Calvert Cliffs State Park

The western shore of the Chesapeake Bay has some incredible cliffs that have been eroding through time.  Many of these are now in state ownership to preserve them.  They are known for the fossils that can be washed out including shark teeth.

Sunday the 8th we headed to Calvert Cliffs State Park arriving about 11 am.  The parking lots were filling fast.  We parked and took the trail to the beach, 1.8 miles away.

The trail was through some very lovely woods and along side a creek which became wetlands 

  

 partially due to the beaver dam.  

The creek emptied into the bay at a small beach.

The cliffs to north and south were closed to the public.  

Above looking north.  Below the creek we had to cross at the bay to go south.

It was high tide too so the little strip of sand was a bit crowded. 

We stayed a bit and chatted with a local resident at a picnic table and then headed back.  We passed so many people, adults, children, babies and dogs headed to the beach.  Many looked like they planned to stay awhile with their chairs and coolers.  I don't know how they would all fit.

We didn't find any fossils but someone had left this on the picnic table.  If you look closely you can see the fossils of shells.

The Chesapeake is a major waterway to and from Baltimore.  A large container or tanker ship passed by.

We took a detour after leaving the park to find the Bay House - a vacation home that my parents built in the early 1960s.  Despite all the development and new roads I got us to Drum Point and to the street.  Someone was mowing the lawn when I took this photo.  I spoke to him and discovered he lived across the street and was mowing for the owners who were on vacation.  The development is no longer a vacation home community.  People commute to Washington or across the Patuxent River to St. Mary's County and the Naval base there.

I sent the photos to my siblings and it generated lots of memories for them and for me.

Lunch on the Water

Friday, June 30th Dan and I took friends to lunch on the Chesapeake Bay near Sparrows Point, east of Baltimore.  Though the day was to be a hot one, there on the water the breeze was blowing and we were very comfortable sitting under the umbrella.

We've been here before on a weekend, and the place is hopping.  Boats can come up and dock so these slips would be filled on Saturdays and Sundays.  On this Friday it was nice and quiet.

There are other restaurants nearby but we've enjoyed this one.

I had Maryland crab soup chock full of crab.  It was half gone before I thought to take a photo.

Dan ordered the nachos for us all to share.

I didn't take a picture of the rest of the meal - too busy eating.  Dan had fish and chips, I had seared scallops on a salad, Janet had a huge crab cake sandwich, and Will had shrimp salad on a bun also a mammoth serving.

We had a big debate on which direction we were looking here.  Between the iPhone and the GPS and the waiter I think we finally settled on generally east.

It was a lovely day out with good friends.  We'll do it again.

Return to Woodlawn

Last Sunday Dan and I returned to the park that had the Underground Railroad trail.  See this earlier post about that.

We wanted to visit the buildings that weren't open when we were there on a week day.  Alas, we were disappointed to learn that the house is not open at all.  What is open is the magnificent barn which now houses a museum on the Quakers and slavery in this part of Maryland.

The barn is the only one like it in Maryland.

Here's a model of it.

Different exhibits explained its construction.

The inside walls were whitewashed.

Other exhibits told stories of slaves and the Underground Railroad.

Still other exhibits focused on the Quakers.

It is a magnificent building with now an interesting and important message about our history.