Start 2021 With a Little Escapism – Have a “First Day Hike”
2020 was strange times. No matter how much you enjoy being in your 1331 Maryland apartment, a year of quarantine can start to feel like a gilded birdcage. Start 2021 on a different note – take a hike!
Every year, state parks throughout the United States encourage people to start their year off right by going on a ‘First Day Hike,’ where they can both get some fresh air and also see serene nature right outside their doors. Last year, nearly 55,000 people rang in the New Year with a “First Day Hike”, collectively hiking over 133,000 miles throughout the country!
We know what you’re thinking, hiking is for country folk and those with mountain views. Wrong! 1331 Maryland may be located in the middle of Washington D.C., but there are plenty of opportunities to get outdoors and take in the scenery.
Theodore Roosevelt Island – Who better for inspiration for a “First Day Hike” than our nation’s most famous outdoorsman? Theodore Roosevelt Island is located at 700 George Washington Memorial Parkway McLean, VA, just a 20-minute drive from your 1331 Maryland apartment. This park is a living memorial to President Theodore Roosevelt boasting miles of wooded trails on an island right next to Washington D.C. In the 1930s, landscape architects transformed Mason’s Island from neglected, overgrown farmland into Theodore Roosevelt Island, a memorial to America’s 26th president. They conceived a “real forest” designed to mimic the natural forest that once covered the island. Today miles of trails through wooded uplands and swampy bottomlands honor the legacy of the outdoorsman and conservationist – and makes for a great local escape for city dwellers looking for some peace and quiet.
700 George Washington Memorial Parkway McLean, VA