and you can’t quite see out that far,” Katie said from the observation dock.
Katie said the park becomes a popular place for fishing as the weather warms up. Bass, perch and drum are popular in the creek’s brackish water.
“This is a very important habitat in the park for all life,” Katie said as she looked onward into the creek flowing into the river.
As we left the dock and continued, the vegetation on the trail seemed to grow a bit more dense and heavy, creating a larger barrier between the trail and the shore.
Doug started walking with me and began identifying the sounds of various birds screeching and chirping.
“That was a Carolina wren,” he said after intently listening to a recurring sound.
Katie then heard the screeches of an owl and the group grew still to lend an ear to hear for themselves.
As we continued onward, Katie had been listening for as many different types of birds as she could hear with Charles and Thomas. The boys were excited to report they had heard at least four different types of birds.
As we neared the turning point of the hike, guest Terry Shepard spotted a foot-long garter snake just about ten inches from the side of the walkway.
While typically snakes will burrow themselves into the ground during the colder months, Katie said the unusually warm and balmy weather of that afternoon could be a reasonable explanation for the appearance.
The garter snake was anything but camera shy. He worked the camera at seemingly every angle and posed for several hikers.
Amongst the fallen fall foliage stamped into the ground decorating the forest floor with neutrals and browns, Amelia Fitzgerald, 9, spotted a small, bright yellow mushroom. After thoughtful examination from the other kids, adults and even Katie, no one was able to identify what kind of mushroom it was.
As we reached the end of the route for the day, we turned around to revel in the creekside beauty nestled in the park on our way back to the parking lot.
“There were lots of eyes at work today, we’ve all seen so much,” Julie said.
As many prepare for the upcoming year with popular resolutions like saving more money, exercising more, or dropping a negative habit, Katie proposed a resolution she thinks many should consider.
“A good 2022 resolution is to be a good steward to our parks,” she said.
For those who had ambitions of exploration, adventure, and deepening an appreciation for the natural world, those who celebrated the new year with a first day hike are taking a step in the right direction.
