MD Scenic Byways - Digital Guide
Mason & Dixon
2021-08-10 23:29:13
MOSTLY SINGLE-LANE COUNTRY ROADS
drive type
On this easy-going drive along country vistas just south of the Pennsylvania border, prepare yourself for historical encounters, recreational endeavors and life “down on the farm.”
143 MILES FROM WESTMINSTER TO APPLETON
Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon spent nearly four years helping to settle a land dispute by surveying newly established boundaries between Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Delaware. The Mason-Dixon Line, created in 1763, has since come to define the divide between North and South.
Westminster to White Hall
INCLUDING US 15, MD 97 & MD 25
Begin your journey in Westminster, where the Carroll County Farm Museum offers opportunities to experience mid-19thcentury rural life. Just to the north is the Union Mills Homestead and Grist Mill. During the Civil War, both Union and Confederate soldiers were welcomed here on their way to the Battle of Gettysburg.
Continue through Melrose to Manchester, a historical community featuring a family-owned winery that has wine tastings, retail sales and special events. Picking up MD 25, drive along a portion of the Falls Road byway until veering east toward Prettyboy Reservoir, a popular area for hiking, picnicking and taking in the scenery. The same can be said for the Torrey C. Brown Rail Trail, a former railroad bed that is now a 20-mile-long, 10-foot wide, stone-dust path running from Hunt Valley to the Mason-Dixon Line. Bike rentals are available through a local vendor.
Seven ponds and more than 80 bunkers provide a challenge for golfers at Greystone, a public, 18-hole venue in White Hall that has been listed among Golfweek’s best municipal courses.
Harkins to Appleton
INCLUDING MD 136, US 1 & MD 273
Farms in this rural area are known for their hayrides, corn mazes, fresh fruits and vegetables, and dairy products. Pull over at Kilby Cream just outside of Rising Sun to choose from 16 flavors of freshly made ice cream served on the charming farm.
Spanning the Lower Susquehanna River in Conowingo is one of the nation’s largest hydroelectric generating stations. Below the dam, you just might spy a bald eagle soaring overhead while you enjoy some of the best small-mouth bass fishing in the country.
Up the road, Rising Sun offers a variety of fun options such as a vineyard, NHRAsanctioned dragway and Plumpton Park Zoo. In the northeastern-most corner of the state, the 5,633-acre Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area offers trout fishing, hiking and equestrian trail riding, as well as turf-course horse racing held on Memorial Day weekend.
CECIL COUNTY DRAGWAY
Rising Sun • 410-287-5486
www.cecilcountydragway.com
EDEN MILL NATURE CENTER AND HISTORIC RIST MILL
Pylesville • 410-836-3050
www.edenmill.org
FMAAINR AHGIELML ENNATT UARRAELA RESOURCE
Elkton • 410-398-1246
www.dnr.maryland.gov/publiclands/pages/central/fairhill.aspx
PLUMPTON PARK ZOO
Rising Sun • 410-658-6850
www.plumptonparkzoo.org
TORREY C. BROWN RAIL TRAIL
White Hall/Monkton • 410-592-2897
www.dnr.maryland.gov/publiclands/pages/central/tcb.aspx
AUNNDIO NGR MISITL LMSI LHLOMESTEAD
Westminster • 410-848-2288
www.unionmills.org
For information about amenities found along this byway, please refer to the chart on page 62.
SIDE TRIP
Off MD 24, Eden Mill Nature Center and Park sits on the edge of Deer Creek, an officially designated “Scenic and Wild River.” The centerpiece of the property is a restored mill, serving as the launching point for canoe trips, hikes and nature programs. For a completely different experience, the Hollywood Casino is found just off I-95 near the eastern bank of the Susquehanna River in Perryville. It features 1,500 Vegas-style slot machines.
MARYLAND LORE
At Rocks State Park, a popular, 190-foot rock-climbing cliff ascends to a formation known as the King and Queen Seat, which was once a ceremonial gathering place for the Susquehannock Nation of Native Americans.
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