The Best Way to Celebrate Spring: Outside
It’s spring! And this spring has been an especially long time coming. But the garlic and chives are finally up, we have one happy daffodil blooming, and it’s definitely, positively going to get warmer and warmer…. Even though it still might be a little chilly right now. Still, we ‘rugged New Englanders’ think that even 50 sounds like a vacation compared to the last 5 months, so we’re ready to get outside. Some awesome ways to do that are to:
Hike the Thorne Head Trail. It’s still a bit icy and muddy, but with good boots, it’s an easy and fairly short hike. Last weekend we saw songbirds, osprey, gulls, vernal pools, a beautiful view of Merrymeeting Bay, and the (very) distant peak of Mount Washington in the New Hampshire White Mountain National Forest.
Ice cream! It’s never really *too* cold for ice cream. But ice cream on one of the first warm days of spring is a special treat. Dot’s Ice Cream Shop on Front Street in Bath is the perfect place to get yours - I recommend the Almond Joy.
Listen to the peepers. These amazing froggies are the true song-birds of spring, and you can’t help but hear them near any body of standing water throughout the season. Some great places to listen in during early evenings (and really, any time of day) are the Thorne Head Preserve; Green Point Preserve in West Bath, which features vernal pools and views of Winnegance Bay near Doubling Point; and Sewell Pond Conservation Area in Arrowsic – you can park at the water’s edge, and there are some short trails if you choose.
Grab a BBQ pork or sweet potato and black bean burrito from Mateo’s Hacienda, and enjoy it on any of the public bistro tables along Front Street in Bath. This is a favorite activity of ours on summer evenings, and the people-watching is a free bonus!
Hike over Morse Mountain and have a picnic on Seawall Beach. The views are incredible, the four-mile (round-trip) hike isn’t too challenging – though it really is uphill both ways – and you’ll almost certainly have the entire beach largely to yourself.
Pick up a maple-bacon cinnamon bun and fresh cup of coffee from Café Crème and stroll down to Waterfront Park to enjoy it on a bench there – or bring your own picnic and make use of the tables! The Bath Farmer’s Market is almost ready to head outdoors to Waterfront Park, so if you’re lucky, you can pick up some fresh spring greens at the same time!
Whatever you do, put on a sweater (and – let’s admit it, maybe a coat and hat) and get out to enjoy spring up close!