Discovering Raleigh Parks – Wilkerson Nature Preserve
This week the boys and I picked up a Passport to Raleigh Parks. It’s a fun program our local parks and recreation department has put together to encourage people to visit more local parks.
How to participate in the Passport to Raleigh Parks program:
- You can pick up your passport at any of the 10 participating local parks.
- Visit the participating parks and get a stamp on your passport.
- Once you have visited 5 out of 10 locations, register online to win prizes
We started our park tour at Annie Louise Wilkerson Nature Preserve.
I’d never been to the Wilkerson Nature Preserve and was pleasantly surprised by the great facilities and beautiful land. We first stopped in the park office where we crafted colorful dragonflies and explored hands-on child-friendly activities that taught us about the local wildlife and plants.
Then we explored the park, including a well-shaded and fun nature play area.
Finally, we learned more about Dr. Annie Louise Wilkerson at the Education Center. We learned that she was the first female doctor in North Carolina and delivered around 8,000 babies during her 53-year career. After she died in 1993, she donated her 157-acre farm to the city of Raleigh to be used as a nature preserve for education and research.
The boys even got to pump water from the well just like she would have done many years ago.
Unfortunately, we didn’t get to explore any of the trails but maybe once the boys get a little older they will be able to take a short hike to Falls Lake.
The boys are very excited to explore more of the local parks and fill up their passports with stamps.
