Walking for Wellness

(NOTE:  This is the second posting about the fitness opportunities available at Camden Yards, in conjunction with Governor O'Malley's "Healthy Maryland Week.")

As an 85 acre urban oasis, Camden Yards is more than a sports complex to the neighborhood and downtown visitors.  We are the local park, with beautiful landscaping, bricked passageways, a tree-lined promenade, and plenty of interesting things to see.

You can understand how our layout and accessibility made us a favorite for those looking for a safe place to walk or jog.  Because MSA likes our public facilities to be enjoyed, we encouraged this use by creating a brochure which was distributed to hotels and residential buildings around our campus. 

(Among our closest neighbors are students at the University of Maryland's professional schools.  Many include outdoor exercise in their daily routine.)

As you can see on our "Babe to Johnny" map, the route between the two iconic statues takes you down Eutaw Street, past the Maryland Veterans Memorial, through Ravens Walk, and onto Unitas Plaza where you circle around the Golden Arm himself.

From Babe to Johnny and back is slightly less than a mile.  If you're staying at the Hilton Baltimore, that completes it.

Our brochure has pictures of points of interest along the way (the bronze baseball marking Ken Griffey, Jr.'s shot to the Warehouse wall is a particular favorite) and some of the history of the complex. 

We also measured out some alternative routes, adding in loops around each stadium.

After dropping some of the brochures in the Guest Relations office on the ground floor where the tourist information is displayed, we also learned this course appealed to out of town baseball fans.

This is Thomas Greene, our gracious security officer who mans the station during the day.  He spends a lot of time talking with folks who are just wander in looking for something to do.  He's giving one of the brochures to this father-son team who are here from Chicago.

Exercise and history lessons are not the only thing that brings folks to the Babe-to-Johnny trail.  Because we also have considerable parking and easy access from the major highways, our very attractive complex is a favorite for fund-raising walkathons. 

Our trails are easily adapted to 5K or other distances that are simple to follow and accommodate large crowds.  The annual Juvenile Diabetes walkathon has built a major event around the activity.

More than a dozen of these charity walks or runs are staged here every year.

The good thing about walking as an exercise is that it doesn't require any equipment or real structure.  Just an attractive, interesting, and safe place to perambulate and enjoy the outdoors.


And that's what we are very happy to provide to residents and visitors alike.