Connect with nature and help out Mother Earth by visiting a Virginia State Park this weekend

Earth Day is April 22, 2022 and local residents are invited to connect with nature and help out Mother Earth by participating in the numerous events at any Virginia State Park this coming weekend.

If you want to help the planet but aren’t sure where to start, then consider visiting any one of Virginia’s 41 state parks. Events are set up all over the state this Saturday and Sunday to help educate the public about ways to help keep our planet clean and healthy.

“Earth Day events provide the guests with so many tools on how to help the planet,” Chippokes State Park Manager Ben Richards said. “We are having a Virginia Master Naturalist come out on Saturday at 1 p.m. to teach the visitors about plants and the types of butterflies that they attract.  Guests will be able to plant their own milkweed plant to take home so they can attract Monarch butterflies in their own backyard. Pollinator gardens are so important and we love sharing information on how to help keep them going inside and outside of the park. We are also doing a trash pickup along the James River on Sunday, April 24 at 1 p.m. and a ranger will explain how the water quality of James River impacts the Chesapeake Bay.”

Earth Day activities include learning about invasive species, planting wildflowers, shoreline cleanup and helping with pollinator gardens. Other activities include a workshop designed to inspire visitors to take action in environmental stewardship and conservation, snake feeding, hiking and identifying the surrounding nature as well as bird watching.

“We are really looking forward to expanding our pollinator garden Saturday morning at 10 a.m. and would love volunteers to come out and spend some time at our park,” Sailor’s Creek Battlefield State Park Manager Lee Wilcox said. “It’s a great day to help as well as learn about the history and nature in Virginia.”

You can help keep Virginia’s shoreline clean and beautiful by volunteering some time and having fun at any of Virginia’s State Parks. Visit the Earth Day events page at http://www.virginiastateparks.gov for more information.

Nearby state parks are Leesylvania State Park off US 1 in Woodbridge and (very new) Widewater State Park at 101 Widewater State Park Road off US 1 in Stafford. The park is open 8 a.m. to dusk. The visitor center is open Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. 4 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Picnic shelters and playgrounds are open to the public.