The Mysterious Historical Bowie Bog

Is it a pond, stream, river or lake? No, it's the Bowie Bog. The Bowie Bog is the name for the body of water near ezStorage on Gallant Fox Lane in Bowie near the railroad tracks. This body of water has been a source of mystery for me for several years. I have driven by it and walked by it, taking gorgeous, breathtaking photos. But what is the history behind it? What are the plans for it? Does anyone really know?

A few months ago, I called the City of Bowie to ask about the bog. I wanted to see what it was called and if there were plans to promote it and build paths and walkways to get to it. It is very difficult to see close up as the bog is surrounded by tall grass, low-growing plants, vines and large trees. The man to whom I talked told me that it was called the "Bowie Bog" and they have no plans for it as they wanted to keep it natural.

I asked a friend about the bog and she said that she thought it might have been in botanical write-ups from W.L. McAtee. I did some online research but I couldn't find anything about it.

There is one metal overlook rail where you can stand and look out over one part of the bog near Old Rt. 450, near The Goddard School. This section has lots of flowering shrubs in the spring where you can see many gorgeous yellow and black tiger swallowtail butterflies. If you walk a little further down, towards ezStorage, you will see fallen trees where you might catch a glimpse of the very shy turtles. I saw at least 10 of them on a log, all lined up behind each other, whiling driving by today. But I just couldn't get them to stay out in the sun, as I quietly crept up to take a photo.

The fall foliage is gorgeous this time of year too. As you will see in the photos, the reds are really starting to show on the trees around the bog. The bright greens still remain too, as you might notice. The colors also reflect in the water, making the scene perfect for photos.

As if the sights weren't enough, we heard some great sounds too. There were large birds flying over the bog and I think I saw a flying great blue heron, startled from us walking nearby. Some of the large birds were making some sounds as they flew overhead. The frogs were entertaining us even though they were hiding.

If you haven't seen the bog yet, you might like to take your kids for a walk there. Bring your camera as you never know what you might see.

I would love to know more about the Bowie Bog. If you know about it or know someone who might, please have them contact me at cindy@marylandsecretarial.com.