AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler
From the moment Governor Larry Hogan announced major closures across the state to limit the spread of COVID-19 on March 12, Anne Arundel County residents took to the Baltimore Annapolis Trail Park in droves for exercise and a healthy release from being confined in their homes. Mild weather, from late March into spring and summer, spurred uncommonly heavy trail use.
“We definitely got a lot more people during last summer than we did during the ten years leading up to it,” said B&A Trail Park Ranger Matthew Vorce. “It was a pretty wild summer. A huge increase in visitors – more that I thought we’d ever get. Of course, visitation has died down a little since it’s gotten colder”
Vorce added that Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman was adamant about keeping the parks open so people would have a place to exercise. Since nothing else was open for months, all the parks were and remain continuously busy.
For cyclists and runners, who found their annual events and marathons cancelled, the trail has provided a way to keep on training. For families, it’s a form of entertainment and exercise that parents and children can enjoy together. For one and all, it’s an opportunity to enjoy the B&A Trail’s many treasures.
Gardening enthusiasts can view 70 volunteer-maintained planter beds coordinated by Becky Ziegler of the Friends of Anne Arundel County Trails. In early spring, volunteer gardeners can be seen clearing and preparing the beds that later blossom into picturesque gardens. By summer, they’re at their peak and attracting birds, bees and butterflies .
Master gardeners Carole Fullagar and Susan Smouse spent a March afternoon clearing a bed where daffodils were about to bloom. 
In Flowerbed #22, Sally Snader placed a pretty birdhouse and flowers favored by goldfinches.
In Flowerbed #19, Cindy Neseth grows yellow cut-leaf cone flowers, Black Eyed Susans and other natives. 
Tsedeke Jakovics and father Scott created a pollinator garden with a high-rise bee habitat.
There are even specially designed bee and butterfly habitats like one created by Scott Jacovic and son Tsedeke. The high-rise bee house they constructed attracts both mason and leaf-cutter bees that collect pollen. They also planted self-sustaining hardy perennials like coneflowers, asters, and flowering milkweed that are staged to bloom from late spring through summer to attract birds, butterflies and bees.
There’s always lots to see including a circa 1919 Severna Park Railroad Station overlooking the trail where the tracks of the Annapolis & Baltimore Short Line Railroad once stood (now a model railroad museum). Nearby, there’ s an original rail crossing sign at Riggs Avenue. Two other historic sites associated with trains exist on the Severna Park part of the trail.
The crossing sign still stands where the Annapolis and Baltimore Short Line Railroad crossed Riggs Avenue. 
The 108 -year-old Baltimore Annapolis Railroad Powerhouse now houses the Shop at Jones Station with a museum featuring local artifacts.
The 108-year-old Baltimore Annapolis Railroad Powerhouse building is now home to Ann Arundell Historical Society’s Shop at Jones Station. Erected in 1907 as a midpoint electrical substation between Baltimore and Annapolis, it,channeled 22,000 volts of current through three 300-kilowatt transformers to lower it to 6,600 volts and feed it directly to overhead lines. In 1933, the former powerhouse became an ice house for Miss Etta’s Store & Rustic Inn and later for the Wagon Wheels restaurant. Briefly the building housed the historic society’s headquarters before moving to the Benson Hammond House in Linthicum. It subsequently became a Browse & Buy Shop. In 2015,, the Shop at Jones Station opened and sells gifts but is also a historic museum for local artifacts. For information, visit www.aachs.org.
Now serving as the Baltimore Annapolis Trail Park Ranger Station and B&A Rail Museum, another landmark building at 51 West Earleigh Heights Road was built in 1889 as a general store overlooking the tracks.
The history of the railroad displayed inside is fascinating while, outside, the surrounding marsh is a wildlife refuge where red wing blackbirds and other colorful species of birds are a delight for birdwatchers.
An abundance of Olde Severna Park shops back right onto the trail. There are several where exercisers can buy a warm or cool beverage or a snack including The Big Bean Coffee Shop, Sofi’s Crepes, and The Froyo House among others. It’s also the spot where the back entrance to Pedal Pushers bike shop is located – a shop that’s seen sales soar by leaps and bounds throughout the pandemic.
The line of Olde Severna Park shops backing on the B&A Trail allow trail users to enjoy dining outdoors while taking a breather. 
Bikers always congregate by the back entrance to Pedal Pushers where everything from tires to brand new bikes can be purchased.
Pedal Pushers owner Rod Reddish noted that his shop was deemed “essential” and, thus, able to stay open throughout the pandemic.
“We’ve been super busy,” Reddish said. “From March 15 on, people couldn’t do anything else so riding bikes became extremely popular. It’s been crazy actually, almost weird. We ran out of stock in the summer and again near the holiday shopping season.”
He added that all the bicycle companies ran out of stock so local shops had nothing to sell for a while. He said Pedal Pushers has been in business 32 years and he’s seen trail visitation up and down “but never quite like this”.
To learn more about the pleasures of the Baltimore Annapolis Trail Park, visit B&A Trail | Anne Arundel County, MD (aacounty.org)
Theater in the Park enters a Time Warp with……….
Director Jennifer Lee Kraus reports that Theater in the Park plans to hop inside a time machine and go back in time as it holds its Musical Theater Workshop for kids ages 5-15. She notes that they’re keeping the “in person” classes to 10 children. They’ll follow all safety protocols – small classes, masks, and social distancing – while still having fun and performing. Classes will be held at Severna Park Community Center on Saturday mornings starting Feb 6th. There will be a live performance on April 24 but it’s not yet been determined whether the audience will be parents only or can be expanded. To register, or for information, visit www.facebook.com/TheaterinthePark.spcc or call 4109-212-1018.
