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Ready for a fun fall adventure with your friends and family? There’s a new labyrinth on Blue Water Road that’s just the thing we all need right now. Maybe it’ll even distract you from all the Covid-19 and election news filling our heads at the moment.
Created by artist, photographer and designer Luke Dobron – longtime OMPer Joanne Westphal’s nephew – the “Labyrinth at Blue Water Project” is a one-mile walking path dotted with sculptures that look like they belong in a Pixar movie – all crafted by Luke with recycled objects.
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Location, Hours & A Field Full of Life
The Labyrinth is located at 3688 Blue Water Road, about a quarter mile from the Center Road intersection on the right (across the road from Brys Estate Vineyard and Winery). It’s open on the weekends through Nov. 1 with the following hours:
- Friday, 2 p.m. – 6 p.m.
- Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Follow the signs to a parking area. Masks and social distancing are required, and donations are gratefully accepted at a little stand there.
I told Luke I’ve been a bit obsessed with that field of tall sorghum over the years, because it’s not only a photographer’s dream with that big sky in the background looking west, but there’s always something amazing happening there – birds, wildflowers and other lovely signs of nature.
I’ve taken hundreds of photos of that field over the past few years – click through these links for pics of the field last summer, last winter, and at various times filled with turkeys and geese. And there are always hawks, snowy owls, turkey vultures, and Sandhill Cranes lurking about, too.
Get Outside and Experience Nature
Luke agreed that it’s a beautiful piece of land, and said he built the labyrinth so that people can get outside and experience nature while making their way along the path. That’s especially needed right now when, as mentioned above, there’s so much going on in the world, and we need something to take our minds off all the chaos.
He said he thought about creating a maze, but decided a labyrinth would be less stressful for people. Instead of the multiple choices and dead-ends of a maze, a labyrinth is one continuous path allowing multiple experiences along the way to a central point.
“Only the journey is important,” he says, adding that it’s a great way to reconnect with nature.
A Few Labyrinth Tips
I walked the labyrinth yesterday, and it’s a calming, peaceful journey through the field. When you park your car, look for the trail to the little stand, where you’ll see the Labyrinth sign and a box for donations. From there, go straight past the stand and look for the rainbow, where you’ll embark on the labyrinth journey.
While the path is well-mowed, there are still stalks of sorghum along the way and a few uneven spots, so wear good walking or hiking shoes. The rolling hills are a great way to get your heart-rate up a little. Our hearts love that.
Follow the Blue Water Project on Instagram, and also check out Luke’s website.
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[…] Water Road and Bluff Road. On the right of Blue Water Road is Luke Dobron’s fun Labyrinth I wrote about a couple weeks […]