Maze of the Week #125 - Turtle

Maze of the Week #125 features a Turtle. World Turtle Day is every May 23rd. How are you celebrating ?

Here was my preview image. I think the green was a good hint even if the shape threw you off a bit.

Turtle shadow outline

Here is the first version of the maze. An earthy color palette.

Turtle Maze

And the alternative version I went with a brighter and more comic book looking palette. This is my preferred version.

Green Turtle Maze

Downloads are available in the comic book style maze section. Come back tomorrow to see what the comic book cover looks like !

Next weeks Maze Preview: Looks mean.

dinosaur shadow outline

10 Labyrinths to Visit in Maryland

So you want to visit a labyrinth in Maryland. I have selected 10 of the best (there are over 100) that are accessible to the public from around the state, focusing on large population areas. I could have easily made this 20 labyrinths with the wonderful outdoor, public labyrinths available in the state ! If you want a full list of labyrinths in the state check out the Worldwide Labyrinth Finder.

Why visit a Labyrinth ?

Labyrinths are ancient and mysterious symbols that have been used for centuries for meditation, contemplation, and spiritual renewal. They are also a lot of fun to explore! If you're looking for a unique and challenging experience, walk a labyrinth with intention - it often leads to self-discovery. Personally, I like to walk labyrinths between dawn and sunrise or at sunset until dusk, but any time of day works. You may not realize it, but there is probably a labyrinth near where you live. Today we explore…


10 Labyrinths to Visit in maryland

1. Northeast Interfaith Peace Garden Labyrinth

A 7 circuit medieval labyrinth located in the Northeast Interfaith Peace Garden on the grounds of St. Anthony of Padua Church. It is made of bricks/pavers and you can see a picture of it and learn about it’s purpose on the spaces website.

Location: Baltimore, Maryland

Address:
4414 Frankford Avenue
Baltimore, Maryland 21206

2. Govans Presbyterian Church - Ellen Morriss Memorial Santa Rosa Labyrinth

This Santa Rosa labyrinth is located in the grass with the outline lined by plants. You can learn more about it on it’s webpage on the church website which includes a note “Please call the church office at 410-435-9188 if you would like an introduction to the labyrinth and how to use it as a tool for prayer and meditation.“

Location: Baltimore, Maryland

Address:

5828 York Road
Baltimore, Maryland 21212


3. Christ Lutheran Church Labyrinth

 

If you are in the inner harbor, this is the labyrinth for you to visit. Located on the plaza between Christ Lutheran Church, and the Arrive Apartments it is also near the Maryland Science Center. This 34 foot diameter 7 circuit labyrinth is made from bricks/pavers and can easily be found on Google Maps !

Location: Baltimore, Maryland

Address:

701 South Charles St.
Baltimore, Maryland 21230

4. Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Frederick Labyrinth

Photos courtesy of the church

This 9 circuit medieval style labyrinth is in the grass next to the church and was installed in 2005. The labyrinth has it’s own webpage for more information, and if you check the calendar page of the church you can find labyrinth walks scheduled, including some at night !

Location: Frederick, Maryland

Address:

4880 Elmer Derr Road
Frederick, Maryland 21703

5. Faith United Methodist Church Labyrinth

See the labyrinth starting at about 1:10 in the video below

This 5 circuit labyrinth is located in the Mary Carter Barrow Memorial Garden courtyard. It is accessible from the sidewalk across from the side parking lot.

Location: Rockville, Maryland

Address:
6810 Montrose Road
Rockville, Maryland 20852

6. All Saints Lutheran Church Labyrinth

This 11 circuit labyrinth features mulch pathways with large stones to mark the labyrinth. It is open from dawn to dusk and includes 2 benches on the outside. It can be found on a trail off the churches parking lot - please read the rules posted at the entrance to the trail.

Location: Bowie, Maryland

Address:
16510 Mount Oak Road
Bowie, Maryland 20716

7. Epiphany Episcopal Church Labyrinth

This beautiful 6 circuit medieval labyrinth is made by a stone pathway set in the grass. You can find a wonderful picture of it on the homepage of the church website.

Location: Odenton, Maryland

Address:

1419 Odenton Road
Odenton, Maryland 21113

8. St. Luke's Episcopal Church - Eastport Memorial Labyrinth

This 50 foot diameter, 7 circuit labyrinth is on the grass with paving stones marking the walls. The labyrinth is open from dusk until dawn and was founded in the memory of Ned Hall. You can learn all about this labyrinth on it’s church webpage.

Location: Annapolis, Maryland

Address:

1101 Bay Ridge Ave.
Annapolis, Maryland 21403

9. St. Luke's Episcopal Church Labyrinth

This 60 foot diameter 11 circuit labyrinth sits in the grass and is lined by pavers. You can learn more about the labyrinth on the church’s labyrinth webpage.

Location: Bethesda, Maryland

Address:

6030 Grosvenor Lane
Bethesda, Maryland 20814

10. University of Maryland - Garden of Remembrance Labyrinth

Ff you want to skip ahead, the labyrinth is featured at 14 minutes in !

