Mystery & Ice Cream Train, Kayak Bird Watching Event Slated In MD

MARYLAND — Families can head out to Western Maryland for some unique train rides. One experience offers dinner and an interactive mystery. Another includes ice cream and a cruise. Groups can also go birdwatching on a kayak trip, study invasive species or learn about tall ships.

Patch recently partnered with several local organizations to bring you their latest news. This guest contribution comes from National Park Service Chesapeake Gateways and Chesapeake Conservancy. Here's what Jody Hedeman Couser submitted to help you explore the Chesapeake Bay:

"Kingfisher Kayak Trips

Explore Marshy Point’s waterways ... for the king of fishing and other local avian inhabitants. Marshy Point Nature Center in Baltimore is an E-bird hotspot, click here to see a full list of sightings. $7 per person, $5 for members. Ages 8+; children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Space is limited. August 28, 11:00 am to 1:00 pm; Baltimore, MD. More information and registration.

Take a Mystery Train or Ice Cream Train Trip

Enjoy a first class dinner and help solve a mystery on board during a three-hour excursion on the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad. $133 includes dinner and three hours of comedic improvisation and interactive murder mystery fun. Or experience the brand new Ice Cream Train. Check-in at the beautiful station in downtown Cumberland, select an ice cream flavor, then board the train for a fun 35-minute round trip through The Narrows and back. Tickets are only $10.00 and ice cream is included. More information and tickets.

Snails, Whelks, and Snakeheads: Protecting Mid-Atlantic Waterways

When it comes to invasive species, cooperation between states is crucial. As this Chesapeake Quarterly report suggests, “What is Virginia’s problem one year can be Maryland’s problem the next, and Delaware’s the next, and so on along the coast.” The report is a fascinating history of the battle against aquatic invasives from 1998, with the veined rapa whelk, to didymo, rusty crayfish, northern snakehead, nutria, and zebra mussels. The scientists tasked with managing these invaders have to figure out how they got here [(like the aquarium moss balls sold in a Seattle pet store being the zebra mussel culprit), assess potential ramifications (aquatic invasive species have cost the global economy at least $345 billion since 1971), and come up with control/eradication strategies.] Read all about how this team of super-sleuth problem solvers [works] together on this very big problem.

Maryland Dove Symposium

Possibly the highlight of the fall season at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is its virtual Maryland Dove Symposium. The current Maryland Dove has served as Historic St. Mary’s City’s floating ambassador since 1978. Cambridge shipwright James B. Richardson worked with a handful of assistants over 15 months at his boatyard off the Choptank River to build the vessel. The five-part symposium will consider the legacy of the iconic tall ship, as well as the future of the new vessel currently being worked on at the museum’s shipyard (with a targeted launch of spring, 2022). $7.50 per session. September 29, October 6, 13, 20, and 27. There will also be a Maryland Dove Shipyard Tour every Thursday in October. More information and registration."

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