Actually, it's taking me a bit of time to get it done so I wanted to get something up here to let you know I'm not neglecting my bloggerly duties. Today I took the day off from my real job (graphic design) to go on a field trip with my niece. We headed west towards the Chesapeake Bay and ended up in St. Michaels.
St. Michaels in a quant little town situated on the Miles River and home the the Chesapeake Maritime Museum. I am especially fond of this area having grown up on the Delmarva Peninsula and reading Chesapeake by James Michener. The museum isn't a building of sorts but rather a collection of buildings. It also includes an octagonal lighthouse that was located 5 miles out in the bay and floated down the Miles River to its home in St. Michaels for preservation.
The buildings included boats that range anywhere from recreational to working. My favorite part was cruising through the building highlighting oystering. It even housed a real skipjack which was a boat specifically designed for oystering. Of course, due to my graphic design background, I was enamored by the oyster tins.
After lunch, we boarded a ship that cruised down the Miles River. From there we were able to see 1-3 million dollar homes that ran along the banks of the river.
We passed a osprey nest that currently has a female sitting on eggs. In certain areas, the Miles Rivers is eroding its banks at a rate of one foot per year. That's a bit out of control. Another statistic states that due to heavy oystering during the first part of the 20th century the oyster population is one percent of what it use to be. Just a small part of history being eaten away (pun intended).
It was a lovely trip in spite of being stuck, on a bus, with a bunch of shouting 5th grade boys. I forgot how loud they can be. I also forgot that boys and girls can't sit together in 5th grade. Well, let me rephrase that. They can, they just choose not to. So, the lesson I learned today is: if you want to enjoy a place you love going don't do it with a bunch a 5th graders. They will drag you around at the speed of light and complain about being hungry and "can we go to the gift shop now?" But, I still love my niece.
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