Maryland Daily PhotoEvery Week Day a New Picture from MD

Last night I was sitting at home dreading the inevitable drive to work in the middle of slush and snow, which made me think about this picture, which I took near my office in September.   I really wish it looked like this outside today. 

The subject of this picture is one of the many trails in Columbia, originally envisioned as one of the major means of transportation in the town.  Paths like these do connect the whole of Columbia, but just like the streets there, the paths can be confusing and they will undoubtedly take you on an indirect route to any destination.    

I don’t know many (any) people who use them, but I do have a coworker who claims to have used them to walk to elementary school.   Regardless of their utility, they do make for the occasional bit of nice scenery.

I’ve been talking about this for a long time and I’ve finally captured it.   This is the obnoxious Howard County, “Choose Civility,” bumper sticker.  

What’s the big deal?   Well I guess it’s not much of a big deal unless you live outside of Howard County, in which case it implies that where you live is less “civilized” than those in Howard County.  For those in the county it seems to be some sort of ego boost.  

I’ve been working in Howard county for a few years now and I have to say that I’m not as angry about this as I used to be.   I guess I’ve just adopted a live and let live attitude about it.  But…  it does make me feel better when I occasionally make fun of Howard County.

Sorry for the delay this morning, which means I don’t have time for much more than another post from the park.  Enjoy.

The closed concession stand, aided by its somewhat aged design, looks like a relic from a summer long past.  What happened to September.

Driving home the other day I was intrigued by the constructon scene near my office.  This particular area is going to be a new grocery store soon.    It is just across the street from a totally failed retail mall, but I guess that someone thinks that people want to buy more goods, its just that those goods are fruits and vegetables, not specialty retail.

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Going back to yesterday’s mystery.  It was in fact a storm water runoff.  Of course, in the middle of a nice park area, they didn’t want it to be just an everyday stormwater drain, so they spruced it up a bit.  They added those nice stones and built a pleasant walkway next to it.

However, a lot of time has passed since Columbia was planned, and that runoff creek is clearly in need of some work, both due to its collapsing walls an its overgrowing shrubbery.  I had to follow it for a bit to see if there was something at the end of the runoff.  There was.

That storm water runs into the place pictured today: Lake Elkhorn.   I’ve pictured it’s interesting dam in an earlier post.  When I came upon it by following the path next to the drain, I was pleasantly surprised.

Then I was shocked by the green film that covered the entire lake.  The town has been dredging the lake for some time now and I cant say if that has anything to do with this film.  Perhaps because of the dredging they have slowed the flow of water through the lake and given time for this algae to build up.  Perhaps it’s always like this.  Either way, it was quite a scene to behold.

Part of the appeal of Columbia, as it was originally conceived, was the sense of small communities within the town.  The communities were accessible by walkways, which were to be the veins of activity in the planned community.

Driving through Columbia today, as with all things in Columbia, you have to look hard for the walkways. However, like the magic-eye of community building, you soon realize that they are everywhere.   The walkways really could connect almost the entire town.

Seeing as I frequently find myself looking for photo opportunities in Howard County, I thought it best to take advantage of the opportunity to explore some of these walkways.  I’m starting slowly, as this one is between the food store and the gas station, both of which I frequently use.

Of course, like a page out of a real estate guide, I ran into a rabbit within the first minute on the trail.   Then I found a clump of very pleasant long grasses.   After passing a elderly couple enjoying the scene on a park bench, I ran into this  mysterious waterway.

What is this?  Where is this Grotto?  Believe it or not, it’s in the middle of Howard county.  I’ve mentioned this place before but never shown a picture . This is the site of the quarry in Guilford that was formerly the reason for the existence of the truss bridge pictured here.   It looks amazingly welcoming.   You would never know that it was surrounded by office parks and by route 32.  In fact, it’s so inviting, I can see why someone would be tempted to go closer.  However, as with most abandoned quarries (although not all–as will be shown in later posts) it is best not to trespass or to swim.

Going back once more to Ilchester, these old trestles look like they would be a trespasser’s and a vandal’s dream.    Like everything that remains of Ilchester, it reminds you of a time when this place was busy and productive and relevant.