---

photo ©Dylan Edwards

What's that? You want to go romping off the path and into the woods? You might want to wear a hazmat suit, then, because there is poison ivy absolutely everywhere. Poison ivy isn't actually technically poisonous, it just turns out to contain a substance (urushiol) that 95% of humans are allergic to. As with any allergen, different people have different levels of tolerance, but very few people are genuinely immune. Many people think they aren't allergic. Most of them just haven't had enough exposure to poison ivy to develop an allergic response, and they usually find this out the hard way.

photo ©Dylan Edwards

There are blackberry bushes to be found in many areas around the park. These are some juicy, delicious blackberries I can't have because they're ripening in the shade of some poison ivy leaves. Give it time, though. Blackberries are even more aggressive than poison ivy, and will, in a year or two, choke out any nearby poison ivy. More power to 'em, I say. I'd much rather deal with thorns than with a stealthy contact allergen that doesn't wash off easily, soaks through wet clothes, and takes days before it breaks you out in itchy blisters. At least with thorns you know where you stand. You get scratched, you bleed, and that's that.