On snowy weekend mornings, many people prefer to pile on the blankets and sleep in—but not Lisa Messina.
Messina, of Blandon, was one of a handful of intrepid nature fans who bundled up Saturday morning for a Winter Wellness Walk at the Berks County Heritage Center.
“I saw a Facebook page, I thought, this sounds perfect for me,” Messina said of the walk. “I’m not afraid of the cold.”
The hour-long hike started near Wertz’s Red Bridge and headed on a trail to the north, stopping along the way to look for birds and other wildlife.
“We have a resident screech owl that we’ve seen on last year’s wellness walks,” said Lisa Gauker, recreation supervisor for Berks County Parks and Recreation, which organized the trek. “We’re going to peek and see if he’s there…There’s been a bunch of waterfowl along the creek.”
Bald eagles sometimes visit the trail as well, noted Lauren A. Little, marketing director for Berks County Parks and Recreation.
Little and Gauker said activities like the wellness walk help introduce people to parts of local trails and remnants of Berks history that they may not have encountered before.
“This park is filled with old buildings that have been moved here from other places,” Little noted. “It’s really cool.”
The winter wellness walk Saturday was the first of several planned by the county for the season, with wellness walks usually taking place on the first Saturday of each month, Gauker said.
“I think the new year is a good reason to come out,” Little said. “This really does make you feel good. It wakes you up…I’ll go home today and (get a bunch of activities done.)”
Gauker said the walks are ideal for people who, like her, experience seasonal affective disorder, which causes depression-like symptoms during winter months.
“Even if I’m just going for a little stroll for 15, 20 minutes, being out in the fresh air and sunshine is going to help me keep moving throughout the day,” Gauker said.
Gauker and Little noted that the walks are at the pace of the group, and those who don’t want to walk the full hour are free to leave at any time.
Spending time with like-minded people can spark new friendships as well, Little noted.
“It doesn’t, to me, feel like exercise,” Little said. “We’re usually just chatting as we go.”
Messina said she recently lost her dog, and the chance to get outside and be active was helping her cope.
“I know the trail, it’s flat, it’s easy,” Messina said. “Just getting up and out and moving, I was so happy to see (the walk on Facebook.)”
Jill Green, of Wyomissing, said she’s been out for multiple walks, and can’t help but come back for more.
“They’re just really good programs,” Green said. “You just get to know the parks and the people around here.”
Gauker and Little said the county also organizes spring strolls and fall hikes too, which take place across the county’s parks and trails.
Other upcoming activities include a campfire cooking class, at 11 a.m. Jan. 11, and a moonlight owl prowl at 6 p.m. Jan. 11, both at Antietam Lake.
