Living Landscapes: Forest Bathing Walk

Forest Bathing Walk at Springsong

with Melanie Choukas-Bradley
Free with registration (limited to 15 participants)
🗓 Friday, May 22, 2026
🕤 9:30 AM – 12:00 PM

Nourish your sense of wonder during a May morning forest bathing walk in the Northwest Branch gorge adjacent to the Springsong Museum site. We will walk slowly and pause often as we explore the upland woods and streamside of cascading Northwest Branch. Forest bathing is a practice that began in Japan in the 1980s and celebrates the beauty and wonder of nature in a way that aligns with Rachel Carson’s perspective world view. During our walk we will tune in to each of our senses as we open our hearts to the beauty of spring in the gorge. Wear shoes or boots with good tread and prepare for some rock scrambling in the stream valley during a slow walk of about a mile. We will go ahead in light rain but postpone if rain is heavy or thunderstorms are likely.

Walk leader Melanie Choukas-Bradley is a certified nature and forest therapy guide who has participated in forest bathing walks with shinrin-yoku guides in Japan. She is the author of Wild Walking—A Guide to Forest Bathing Through the Seasons and several other nature books. Melanie has been leading nature walks in the DC area for many years.