Mason-Dixon Historical Park offers safe outdoor activities during pandemic
By Harley Benda
Newsroom@DominionPost.com
With the COVID-19 pandemic, many families have to think outside the box for entertainment for their kids during the summer months. For Talia Wight, Eddie Maier and their two children, Zuri and Zealon, Mason-Dixon Historical Park proves to be a fun and educational experience.
Wight and Maier, both of Morgantown, spend 2-3 days a week at the park with Zuri and Zealon. The family spends time hiking the trails, enjoying the Dunkard River and bird watching, from time-to-time.
“I love all the aspects [of the park],” Wight said.
And there is one part of the grounds that attracts many families, including the Wight-Maiers: The Fairy Doors Trail.
“It is a trail out in the woods that has fairy door houses made by some volunteers and local artists,” Park Superintendent J.R. Petsko said. “It promotes health, and gets people outside, because people actually have to walk a half a mile to get to the Fairy Doors Trail.”
“There are 25 fairy houses on the trail that kids can interact with,” Petsko added of the dirt path.
The Wight-Maier family helped the Fairy Doors Trail come to life. Maier assisted in the grant writing process to receive funding for the fairy houses.
“There was a grant available through Arts Mon, and so opportunity for $1,000 to do some sort of public project,” Maier said. “We got to talking with J.R. and 10 other artists. I got involved, and we all built a fairy house. And now, it’s really grown into something bigger.”
The fairy houses are not a new attraction, but they provide entertainment for families who come to visit them.
“Honestly, that’s been the humongous draw this summer,” Petsko said. “We put it in last year, but this is the second year, and it’s really getting a lot of word-of-mouth and stuff on social media with photos.”
“It’s a great place to go visit, and we’ve been really excited to see it grow into what it’s become,” Wight said. “It’s kinda taken on a life of its own.”
Petsko estimates the park has seen a 60% increase in traffic in the park, likely from the COVID-19 pandemic and the Fairy Doors Trail.
The park offers many more activities for visitors, including shelters and barns to rent, basketball and baseball fields, a flat, open field, six trails, and of course, a history lesson of Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon.
The park is in Core, about 17 minutes north of Morgantown. Families who want to visit are reminded to social distance from other families, and take care of the park.
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