Meadowbrook Park
5001 Meadowbrook Lane, Ellicott City, MD 21043
This 77-acre park, with a fine paved path system, is conveniently located between Columbia and Elliott City. The multiple ponds along a narrow tree-lined stream are a magnet for unusual waterbirds.
Amenities: Park has two sections: East and West. Paved parking at in both sections. Restrooms in East; portable toilets in West. 2.5 miles of paved paths and sidewalks. Seven ponds, a stream, an extensive marsh, and varied and heavily-used active recreational facilities. Numerous full-color, educational signs along the paths explain the park’s natural history.
Handicapped Access: Generally good. Paved paths throughout, allowing much of the park to be viewed. Mostly gentle grades; a few steep inclines in West section.
Habitat: This developed community park manages to combine multiple wetland habitats with popular sports options. Areas near the sound barriers in the East provide a small amount of grassland habitat. A good view of the sky is possible in much of the park.
Layout: The paved path has two loops (East and West) with active recreational facilities in both. Parking in both sections allows entry to the path at multiple points. Seven ponds, created when MD 100 was constructed, run roughly along most of the southern border close to a tree-lined stream. An extensive cattail marsh is at the farthest end of the West section. Opposite the marsh on the north side is a knoll, marked at the top by several large rocks, a location once used for hawkwatches. Noise from nearby US 29 traffic and reduced open views of the sky have made the site less attractive for that use. (Scrubby second-growth that used to exist on hillsides below the knoll and the nearby pavilion were replaced by deciduous and coniferous trees.) In both sections, a few narrow deer trails offer access to the floodplain and some pond edges. Ticks are numerous.
Among the most productive areas for birds are the large cattail marsh with its adjacent ponds in the West, and locations in both directions near the central bridge.
The East loop is sometimes less “birdy” than the West. In addition to the areas along the path, there is scrubby and grassy vegetation in the vicinity of the sound barrier along MD 100 that can be productive.
Do not dismiss the athletic fields in both sections. When they are not in use, there may be an assortment of blackbirds, sparrows, finches, and even an occasional migrant Palm Warbler on the turf, in the dirt, or on the fences. Gulls and assorted raptors perch on the tall parking lot lights in the East.
Howard County Recreation and Parks information
Compilers: Joanne Solem and Emmalyn Holdridge
