Congress, in its infinite stupidity, decided in the 50’s that that nice flat stretch of land would make a great two-lane highway, cheap, and wanted to pave it over. Even the Washington Post agreed. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas challenged those in favor to join him in hiking the entire distance, 184.5 miles, and the press followed the large and then rapidly dwindling crowd of hikers along the way.
Beavers. Great Blue herons. Water turtles. Name the wildlife, it was there. Only a few hikers arrived in person in Georgetown with Douglas, but the nation did, in spirit; he’d gotten the Post’s and the Congress’s attention, and the Canal became a national park instead.
Sometimes, if people point out what they’ve got, paradise doesn’t get paved and turned into a rush-hour parking lot after all.
Thank goodness for one who not only stood up for what he believed in, but put on his shoes, too, and walked forward.