Calvert Cliffs State Park

Historical marker at the park entrance.

Calvert Cliffs State Park is a state park in Calvert County, Maryland, USA, situated on the Chesapeake Bay.  On the 1612 John Smith map, the site is called “Rickard’s Cliffes”. The park is located in Lusby, Maryland.
It is a short distance south of Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant operated by Constellation Energy.

Entering the forest on the Red trail.

Calvert Cliffs State Park is a day-use park featuring a sandy beach, unique fossils, recycled tire playground, a freshwater and tidal marshland and 13 miles of hiking trails located in Calvert County. The massive cliffs from which Calvert Cliffs SP was named dominates the shoreline of the Chesapeake Bay for thirty miles in Calvert County and were formed over 15 million years ago when all of Southern Maryland was covered by a warm, shallow sea. When the sea receded 20-25 million years ago, marking the end of the Miocene period, cliffs were exposed and began eroding. Today these cliffs reveal the remains of prehistoric species Including sharks, whales, rays, and seabirds that were the size of small airplanes.

The woods slowly open up to a grassy wetland.

Thankfully the well made trail is off to one side and slightly elevated from the water.

Numerous dead trees populate the swamp and provide perches and homes to numerous birds.

 Small footbridges traverse the many wet spots along the trail to the bay.

 Beaver sign.

 A submerged tree felled by one of the local beavers.

Beavers are most famous, and infamous, for their dam-building. They maintain their pond-habitat by reacting quickly to the sound of running water, and damming it up with tree branches and mud. Early ecologists believed that this dam-building was an amazing feat of architectural planning, indicative of the beaver’s high intellect. This theory was questioned when a recording of running water was played in a field near a beaver pond. Despite the fact that it was on dry land, the beaver covered the tape player with branches and mud.  The largest beaver dam is 2,790 ft (850 m) in length—more than half a mile long—and was discovered via satellite imagery in 2007.  It is located on the southern edge of Wood Buffalo National Park in northern Alberta and is twice the width of the Hoover Dam which spans 1,244 ft (379 m).

The North American Beaver is the state animal of Oregon and New York, and a common school emblem for engineering schools, including the California Institute of Technology and MIT, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

American Beaver Skull

Castor canadensis

Gouache and Silverpoint

©2009 Melisa Beveridge

 A Bluebird wintering at the park perches on some deadwood.

 

 After a short 2 mile hike the bay is visible.

 The slowly eroding sandy soil of Calvert cliffs.

 Fossils aplenty wash up on shore here alongside shells and floatsam.

Sun worship.

The wetlands empty into the bay here at the beach.

At last, on my way back, the beaver makes an appearance, slapping his large, flat tail loudly on the water as a warning.

The trail back to the parking area always seems longer.

Bob Cuts the Grass

Saturdays,weather permitting, which it hasn’t been for a LONG time, are usually spent mowing the grass. I normally don’t keep track of the exact time it takes, mainly because I’m in a mower induced trance by the time I’m through and I try not to think about it again until next week. This time I decided I would bring along my handheld GPS receiver and see exactly what cutting the grass looks like from a bird’s eye view and get some numbers for my own nefarious purposes.

Our yard from space.

The faint red outline marks the two yards I mow.The crop circles in our back yard are from friendly aliens or a pool we had. Right next to the “A” marker is the old me from about 5 years ago, actually cutting the grass. My wife says it is her but I can clearly see my pickup in the driveway and there is no heavenly way possible that I would allow my loving wife to cut the grass while I sit in my recliner…

A closer view. Notice the broad shoulders, the deep tan and the piercing brown eyes, so deep you could just swim in them… Has to be me!

First, some background information. I mow two yards, ours and our neighbors next door. I use a riding mower for my neighbor’s yard and a self- propelled push mower for our yard. Our mower has a grass catcher that has to be emptied every ten steps (okay,I’m exaggerating a little) and carried to the woods where I create an critter- friendly, ecological environmental habitat for my forest friends (by dumping it in a pile over the fence). I try to mow in the most efficient manner possible but I usually get sidetracked by snakes, branches in the face, unknown bugs in my mouth, ears, eyes and down my shirt, pants and by shiny objects. I also take a couple of breaks for water, which my loving wife brings to me exactly when I need it (how does she know?!), and refueling the mowers. Below are the stats of the world’s most efficient mower!

Total Time Spent Mowing: 3 hours 48 minutes 55 seconds

Elevation Gain of 6 feet

Maximum Speed 6.3 Miles Per Hour

Average Speed 2.3 Miles Per Hour

Total Distance Mowed: 5.36 MILES!!!

A bluebird that refuses to lodge in my awesome selection of bluebird houses, watches me disapprovingly.

Backyard Birdwatching 1

  It doesn’t matter where you live,if you feed them, they will come. Having birds in your backyard is as easy as feeding them.Once they start coming, you’ll probably begin to wonder about their names and why they behave the way they do. Before you know it you’ll probably get a book about them, and if you’re really hooked, a pair of binoculars to see them up close. Birdwatching is enjoyed by over 65 million Americans, and once you start,you’ll see why.

    Getting started is pretty easy. First you’ll need a feeder. Bird feeders come in all shapes and sizes and can be homemade from everyday items found around the house or store bought. Fancy or simple, the birds will come. As your knowledge of your local bird species increases you’ll be able to attract certain types of birds to your backyard. I generally like them all, but there are some that I like more than others.
                        
    Pictured above is my backyard feeder.It consists of a 4″ x 4″ x 8′ post sunk 2′ in the ground with a little concrete for support, a platform with holes drilled in the bottom for drainage, two sides and a roof. On the sides of my feeder I have placed two suet feeders as well. The wood came from scraps left over from a construction job at Camp David http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_David in the nearby Catoctin Mountains, so you could say that our birds are getting the presidential treatment! The wood I used is red oak and has held up very well for the past 6 years without any special care.

    The object of a feeder is to provide a clean,safe feeding station off of the ground where seed can become moldy and  get exposed to potential contamination by dampness, bacteria, animal droppings, lawn fertilizers and pesticides. Not all birds will visit your elevated feeder,some are ground feeders, but you would be surprised at the number of ground feeders that secretly convert when no one else is looking. Here is a link for an easy platform feeder: http://birdfeedertips.com/bird-feeder-plans/ . Your backyard feeder can be as simple or complex as you wish, here are some plans for wide variety of feeders: http://www.woodworkersworkshop.com/resources/index.php?cat=405 .

    Another way to attract birds is to have birdbath close by with a steady supply of fresh, clean water. Water left too long can develop algae in warmer climates and possibly spread disease among our feathered friends, so make sure and maintain your birdbath by cleaning it regularly and changing the water. Below is our birdbath which I put together from on old concrete birdbath basin and a communication tower beacon.



The tower light came from the top of a 450′ guyed tower on Maryland’s Eastern Shore in Salisbury,Md. Once you have a bird feeder and a birdbath,you’ll be well on your way toward endless fun and learning as you progress in your knowledge and appreciation of your own backyard wonders. Good Luck!