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Farmers’ markets are just one of the ways you can “buy local” in Maryland. Enjoy Chesapeake Bay seafood, experience a Maryland wine trail, get a glimpse of history on the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail or visit the “Bridges of Washington County.” July is a great time to savor Maryland’s homegrown, handmade and authentic treasures. Every corner of the state has something unique – from Mountain Maryland’s Appalachian heritage to Southern Maryland's Earth, Art, Imagination Trail to miles and miles of coastline that evoke the Bay lifestyle. |
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Tradition – Bounty of the Chesapeake
Head to the Eastern Shore for Taste of Cambridge Cook Off, July 10. Main Street Cambridge – a revitalized waterfront district – hosts this annual street festival. Potomac Jazz and Seafood Festival, also on July 10, takes place in Southern Maryland on St. Clement’s Island, where English settlers established a new colony 376 years ago. Back on the Eastern Shore, J. Millard Tawes Crab and Clam Bake, July 21, is a much-anticipated event in Crisfield – a coastal town built on oyster shells. | |
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Local fare – Farms, chefs, film
Howard County’s Farm2Table Summer Restaurant Weeks, July 26-Aug. 8, offer diners a chance to try pre-fixe menus that feature locally grown products at 25 independent restaurants in the county. Menus range in price from $10.09 to $40.09. On July 20, some of the farms and restaurants that are part of this event will participate in a “Film Feastival” at Clark's Elioak Farm in Ellicott City. The gathering features Ingredients, a 2009 award-winning documentary about the local-food movement in the U.S. | |
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A&E – Music, paintings, stitchery Enjoy a month of outdoor evening concerts at The College of Southern Maryland’s Twilight Performance Series. Free mid-week shows at three campuses: Leonardtown, La Plata and Prince Frederick. Arts take center stage at Deep Creek Lake State Park in Mountain Maryland. Art in the Park at the Discovery Center, July 10-11, features artists, Dixieland band and silent auction. Montpelier Mansion, an 18th-century landmark in Prince George’s County, hosts Stitching Pretty – an exhibition of needle art (needlepoint to ribbon work), July 17-30. Daily demonstrations. | |
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Family fun – Tractors, sharks, lawn races
Antique farm equipment – steam engines, gas tractors and more – on display at Tuckahoe Steam and Gas Show, July 8-11, Tuckahoe Showgrounds in Easton. Demos of wheat threshing, rock crushing, blacksmithing, along with tractor pulls, train rides and flea market. In Southern Maryland, Calvert Marine Museum presents Sharkfest! – all about living and fossilized sharks, July 10. Fish face-painting, games and displays. And, in Havre de Grace, Steppingstone Museum stages Summer Fun Day with Lawnmower Races & Classic Car Show, July 11, with frog jumping and turtle races, face painting, crafts and tours. |
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State parks – Water adventures
Take a canoe trip up Tuckahoe Creek with Tuckahoe State Park staff, July 3 in Caroline County. The creek runs through wooded marshland in a park that offers fishing and boating in a 60-acre lake. Tubing trips are available at Gunpowder State Park in Baltimore County, July 10, 18, 25 and 31. Meet at the Monkton Station for a short hike to the river. Back on the Eastern Shore, Pocomoke River State Park in Worcester County plans an evening paddle, July 24. Boating and fishing are also at the park. | |
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Hidden Gem – Lighthouse excursion
Get an up-close look at the Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse – built in 1875 and the only remaining screw-pile lighthouse on the Chesapeake Bay standing in its original location. Annapolis Maritime Museum hosts boat tours of the lighthouse, July 11 and 31. The museum is located in Eastport on the site of the last oyster-packing plant in the area. | | |
