Governor Bridge Natural Area & Canoe Launch

The Patuxent River Park is a series of properties along the Patuxent River in Prince George's County that are managed by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC). The Governor Bridge Natural Area & Canoe Launch is one of two Bowie locations that are part of the Patuxent River Park.

The parking area is located on the South side of Governor Bridge Road - about a half mile before the bridge (that's on the right hand side if heading toward the bridge and Anne Arundel County). If you blink, you might miss it. It's the first right that you can take off of Governor Bridge Road after passing the back lot for Prince George's Stadium.

Color triangles mark the trails. We saw yellow, red, blue and green trails on our trip today.

Some of the trails wind through wooded areas, and other trails head to the canoe launch or circle the lake. Biking is permitted.

You'll come across this pond if you head toward the canoe launch. Boating is only permitted in the Patuxent River itself. This pond and the lake are off limits to boats.

Turtles everywhere. Five on this log alone.

We came across this big turtle in one of the many ponds. Although it might be hard to tell from the picture, I estimate that the shell alone measures 14 to 16 inches.

We saw this duck in another pond.

We found a bridge over a stream on one of the trails, and we saw these tadpoles in the water. The tadpoles were fairly mature, and they probably measured 3 to 4 inches.

An 8 acre lake is the largest water feature at this location. The trails around the lake are probably the most popular trails in the park. According to the M-NCPPC, this was the site of an abandoned sand and gravel mining operation that closed in the 1960s, and restoration of this site began in the 1980s.

A Canada Goose nests on a tiny island in the lake. Canada Geese can become very aggressive in this situation, so luckily there was some distance between us and the goose.

This is probably a Northern Water Snake. We saw it slithering along the edge of the lake. The snake would disappear under muck on the bottom of the lake, and then it would suddenly reappear. We followed this snake along the edge for about 40 feet before we lost it.

We saw several trees that had been taken down by beaver, and we came across this beaver out for a swim.

We last saw the beaver dive under here. I assume this is the den.

Google Satellite Image
The parking area can be seen on the left. The large path to the right leads to the canoe launch on the Patuxent River. The pond on the right is the largest pond at this location. Adjust the map to the South to see the 8 acre lake.

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Where in Bowie? #5 - Answer revealed

In a previous post, I asked where this picture was taken in Bowie.

Bill from Bill's Baro Clinic blog correctly guessed that this picture was taken along the WB&A Trail between the Omaha Beach Chapter of the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) and the Berwyn Rod & Gun Club.

This section of the WB&A Trail runs along the former Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Railroad right of way. I don't know the history of this structure, but it may have been a water tower for the railroad.

A view from the trail. The view of this structure is partially blocked by leaves during the summer. Joggers and bikers might not even realize it's there.

Another view from the trail.

We took a walking and biking trip along a section of the WB&A trail last Sunday. We started our trip at the parking lot off Race Track Road.

Trail Dedication. Morris J. Warren was a long time Bowie resident, and, according to the Wash Cycle blog, he is considered to be the driving force behind the creation of the WB&A trail. In 2008, the City of Bowie recommended (PDF) that the trail's future bridge over the Patuxent River be named in honor of Morris Warren.

The Tunnel Under Race Track Road

I was surprised to see snow still covering part of the trail.

Some of the old rails are still visible near the deck by Race Track Road.

Thanks Wiggans Family!

Loud gunfire can sometimes be heard because of the trail's close proximity to the Berwyn Rod & Gun Club.

A sound barrier helps dampen the sound of gunfire.

Something doesn't seem right about putting bike helmets on your kids for safety and letting them ride by a shooting range.

Someone painted a bit of graffiti after our last visit in the fall.

Part of the trail must be shared with cars, although cars rarely come by.

Berwyn Rod & Gun Club. The club has been at this location for a long time.

The City of Bowie purchased a 12.8 acre property adjacent to the trail near the water tower in June, 2009 for about $500,000. The funding came from a State grant as part of Program Open Space. Program Open Space is described on the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Web site as follows:

Program Open Space (POS) acquires recreation and open space areas for public use. The Program administers funds made available to local communities for open and recreational space through the State real estate transfer tax and from federal programs, such as the Land and Water Conservation Fund of the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. The Program coordinates the acquisition of lands for the use of all units of DNR.

I don't know what the future plans are for this property.