If you wanted to escape from the DC metro area on a summer weekend, you could get into a car, drive east into Maryland, and spend hours and hours stuck on the (admittedly scenic) Bay Bridge, while visions of the Assateague wild ponies on beaches disintegrate and morph into the license plates that surround you.
Or, you could take the famous Pennsylvania Avenue down to where it ends, literally from the “White House to the Light House”. The easy, two-lane, pun-filled drive through Calvert County, past towns named Mutual Consent or (aptly enough) Another Place will eventually deposit you on a sliver of land called Solomons Island.
Solomons Island is a tiny, 2-000 inhabitant strong community, named after the 19th-century businessman Isaac Solomon who created a cannery there, thus contributing to the expansion of fishery, which along with shipbuilding was the major economic driver for the region in the past few centuries, until the U.S. Navy and the Coast Guard discovered this little gem where the Patuxent River and the Chesapeake Bay meet. For all his undoubted merit toward developing the island, I admit I’m a little disappointed in Isaac – he missed out on the awesome alliterative opportunity of “Isaac’s Island”.
Although the island part is a bit of a misnomer anyway, as thanks to a small bridge constructed in the early 20th century the “Island” is connected to land and looks more like a peninsula.
But trust me when I say you won’t hold that small inconsistency against this charming town.
There is so much to discover in this community scattered over 2 square miles.
If you’d like a stroll by the water, short boardwalks with diminutive piers and boats to rent are everywhere.
If you’d like to relax over a mixed drink during brunch,
listening to the rocking sailboats
as the breeze cools you down on your brunch patio
you could have a delicious feast for all your senses.
If you’d like to learn about local natural and human history, Calvert Marine Museum packs a surprisingly interesting punch for a small institution.
You can make friends with seahorses
in the museum’s aquarium, I meant:
Tour the adjacent lighthouse
(if you’re adept at climbing ladders… down…)
If you’re up for a spin on the water, the $7, hour-long trip on the Wm.B. Tennison (held to be the second-oldest licensed commercial boat in the US)
is surprisingly informative, comprehensive,
The restaurant where we had lunch is tucked in there somewhere!
and scenic.
With a full belly, satisfied intellectual curiosity, senses sharpened and yet sated, you will find yourself smiling at the sight of a somewhat incongruous red barn in a field of corn right by a waterway.
At least, I did.
Where Is My Suitcase 