Hiking the Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary

Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary is located within the tidal reaches of the Patuxent River in Maryland southeast of Washington, D.C. It was established in 1985 and is operated by the Anne Arundel County Department of Recreation and Parks. The Sanctuary protects about 1,700 acres of unique tidal freshwater marshes, forested wetlands, upland and riparian forest, creeks, meadows, pine and sand barrens, and fields along the Patuxent River. This protected land provides a safe haven for a high diversity of plants, insects, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish and microbes, and to rich native american cultural resources.  The sanctuary is recognized as a Nationally Important Bird Area by the American Bird Conservancy and the National Audubon Society. Jug Bay is located within the Atlantic Flyway and is a haven for more than 100 species of birds, including native and migratory waterfowl, songbirds, and raptors.

Most beneficially for us, the sanctuary is located only 2 miles from our campground, which made it easy for us to get out early and enjoy an almost-5 mile hike before it got too hot on this sunny Sunday.

The sanctuary boasts several short hiking trails which can be strung together into a longer dayhike.  We started with the Marsh Boardwalk, a very thoughtfully constructed boardwalk along the margins of Glebe Marsh, part of the Jug Bay wetland system.  Our approach through the woods was pleasant and gave us a view of the low forest flora near the wetlands:

Eventually, the boardwalk burst out onto the marsh and turned along the margin toward the Patuxent River:

Looking down, we realized we were seeing the first leaves of Autumn -- already!

From the Marsh Boardwalk, we climbed some quirky wooden stairs back up to the level of the main hiking trails --

-- and turned onto the Otter Point Trail, where we soon spotted a wide variety of interesting mushrooms:

We soon reached the Railroad Bed Trail leading out to the Patuxent River itself, and detoured to see what an observation blind offered.  We weren't disappointed.  We spotted these snowy egrets or herons perched in nearby trees:

Our path out to the observation blind was via a boardwalk that was as straight as the railroad bed itself:

Soon, we reached the Patuxent River and spotted the site of what was probably a Colonial plantation on the western shore:

We gazed for a while at the river, watching two kayakers paddle by and imagining ourselves out on the water.  We even spotted Jackson Landing across the river where we had hiked a week or two ago.  We had hoped to paddle Jug Bay from Jackson Landing, but it appears that we have run out of time here on the Maryland Eastern Shore, so we may have to put that aside until a future visit.

We returned along the Railroad Bed Trail, turning back onto the Otter Point Trail, and soon came to another observation platform known as the "Swamp Blind."  Kathy inspected the blind from the water side --

-- and we turned out to look at the swamp and Jug Bay itself:

Further down the main trail, we reached Otter Point, which was a natural spot for lunch.  A young couple and their toddler lunched at a picnic table a respectfully social distance away from us.  We wished them a good hike as we worked our way onward, back up Two Run Trail toward the Visitor Center where we had started.

Kathy spotted a huge old growth tree, that David had an irresistible urge to hug.  And so he did:

...And, again, more interesting mushrooms in the humid, shaded forest along Old Beaver Pond, an arm of Jug Bay -- both coppery colored --

-- and copper-green:

The final leg our our hike followed Two Run Trail, Middle Trail and Forest Trail back to our parking lot.  By the time we returned to our trailhead, the number of cars had more than doubled from the number when we originally arrived.  Most of the hikers were families with young children, or older couples such as ourselves.  Because the sanctuary is in a thinly populated section of Anne Arundel County, some distance from metropolitan Washington, D.C., the crowds were bearable.  We were pleased to see that almost everyone sported face masks and respected other people's distance on the trail.

This may have been our parting outing near Lothian, Maryland, because we will move this Wednesday back to Bull Run Regional Park.  Sir William will be helping us move, so we're sure you'll see a blog entry about that adventure.  Stay healthy, my friends.