Finding A Forgotten Park

The past year my wife and I have been so focused on finding places to go that we have had a tendency to overlook some of the places scattered around us. Today we were driving around after a failed attempt to think of a place to go while sitting in the apartment. We drove up and down different streets that we hadn’t seen in years if not decades. As we approached Bryn Mawr I suddenly remembered a small park just off of South Ithan Avenue that I haven’t explored in probably 15 years, maybe longer.

Turning down the old road my wife was confused as to where we were heading. Turning left through the gate and over the bridge the look of bewilderment only grew as for all the years that she spent living on the Main Line she assumed that where we were going was an entrance to a private home. With only a couple of other cars in the lot it was clear that there still isn’t a lot of people that know about the park hidden in plain view. The park, opened from dawn to dusk, seemed to be a bit forgotten with an overgrown lamp and washed out hills around the parking area.

This was proven further when we attempted to walk down the paths along the creek which were overgrown and, in some instances, blocked by fallen trees. With little luck making our way further along the bank of the creek, we headed back and ventured onto the path heading up the hill toward the highway. What seemed to be an old road or driveway had an eerie feeling in its overgrown state and it made me wonder where this road used to lead.

After a few minutes exploring a bit of each path and taking a handful of pictures, which was the real objective of the afternoon, we slowly made our way back to the bridges. It is here that you can really see how dense the trees are along the creek and how old some of the growth is that is fighting to reclaim the park. There is even, for lack of a better word, a mystical quality to some of the trees that seem to live both on the bank and in the water.

 

 

On the other side of the bridge it seems a little lighter but still with a dense canopy muting the light and intensifying the green leaves handing above the water.

 

On a warm spring day it was nice to revisit this park that I had long forgotten existed. With the rare exception of the occasional travels down this road, I rarely think about this place. It was nice to revisit this place a saw on a daily basis riding the bus to school and explore the light and shadows as they danced across the moss covered sides of the bridge.

This will definitely be a park that we will explore again this summer when we are better prepared for the overgrowth. Glad we now have an option close to the apartment to explore when we need a break from all the driving that we will be doing this summer. I guess it just goes to show that sometimes you just have to search your own memories when you are looking for a place to explore.