We just discovered Maryland’s “best kept secret,” renting a cabin at New Germany State Park. Nestled between Big Savage Mountain and the Eastern Continental Divide, New Germany State Park offers 10 miles of hiking, a lake to swim or kayak on, and of course, 12 cabins. This was our first stay at a state park […]
kid-friendly
Dinosaurs, Rail Cars and More at Depot at Dolittles!
What place offers food (both fine dining and “diner style”), a pizzeria, a brewery where you can sample craft beers, miniature golf, animatronic dinosaurs, and trains, both real historic train cars and a variety of models? There’s only one place in the mid-Atlantic region that I know of that has all these things: Depot at […]
Only the Really Cool Trees Have Knees: Secrets of Battle Creek Cypress Swamp
Bald cypress trees are an ancient tree that once covered parts of Delaware, Maryland, DC, and Virginia. Cypress trees have been dredged from the Baltimore Inner Harbor, and stumps thought to be a hundred thousand years old have been found at the mouth of the Patapsco River. Logs tens of thousands of years old have […]
Kayaking the Wicomico River
We headed to Whitehaven, an historic industrial town along the banks of the Wicomico River, for this paddling adventure. Lining the shores of the fairly placid river were mud flats and marshland, with numerous inlets and creeks to explore. The Wicomico River is a 24-mile-long tributary of the Chesapeake Bay on the eastern shore of […]
Roar with the Wild Ones at Salisbury Zoo
If you’re looking for a few hours of fun or something fun to do with your kid, check out the Salisbury Zoo! Situated along a tributary to the Wicomico River, the 12-acre zoo focuses on species native to the Americas and Australia. You can see bison, Amazon macaws, white-tail deer, greater rhea, alpaca, black-tailed prairie […]
Release Your Inner Pirate Aboard Urban Pirates Cruise around Baltimore’s Inner Harbor!
There is so much to do in Baltimore for kids — from the serious (touring Fort McHenry) to the almost ridiculous (Ripley’s Believe It or Not Odditorium) — and Urban Pirates fits in, more in the latter category, offering an hour of crazy fun for families. Think Pirates of the Caribbean rather than Blackbeard — […]
Gaining Insight into our Fifth POTUS at the James Monroe Museum
There’s a curious little museum in Fredericksburg dedicated to the fifth President, and the last Virginia president. James Monroe, who was born in 1758 and lived until 1831, served in the Continental Army and as a governor of Virginia; he also was a statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father. He is perhaps best known for […]
Storybook Trail – Masanutten State Park
The Story Book Trail is an almost mile-long, out-and-back wheel-chair accessible trail on Masanutten Mountain, leading to an overlook revealing the Page Valley and Route 211 below. The trail gently heads up hill under tree-cover the entire way. With boardwalks in places and a paved trail, you can walk it in your flip-flops. Along the […]
American Visionary Art Museum Revisited
Bluebird of Happiness, Dick Brown. The American Visionary Art Museum is an unusual art museum. There are no Picassos, no Monets, no Chagalls to be found within its walls, but don’t let that stop you. Black Icarus, Andrew Logan. Instead, you’ll find art made by “every day folk” but these artists didn’t go to school […]
Hiking in Historic Pemberton Park
Pemberton Park is an historic park, just outside of Salisbury MD; the site of the former Pemberton Plantation, the historic house, built in 1741, still stands and is open for tours most weekends. But what really drew us to the park was the opportunity to explore its trail system, which takes you through a variety […]
A Wintery Regatta Lights Up Frederick’s Carrol Creek All Winter!
Every year, a wintery flotilla sails through the solstice on Frederick’s Carroll Creek. This year, 18 boats, ranging from a viking boat to other brightly lit ketches, yawls, and even a three mast schooner adorn Carroll Creek between Market Street and Carroll Street. The boats were “launched” on November 23. Over the years, the regatta […]
Longwood Gardens Bedazzles Itself in Holiday Lights
At Christmas, Longwood Gardens gleefully bedazzles itself with colored lights and whimsy. Adults can become kids again and kids may simply just be, living in the moment and delighting in the wonder of it all. Whether you’re in the Conservatory or walking outside in one of the many gardens, colorful arrangements of lights and trees […]
Learn about Baltmore’s Industrial Past at the Baltimore Museum of Industry
Baltimore was never a one-industry town. If you think of Pittsburgh, you naturally think of steel. If you think Detroit, cars. But Baltimore? Think straw hats and umbrellas. And boots, space capsules, and schooners. And Linotype machines. And cigars, seaplanes, and refined sugar. And radios and sail cloth and toilets…. the list goes on. Baltimore […]
How Kids Can Science at the Maryland Science Center!
I kinda wished I was a kid again. Or had young kids again (my kids are all grown). Because the Maryland Science Center is all about kids and science and teaching kids things by simply making it fun to explore ideas and concepts. Yes, I visited the Maryland Science Center as an adult. And without […]
Where History Runs Deep — Exploring Grand Caverns
Grand Caverns, formerly known as Weyer’s Cave, is located in the central Shenandoah Valley in the town of Grottoes, VA and is America’s oldest “show cave.” Open to the public since 1806, there’s a lot of history in the cave, as former presidents and Confederate and Union soldiers have visited it over the years. Today, […]