Backshore, and unmatched clubs like Seacrets, where you can hit one of the dance floors or enjoy a fresh-squeezed Orange Crush at a table in the bay! PLAY ON THE BAY As amazing as Maryland’s Atlantic beaches are, the Chesapeake shore shares just as much magic. Dotted with lighthouses, banked by lush forests and beautiful towns, there’s no end of ways to spend a perfect day on the bay. You can relax on great public beaches like Sandy Point State Park at the western end of the Bay Bridge; Betterton Beach, a former steamboat resort on the upper Eastern Shore; Rocky Point Beach and Gunpowder Falls State Park, both just minutes from downtown Baltimore; and Calvert Cliffs State Park, which not only offers up a great, sandy beach, but some of the best fossil hunting anywhere. Go for the day on the bay and come home with a million-year-old shark’s tooth souvenir! Of course, these are just the tip of the beach-berg. swimming, fishing, paddling and boating. Lake Habeeb in Rocky Gap State Park is a rare double threat—you can get back to nature at the lakefront campground, or do it luxe style at Rocky Gap Casino with table games, a world-class spa and fantastic lake vistas. If you want to see some spectacular scenery, make the hike to majestic Cunningham Falls State Park. But pack your swim suit, Hunting Creek Lake is a great swimming spot for the family and an easy drive from Washington, D.C. Town Water Park and Mini-Golf, not far from Assateague Island State Park and National Seashore in Berlin, puts an Old West spin on a summer favorite with cactus fountains, tube slides and even a covered wagon wading pool. WET AND WILD WATERPARK FUN What’s next? How about a lazy river or a looping waterslide? Six Flags America’s Hurricane Harbor is home to a million-gallon wave pool, mellow Buccaneer Beach and the thrilling Bonzai Pipelines, a series of massive six-story super-speed waterslides. In Ocean City, Jolly Roger’s Splash Mountain is one of the Travel Channel’s “Top Five Water Parks in the Country,” and it’s no wonder, this place is a tidal wave of fun. Ride the terrifying 360-degree Aqua Loop or the Master FISH ON! No place on Earth can top Maryland’s fantastic range of fishing opportunities. In Ocean City and Assateague Island State Park and National Seashore, you can set up a beach chair and spend a pleasant evening surf casting for flounder, bluefish, stripers and drum. Hop on a head boat and drop a line over an inshore wreck. Or go all in on a fishing charter and head out to Baltimore Canyon where the ocean floor drops away to 1,500 feet and the big fish roam. There’s a reason Ocean City is the “White Marlin Capital of the World” and home to the annual White Marlin Open, the largest and most prestigious billfishing tournament in the world where top anglers vie for more than $5 million in prizes. Rockfishing charters on the Chesapeake are a Maryland rite of passage. A good captain will put you on fish, and if you’ve never gone for rockfish (striped bass, if you’re not from around here), get ready for a heck of a fun fight! Oh, and did we mention they are delicious? Rockfish ceviche is a true Maryland delicacy. A new thrill that is catching on here in the Old Line State is bowfishing. The Potomac is a great spot for bowfishing for invasive snakehead and flathead catfish—two large, plentiful and delicious fish—and bowfishing is one of the most thrilling ways to get out on the water. If you’re not quite ready for that, find a nice pier or jetty and haul in some sunnies with the kids. PHOTOS: DRAWN TO THE IMAGE; @FWDPICTURESFROMDEEPCREEK Pictured Left to Right: Sandaway Suites & Beach, Oxford; Deep Creek Lake; Charter fi shing at The Narrows GO JUMP IN A LAKE You’ve hung ten in O.C. and taken the plunge in the Chesapeake—well, water-loving completists have a lot more to experience in Maryland. Deep Creek Lake in Garrett County is famous as a ski destination, but in the summer, things really heat up. With 69 miles of coastline to explore, it’s great for Blaster water coaster, and even meet the beautiful Splash Mountain Mermaids lounging around the Kiddie Pirate Ship. Broher Park in Gaithersburg also has an awesome waterpark featuring a massive 250-foot-long double slide. Chesapeake Beach Waterpark, with its cozy cabanas, slides and giant lazy river, is great family fun in Southern Maryland, and Frontier DESTINATION MARYLAND ✥ 43
Maryland Official Visitors Guide 2020 Maryland Official Visitors Guide: Page 43