This 7 circuit medieval labyrinth is located next to the UMD Memorial Chapel. It is easy to locate on Google Maps as it is part of the Garden of Reflection and Remembrance. You can larn more about the labyrinth and see great pictures on the sacred spaces website.

Location: College Park, Maryland

Address:
7744 Regents Dr
College Park, Maryland 20742

5 TIPS FOR VISITING A LABYRINTH

  1. Set an intention for your walk so you can walk with purpose. It could be prayer, reflection, meditation, contemplation, or openness.

  2. Be sure to wear comfortable shoes, as you will be doing a lot of walking.

  3. Bring water with you, especially if you are visiting on a hot day.

  4. Take your time and enjoy the experience. There is no need to rush through a labyrinth.

  5. Be respectful of other visitors. This includes not making noise and being respectful if walking with other people.


5 BOOKS TO READ ABOUT LABYRINTH WALKING

I wrote a blog post reviewing the following 5 books, each that deals with walking labyrinths. You can check them out yourself at the Amazon links below or read this blog post: 5 Books about the Spiritual Aspect of Labyrinths to learn a little about what each book teaches.

  1. Walking a Sacred Path: Rediscovering the Labyrinth as a Spiritual Tool by Dr. Lauren Artress 201 pages. AMZN

  2. Labyrinth : Your Path to Self-Discovery by Tony Christie 312 pages. AMZN

  3. Exploring the Labyrinth: A Guide For Healing and Spiritual Growth by Melissa Gayle West 209 pages AMZN

  4. Walking the Labyrinth: A Place to Pray and Seek God by Travis Scholl 240 pages AMZN

  5. Labyrinths from the Outside In: Walking to Spiritual Insight by Rev Dr Donna Schaper and Rev Dr Carole Ann Camp 187 pages AMZN

If you are interested in more spiritual labyrinth aspects I suggest the following websites:

  1. Lauren Artress website - For coaching, workshops and classes.

  2. Veriditas - The nonprofit labyrinth group founded by Lauren Artress

  3. Worldwide Labyrinth Finder - Find a labyrinth to walk near you, or while on vacation


I am a maze artist but I have never made any mazes from Maryland. If you have suggestions - drop me a note. Otherwise here are some mazes of famous buildings:

Taj Mahal Maze

The Louvre Maze

The Pro Football Hall of Fame Maze

Santo Domingo Maze

6 difficult maze puzzles to challenge adults

I have made thousands of mazes, and you can find most of them on this website. Depending on when you visit the site the styles and topics have changed over the years. Today I want to go back to when I made daily mazes and focused on many different kinds of mazes. If you like variety in your mazes (with a puzzle element) this is the collection for you.

And the second best part - solving mazes is also good for you ! (The Surprising Benefits of Solving Mazes)

A download of all the mazes is available at the bottom of the post. Let’s get started:

I. Arrow Maze

  • This is my favorite type of maze to make that is a puzzle and not art. A good arrow maze has no dead ends and will drive the solver nuts with endless loops. Hopefully this version does that for you.

  • If you like this one and want to try to solve the largest arrow maze in the world (probably), I have that too !

  • Or maybe you want to try 100 of them from my Amazon book. It is one of the only maze books available for kindle (since solving these do not require pencil).

Large Arrow Maze

Large Arrow Maze

II. Conditional Pathway Maze

  • This maze is a longer and larger version of a maze from my book on Amazon for kids. I really enjoy making this type of maze - sometimes it even trips me up !

  • To solve this particular maze you need to rotate the color of the pathway you take between each joint - black to grey to white.

  • Learn how to make a conditional pathway maze.

Large Conditional Pathway Maze

Conditional Pathway Maze

III. Block Move Maze

  • Another puzzle type maze. To solve a block move maze you must shift blocks to create a continuous pathway between the start and goal.

  • You may only move blocks and yourself at 90 degree angles, no 45 degree moves. You cannot move the block you are on (it would break the pathway behind you).

Large Block Move Maze

Block Move Maze

IV. The Weaving Maze

  • A weaving maze makes you think and solve in 3-D. What makes them difficult is that because of the structure you cannot see dead ends as easily. Also, they are made with loops in the design which can be frustrating !

  • If you like this type of maze I made an entire book of 100 of them on Amazon.

  • A similar version - instead of weaving it uses pipes that is also difficult is the Largest Pipe Maze in the World Maze.

Large Weaving Maze

Large Weaving Maze

V. Maze Art

  • I have a website full of maze arts so I had a lot of options to choose from. Why this one ? Well the best performing mazes are the most famous buildings. This cool building, the Peter B Lewis Building, designed by Frank Gehry isn’t so famous, but I thought I deserved some love. It also gives you a sense of how many of my mazes are to solve.

  • Because of the shape and size this is best printed on a large piece of paper, or opened online and using the zoom function !

Peter B Lewis Building Maze

VI. Slide Arrow Maze

  • The relative of the arrow maze, in a slide arrow maze you can move to any block that the arrow is pointing at. That makes the number of combinations wildly high and the maze extremely difficult.

  • Typically I use a slide arrow as a block or 2 in a regular arrow maze, but as a full maze it gets complicated !

Large Slide Arrow Maze

If this post does well, I will make more variety maze collections for adults ! Happy mazing !