Attraction magazine has partnered with the National Park Service Chesapeake Bay Office and Chesapeake Conservancy to help readers find their next adventure. Each month, we’ll feature a new place from their helpful website, FindYourChesapeake.com. There, you can also sign up for an e-newsletter, Trips and Tips, that delivers fresh ideas to your inbox each week.
Photograph courtesy of Melissa Boyle, MD Park Service.
Ready to try something new? At FindYourChesapeake.com, also find expert advice on experiences like birdwatching, fishing, camping, and hiking. Their team also developed content to help people explore the Chesapeake virtually.
This month the spotlight is on Pocomoke River State Park, tucked away on Maryland’s Lower Eastern Shore in Worcester County. The park is home to beautiful stands of cypress, with the heart and soul – and main attraction – centered around the Pocomoke River. The river originates in the Great Cypress Swamp in Delaware and flows southwesterly 45 miles to the Chesapeake Bay. The name “Pocomoke” comes from an American Indian word that means “black water,” describing the dark reddish-brown color of the river caused by tannins leached from cypress needles.
Photograph courtesy of MD Fisheries.
There are two distinct areas of Pocomoke River State Park: Shad Landing, on the south side of the river off Route 113 in Snow Hill, and Milburn Landing, on the north side of the Pocomoke River on Route 364 in Pocomoke City. It is a 25-minute drive between the two areas.
The Pocomoke is a mecca for fishing, with Bass, Crappie, Longnose Gar, Catfish, Chain Pickerel and more. Both sections of the park have boat launches and Milburn Landing has a pier. A “Fish for Fun” pond is located across from the Shad Landing Marina parking lot. The pond is part of Maryland’s “Put and Take” trout program.
Bring your own boat or rent from an outfitter in Snow Hill to experience the Pocomoke’s unique beauty, as you glide quietly through a shady canopy of cypress trees, keeping your eyes and ears open for the wildlife that calls this river home. Watch for turtles basking on logs, birds (both Shad Landing and Milburn Landing are eBird hotspots) flitting about in the undergrowth, and possibly even be lucky enough to spot an elusive River Otter.
Pocomoke River State Park has 175 campsites, with several areas open through winter. The Bald Cypress Nature Trail is recommended for on-foot exploration of the various tree species common to the area, and there is an 8.5-mile multi-use mountain bike trail.
Pocomoke River State Park would make the perfect fall destination!
Paddling the Pocomoke
Pocomoke River State Park
https://dnr.maryland.gov/publiclands/pages/eastern/pocomokeriver.aspx