Possibly only one thing can accentuate a morning hike at Great Falls Park and keep summer from coming to a close.

Heather Wilson and her friend Dawn Tilley had arrived at the park early Saturday morning, it opens at 7 a.m. to spend some time outdoors, experience the various hiking trails, and watch the waters of the Potomac River build up speed and fall over the jagged rocks

Great Falls Park has 800 acres of opportunities to explore nature and history. It is, as the National Park Service calls the park on its website, “a destination for recreation.”

The pair of hikers turned up shortly after noon at another destination, an icy one where people celebrate life’s events, big and small, like a morning hike. Hot and sweaty, the duo stopped for a cool down at the Great Falls Creamery, 766 Walker Road in the Village Center, to check out the buzz about the place. It has been a fixture in the local community since 2014 when Patti McKeown and her husband, Gary, opened the family business,

Wilson and Tilly placed orders for sorbets. Wilson said she is new to the area. “I love living so close to a National Park with different trails to hike.”

They had seen something that morning they’d remember for a while, Tilley said. “People kayaking over the falls. Over. They landed on a rock.” The kayakers were fine. ”They went past and then did it again.”

Entrance fees and Great Falls Park annual passes may be purchased online at Recreation.gov.