Laah, her kids, and Hazel drove out to my house. That alone was quite a long trek and they still had another 90 minutes or so to go. So I drove Laah's car and Norma drove my car out to our destination, a house we rented called Shewell's Light House at Long Beach. It wasn't a real lighthouse; it was just decorated with that theme.

One concern with renting a vacation house is ensuring there are enough things to keep the kids entertained. Once we entered, my mind was quickly put at ease after I saw the ping pong table, foosball table, and air hockey table. In the basement, there was even a billiards table.

We had a little bit of daylight left so a few of us walked a short distance down the hill to Long Beach. This is a community beach but since we were renting a house there, we had access. The kids really enjoyed playing in the water and looking for things in the sand. The water was a little cold but Laah's kids handle the cold well. Where they live is usually about 10 degrees cooler than where Norma and me live.

After eating dinner, Laah's son and I spent much of the evening playing air hockey. This was his introduction to air hockey and he took to it quickly. For me, it was a fond memory from my youth that reminded me of Sam's Town.

Joyce, Jimmy, and their family arrived later that night. Their oldest daughter had a volleyball game that she had to complete before leaving. Daphne was very happy to see everyone and be the center of attention.

In my opinion, the highlight of our trip was attending the annual Patuxent River Appreciation Day at the Calvert Marine Museum. This free event featured music, food, makers of home spun goods, a petting zoo, boat rides, toy boat building, pony rides, displays, and activities celebrating the river.

The event had something for just about everyone. There was one area where the kids could look through a box of rocks, shells, and fossils and then take one thing out of there. It was an easy opportunity for them to get a shark tooth without much effort.

For some of the kids, their favorite activity was getting to handle the horseshoe crabs and blue crabs. In a world where kids are so often told not to touch things, this was their chance to get some hands-on experience with local wildlife.

We got to go up in the Drum Point Lighthouse. This was built in 1883 to mark the northern approach to the Patuxent River. It was moved from Drum Point to its current location on Solomons in 1975.

We took a boat tour on the William B. Tennison. It was built in 1899 in Maryland as a two-masted sailing bugeye and designed mainly for oyster dredging. In 1906-1907, it was converted to engine power and the sailing rig was removed. From 1907 to 1978, the Tennison earned its living as a buyboat, hauling oysters and dredging on leased oyster beds.

The Tennison took us (Daphne included) south on Back Creek and around Molly's Leg Island. Just south of the island, we saw the tall ship Schooner Sultana.

In the museum, I enjoyed looking at fossils and talking to paleontologists. I also liked seeing their exhibit about Commodore Joshua Barney.
In 1980, the Calvert Marine Museum and Nautical Archaeological Associates of Upper Marlboro excavated a section of the Patuxent River site where Joshua Barney had scuttled his flotilla. Archaeologists, led by Dr. Ralph Eshelman, recovered these and many other artifacts under five feet of silt.
- from museum sign

After our boat ride on the Tennison, the kids had the chance to build their own toy boats.

At a pier next to the Dee of St. Mary's skipjack, I took the birthday boy out on a paddleboat and Norma took out her youngest niece.

A lot of people enjoyed ringing the 1923 U.S. Lighthouse Service (USLHS) bell.

Upon leaving the museum, Hazel and Jimmy and Joyce's family went back to the AirBnB house while the rest of us explored Solomons.

Originally called Bourne's Island (1680), then Somervell's Island (1740), Solomons takes its name from 19th century Baltimore businessman Isaac Solomon, who established a cannery there shortly after the Civil War.
- from Wikipedia - Solomons, Maryland

Many people call this place Solomons Island but that is misleading because it is a peninsula, not an island.

Running around the field that was opened up for museum parking, Daphne hurt her foot. We're not sure what happened but it wasn't anything serious and she recovered quickly. Still, Norma felt she should carry Daphne for awhile.

The parking area stretched west to the Patuxent River, bordered on the south by a corn field. Near the edge of the farm, we saw a curious red fox.

We walked to the river where we had a nice view of the 1.37-mile-long Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge that runs from Calvert County to Saint Mary's County. This bridge is named for the first governor of Maryland.

Walking through town, we saw a pristine Trans Am classic muscle car and a Harley Davidson Big Wheel Bagger.

We also passed Saint Peter's Chapel, built in 1889.

It was a beutiful, sunny day, but as the sun got low in the sky, it got cold. The wind didn't help. We ate dinner at the Lighthouse Restaurant and Dock Bar. Since we had Daphne, we sat outside on their deck which was in the shade. The food was good but it was a little hard to really enjoy it with the cold temperature.

After dinner, we went back to the rental house and rejoined the rest of Norma's family.

The house we stayed at was pretty nice. Probably our biggest complaint was the lack of dishwashing detergent, which isn't too serious a problem to have.

We brought our own sheets and a big tarp so Daphne could join us in bed and on the couch.

The kitchen wasn't big but it was laid out nicely.

There was a big spiral staircase that ran from the basement to the second floor. The kids really loved running up and down it. Daphne wasn't so sure about it at first but she quickly got used to it.

We drove a short distance to Calvert Beach at the east end of Calvert Road. This area is often called Calvert Beach - Long Beach and while the two beaches have different names, residents and those renting a house in the neighborhood have access to both.

