The Purcellville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board hosts a series of monthly nature walks the last Sunday of each month at the Chapman DeMary Trail. Many of the walks this year are jointly hosted by the Purcellville Arts Council and the Tree and Environment Sustainability Committee. These free walks led by local experts start at 1 p.m. 

Learn about Honey Bees and Beekeeping on Sunday, May 28, 2023 at the Chapman DeMary Trail

Join the Purcellville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and the Tree and Environment Sustainability Committee to learn about honeybees and beekeeping in Northern Virginia. Cornell University Certified Master Beekeeper Ed Kicha with the Loudoun Beekeepers Association (LBA) will share information about these essential pollinators on Sunday, May 28 at 1 p.m. at the Chapman DeMary Trail. Register online to attend. This is part of the series of monthly nature walks held the last Sunday of each month. Register online to attend.

The LBA has been supporting a large and vibrant beekeeping community, ranging from new to commercial beekeepers, for over 40 years. Its focus is to introduce, educate, and foster sustainable beekeeping practices for its members committed to managing honeybees in Loudoun County.  As for the real stars of the show - honeybees - they are currently ramping up their population numbers, gathering pollen to synthesize into bee food to feed both the young and adults, and of course gathering nectar from floral sources which they will convert into their primary energy source - honey. The bees are also actively swarming - which is reproduction at the colony level - basically creating new hives in the wild.  During this activity, Mr. Kicha will share information about the basics of beekeeping, how to get started as a beekeeper, the various types of beehives and essential equipment, and the tie between plants and pollinators. There will be examples of hives, some tools of the trade, and, weather permitting, live honeybees in an observation hive! The observation hive is designed to allow humans and bees to safely observe each other up close without fear of contact.

In addition to learning about bees, nature journals and pencils will be provided to attendees, courtesy of the Purcellville Arts Council.  Those who already received journaling supplies at previous events at the Chapman DeMary Trail are encouraged to bring their journals to observe, write, draw, and capture the seasonal changes as well as to get a sticker. Participants with six or more stickers from the monthly nature walks through November 2023 will get a prize. 

The Chapman DeMary Trail is a 10-acre area considered to be the last stand of old-growth forest in the Town of Purcellville. It runs along the South Fork Catoctin Creek, part of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. The area is open to the public for environmental recreation, exploration, and education. The Town of Purcellville holds the conservation easement for this privately-owned property. The entrance and parking for the Chapman DeMary Trail is behind the building at 205 East Hirst Road in Purcellville.