chesapeake bay critical area driving tour

It doesn't seem right to allow gas guzzling vehicles to cut through a wildlife sanctuary but after finding out that the driving tour is only allowed on Sundays from 10 am to 3 pm I thought it was worth a stop on our way home. If you're looking for an easy outdoor daytrip, this is a quick and fun way to spend some time getting up close to nature from the DMV. Learned a little piece of interesting history at the beginning and we definitely enjoyed learning about the bluebird conservation efforts. As we moved from open fields to dappled woods to tidal and non-tidal marshes, there's a lot of different scenery to discover. A highlight of our driving tour was crossing the wooden bridge sitting just above the marshes and using the mounted binoculars at the top of the observation tower. You could easily spend the day or the weekend hiking or biking the many trails we saw. Or get on the water. We saw kayakers from the wooden bridge enjoying a close up view of the marsh life. Canoes and kayaks are available to rent if you plan ahead. Bring your own binoculars and camera to capture shots of flora and fauna, especially the birds. This short and easy Sunday drive is a good start to learning more and appreciating the Patuxent River and the Chesapeake Bay.