Norma put a scavenger hunt Bingo sheet together listing things they might find or see from the beach. I showed people examples of fossils I brought from home. But once we started looking for things, we quickly realized that shark teeth were very difficult to detect. For the entire weekend, I think I found two, the eldest boy found one, and nobody else found any. But people did find things. Usually it was just shells but some were indeed fossils. Laah found pieces of Ecphora gardnerae gardnerae (Wilson), Maryland's state fossil shell.

My most interesting discovery for our trip was a piece of a sand dollar which appears at the bottom of this blog. At this beach, I also found a tiger shark tooth, some petrified wood, a piece of ray dental palate, and a vertebrae.

The adults seemed to get into looking for things on the beach while the kids were happy building a fort, playing in the water, digging, running around, etc. I don't think there were enough fossils to keep them engaged.

It felt good to get some sun and walk around barefooted on the beach.

From the beach, we could see clear across the Chesapeake Bay to the eastern shore. The water was pretty calm and the air was clear. I was hoping to spot a pod of dolphins but saw none. We did see a bald eagle and a few other things.

Before leaving the beach, we took a group photo, shown at the top of this page.

Back at the house, we ate, got cleaned up, and rested. Then some of us walked just down the road to Long Beach, the same place we were on the first day. There, the oldest boy found a shark tooth but later lost it. I found a snaggletooth shark tooth, shown below.

I spoke to a man who brought his grandchildren. They were very familiar with many of the beaches in the area and were clearly veteran fossil hunters. One of the girls found a shark tooth and gave it to me. I passed it onto the boy that lost his.

A brown pelican flew by.

The Chesapeake Bay was extremely calm and I was starting to regret not bringing my SUP. But the kids were having fun and that made me happy.
Back at the house, I spent a lot of time studying for the one mile historic walk I would be leading in my town on October 16, 2022. I spent much of my free time that weekend studying.

But I did find time to play doubles ping pong with Norma, Jimmy, Joyce, and Laah. I did no worse than Norma or her sisters but we were all far behind Jimmy when it came to skill. I also played billiards with the kids.

On our final day, we headed out to Matoaka Beach. They have some secluded cabins here and this would have been my second choice of places to stay in the area if they allowed dogs. For this trip, Daphne stayed at the AirBnB house with Hazel.

What would have been my first choice of places to stay in Calvert County? Cove Point Keeper's House...but like Matoaka, they don't allow dogs. But they probably wouldn't have an air hockey table so maybe we were better off where we ended up staying.

Matoaka is the name that Pocahontas was also known by.

As we walked down the hill to the beach, we passed through a lush bamboo grove that looked like something one might see in Vietnam.

I've been very curious about this beach for several years. Was it the shark tooth haven that some people claimed? No. None of us found any shark teeth. But we did find lots of coral. Still, I think people had a good time.

Some of the most interesting things I found were embedded in the walls of the cliff. Lots of turritellas. Of course, the cliffs are off limits for digging.

I also found a couple of nice pieces of ray dental palate.

Back at the house, we ate lunch, got things packed up, and then departed.

We ventured to our final destination...the Battle Creek Cypress Swamp Sanctuary. According to signs at the sanctuary:
This place is one of the northernmost stands of baldcypress trees in North America. Baldcypress trees can live almost 2000 years and reach 150 feet in height and 17 feet in diameter. Most cypress here in Battle Creek Cypress Swamp range from 75 to 100 years of age.

Unfortunately, dogs weren't allowed here so Daphne stayed in the car. The temperature was very mild so we just left the window open a bit and she was fine.

Just outside the nature center, I found a cluster of aphids on a milkweed pod.

At nature center, we learned about the sanctuary and saw a some interesting things.

Outside, we walked on the boardwalk and saw a lot of baldcypress trees with "knees."

Knees, projections from the baldcypress roots, reach a maximum height under regularly flooded conditions. They may help provide air, food or stabilization to the tall tres, but do not become new trees themselves.
- from sign on boardwalk

Since these trees grow in such a wet environment, they must be rot resistant. Right?
Baldcypress lumber is valued for its resistance to decay, and was used for building boats, barns, and houses. It has been called the "Wood Eternal."
- from sign on boardwalk

We saw some purple turtlehead flowers.

We didn't see any wildlife at the sanctuary but we saw signs that critters were nearby.

Here's Laah and her family on the boardwalk.

Jimmy, Joyce, and their family headed home while the rest of us drove to Savage.

Laah and her family stayed at our house overnight so they could get a fresh start the next day for their long drive home. Hazel stayed with us for a few days more and then Norma drove her home.

I think everyone had fun. My plan to get them to appreciate the Chesapeake Bay was a success. Fortunately, the weather held out. Had it been rainy, I think we would have managed in the house but it wouldn't have been as special.

There were a couple of other options that we didn't pursue but maybe we will if we return to the area

Horsmon Farm

K & K Adventure Park

Someone, (I think maybe Joyce) suggested that next year we go to Cape Henlopen, Delaware. I think this is a fantastic idea. I commented to people that with beachcombing, there are more interesting things along the ocean. Cape Henlopen sits at the southern mouth of the Delaware Bay, where it connects with the Atlantic Ocean. Perfect!