For the bird-watchers: Sunday morning and Monday morning bird walks at Bucktoe Creek Preserve, in Kennett

Doing too much partying on the weekends?  Cleanse your soul with some nature and wildlife walks.  Bucktoe Creek Preserve is in nearby Kennett Square, PA, and offers bird walks on Sunday mornings and Monday mornings, through the fall. 

Sunday bird walks: Every Sunday from now until early October.  8am.  Free, no registration required.  Meet at 432 Sharp Road parking area at Bucktoe Creek Preserve.  The walks average 3 miles and are led by expert birders.  Coffee and tea is provided. 

Monday bird walks:  Every Monday from now until early January.  8am, free, same meeting spot, same details as above. 

From photos Bucktoe Creek has posted, participants range from late twenties and up (in other words, if you're worried about it being you amongst a sea of senior citizens, worry not).   Besides being good for the soul, these bird walks sound like something you could do with an older (but somewhat mobile) relative - maybe an aunt or a dad you haven't been spending enough time with.   Food for thought. 

For more info about Bucktoe Creek: http://www.bucktoecreekpreserve.org/

Two events at White Clay this weekend: Wild Mushroom Hike, and Spring Weed Out

SUNDAY: A couple of weeks back I wrote about a guided Wild Mushroom Hike occurring in a Kennett Square wildlife preserve that sounded great but was $25.  Good thing I didn't pull the trigger on that one, because now White Clay Creek State Park is offering a guided wild mushroom  hike for FREE (though you do have to pay the nominal park entrance fee if you don't have an annual parks pass).  It's on Sunday, May 1st, starting at 1pm, and the guide will be mushroom enthusiast Glenn Cote.  Come prepared for an intermediate hike.  Currently, the park is saying "call the nature center for meeting location":  (302) 368-6560. 

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SATURDAY: The other event is a volunteer affair.  White Clay Creek needs help removing an invasive weed - the tall, prickly "garlic mustard" - from one segment of the park.  If you missed all of the area clean-ups and are looking for some volunteer clean-up action, this is for you.  The instructions on the park's Facebook page are:

"Saturday, April 30th, 9-11am.  Help us remove garlic mustard from Pleasant Hill Woods. Be sure to wear long pants and boots or sneakers, and bring a pair of work gloves, if you have them. Also, be sure to bring drinking water. Meet at the 9-Foot Road parking lot. "  

So where is that, you're wondering.  I'll try to explain:  9-Foot Road is a driveway leading into the park, and it's off of Thompson Station Rd., across from the W.L. Gore campus in western Newark.   You'll find Thompson Station Road off of Papermill Rd., at the intersection that has Happy Harry's, Tony's Pizza, the Gore campus, and that little house on the corner that always has guitars hanging from the rafters.    If my directions are unintelligible, try this map:

http://files.meetup.com/901803/wcc_middlerun_map_2.0.pdf

You're looking for the "P" for parking that is just to the right of the section marked "9 Foot Rd Area". 

Worth repeating: cherry trees and theatre happy hours

There is still time to see the cherry trees in bloom in Brandywine Park, by the zoo.  But hurry, because they're fading fast.  If inclined to visit the zoo while you're there, they just debuted two baby pygmy goats.  You can buy anti-melting-from-the-cuteness spray at the gates.  $4 for adults.

ALSO: don't forget that the new Queen Theatre is now having a happy hours, 3-7pm and 10pm-close, Monday thru Friday.  Good way for city workers or dwellers to see the theatre and support it if, like me, you haven't found a reason on the  Queen's schedule yet to actually attend a concert. 

Side note:  My band mates would appreciate this.  I know someone who went to the Rusted Root show the other day.  Guess what?  No opening act.

New 30 mile long greenway is being proposed for the Brandywine River

It's being called the Brandywine-Struble Greenway, and will span from the Delaware state line at Chadds Ford to an established "Mega-Greenway" 30 miles north in Pennyslvania.  The Brandywine Conservancy is the private organization that is proposing the idea.  Conveniently, most of the 30 miles of greenway wouldn't have to be built from scratch, since much of the Brandywine is already edged by informal paths.  This idea seeks to connect and refine the various pathways and to accomplish this before increasing development makes this logistically impossible. 

It makes sense to me.  My honey and I have walked a lot of the banks of the Brandywine, both in North Wilmington and near the Brandywine River Museum, and wouldn't mind if some of the particularly pot-holed, muddy parts of the path were smoothed out a little.  This greenway would also insure that, should some private land be sold to a proposed strip mall, the land can't be paved right up to the edge of the river. But if, for some reason, you're opposed to this idea and you live in southeastern PA, you can voice your opinion at the Chadds Ford Township Building tomorrow evening (4/14) at 7 p.m.

For more info on the proposed greenway:
http://www.brandywineconservancy.org/greenway/index.html

Cherry trees in bloom at the Josephine Gardens in Brandywine Park

If you haven't seen the cherry blossoms in Brandywine Park, on the stretch of grass between the zoo and the river, go this week.  The weather is ideal (not the case when this happens, most years), and you will not find a finer display of heirloom blooms north of D.C.  Most of the trees, originally a gift from Japan, are nearly 100 years old.   This is a little more poignant when you remember that Wilmington's sister city, Miyagi, was one of the cities devastated in the recent earthquake in Japan.  I can't find info on whether the cherry trees actually came from Miyagi, but it's a pretty good possibility.  There are placards under the trees that explain more.

When you've finished taking it all in, go for a walk on the trail that runs next to the park.  In daylight hours, it's perfectly safe, with plenty of other walkers and joggers always around. 

If you're looking for a quick picnic lunch to bring, try the take-out at these eateries in Trolley Square: Ciao Pizza (they have great subs as well as pizzas), Temptations (NY deli sandwiches priced from $7-$10.  A lot of the sandwiches include the words 'chopped liver', but there are plenty without if you don't happen to be a connoisseur of the liver), or Diablo Burritos. 
A personal favorite of mine on Lovering Avenue, down the street from Gallucio's, is the Fresh Thymes Cafe.  A small mostly-lunch joint owned and operated by a mother and daughter team, Fresh Thymes is always good for a gourmet take-out sandwich, as well, with plenty of choices for vegetarians and vegans.   So bring some food and your honey to the side of the Brandywine River, lie back and stare up at multitudes of fluffy, pom-pom-like cherry blossoms like Wilmingtonians have been doing for many decades, say hi to the llamas (or possibly alpacas) at the edge of the Brandywine Zoo, and enjoy the sunshine while it's here.

More info on Brandywine Park: http://www.destateparks.com/park/wilmington/brandywine-park/index.asp