Finally, the sun has burst through the gray winter clouds and spring descends upon us. As a Hopkins student, you are luckier than most in Baltimore City in that you see growing grass in large quantities everywhere you look.
However, if you are becoming jaded with the familiar shape of the Beach, and the quads are no longer appealing, perhaps you should picnic at another Baltimorean park locale.
There are three parks, which to me, are worth mentioning. Naturally, other Baltimoreans will proffer their own preferences, but these are the most non-contentious alternative-park options.
The closest park to the Homewood campus is Druid Hill Park. In Bawlmerese, Druid Hill is pronounced “droodle” or “droo-idle.” A quick jaunt down Wyman Park Drive behind campus will get you there.
Inaugurated in 1860, Droodle is among the three oldest, landscaped, public parks in America. Central Park in New York City and Fairmount Park in Philadelphia are the only older parks.
Droodle is home to the Maryland Zoo and the Baltimore Conservatory. Like nearly everything in Baltimore, neither of these public places are particularly grandiose, but they are exceedingly charming.
The Maryland Zoo, which has been struggling in recent years, is the third oldest zoo in America. It opened in 1876 and houses some 2,000 animals. Despite some hard financial times, the zoo has seen some animal-related boons in the past few years.
In 2008, it saw the first birth of a male elephant calf. His name is Samson, and he is viewable. In 2010, the zoo welcomed two male warthog babies, who are also viewable. If you are looking to learn more about the wildlife of your temporary (or permanent) state of residence, the zoo has a Maryland Wilderness exhibit too. In it, you can see animals native to Maryland like otters, red foxes or the endangered Bog turtle.
Although further from campus and with less things to do, Patterson Park is still a lovely picnic spot . . . at least during the day. I do not recommend hanging around Patterson Park at night. It gets scary.
During the War of 1812, the hill in Patterson Park, Hampstead Hill, played a key role in repelling the British. As the British Navy bombarded Baltimore by sea, the British Army marched towards Hampstead Hill by land. When they got close, the British saw that they faced a formidable army of 20,000 troops and 1,000 cannon.
The iconic (to Baltimore at least) Pagoda stands on Hampstead Hill now and provides a lovely view of the city. It was designed in 1890 and originally named the Observation Tower. If you are of fishing inclination, there is a boat lake with those gilled water-breathers. If you aren’t, there are some pretty waterfowl and heron you can watch as amateur birders. If you like none of this stuff, then you, sir or madam, are very difficult to please and my only other suggestion would be to go play on the playground like a creeper.
Although y’all might not be here for the sweltering Baltimore summer months, it might still be fun to go visit the Loch Raven Reservoir in Baltimore County. Though not a park per se, the Reservoir offers many of the amenities you would normally find in a park. There are picnic tables, hiking trails and boat rentals.
If you are unfortunate enough to catch one of Baltimore’s early summer days, when the temperature reaches north of 90 degrees and humidity is at a solid 100 percent, the Reservoir is the perfect place to cool off.
The coming month and a half is the best time to check out the parks Baltimore has to offer.
