Exploring Historic North East And Elk Neck State Park On The Chesapeake Bay In Maryland

When I awoke last  Thursday morning in North East , Maryland,  I  planned on hiking in  the Elk Neck State Park. It  was almost a year ago,  to the day,  I  visited Elk Neck State Park and injured my right shoulder.  The  park is located on the historic north-east shore of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. First, I wanted to see the sunrise and explore a little of the town of North East. There were thunderstorms throughout the night but they stopped shortly after   I left the Comfort Inn where I was staying.

I  drove about 3 miles to the North East Community Park .  I was hoping to  see sunrise   here. The 10 acre  park is located on a peninsula  between the the North East Creek and the historic  North East River ,  a 5 mile tidal tributary of the Chesapeake Bay.  The  area were the small town of North East is located was  inhabited by  Native American tribes and was explored by Captain John Smith in 1608.  There is a lot of history here.   It was warm, muggy and cloudy when I arrived. I walked to the Lighthouse Pavilion one of the four pavilions  in the popular park,

and  walked down to the small marina and dock. There were already a few folks walking  on the paths and trails,

and a lot of mallard ducks  and Canada geese  waddling throughout the park

or wadding  in the  bay.

There were also lots of eastern gray  squirrels  scampering through  the  park.

I walked along the water,

seeing native common evening primrose,

and New York ironweed wildflowers blooming  along the water.

I came to boardwalk  along the North East Creek where I saw a lot more mallard ducks, Canada geese and a great blue heron on  the muddy  water.

The storm clouds grew darker as they approached from the north and west. The thunder got louder   and lightning flashed in the distance.

After walking about 3/4 of  a mile the thunderstorms arrived with a torrential downpour just as I got to  my Jeep .I looked at the weather forecast  on my iPhone and it predicated the storm should pass in 15 minutes, so I waited it out in my Jeep.  The rains stopped and I walked another mile or so in the park, seeing a lot more mallard ducks , Canada geese and  American crows,

and  ring billed gulls

the crows and  gulls did not seem to be afraid of me as I approached, letting me get pretty  close,

before they flew off.

I left the park and drove to Elk Neck State Park. I learned the park was named after the large heard of native elk the first explorers saw along the nearby Elk River.  It was almost a year ago when I first visited the park and took a fall on the Beaver Marsh Loop Trail dislocating my right shoulder. This time I decided to visit  the Turkey Point Light House.  I drove the 12 miles form the town of North East and parked at the trailhead  to this almost 200 year old historic lighthouse.

Soon after I left my Jeep I  came to a  few black walnut trees on the trail,

loaded with many walnuts still  on the trees.  Black walnut trees are often found on old farm lands.  I learned that when the lighthouse was  was built in 1833  it  was remote and isolated. The lighthouse keeper lived with his/her family near the lighthouse with farm fields and livestock. There were even a few female keepers who maintained the lighthouse, a very rare occurrence over a 100 years ago.

I continued on the trail and some smelled the heavenly  aroma of ripe pawpaws.

I came to some pawpaw trees and enjoyed a few of these delicious native fruits as I walked to the lighthouse.

After about a 1/2 mile walk I came to the lighthouse. It looked a lot like the lighthouse in Havre de Grace and I learned it was designed by the same person.

I also learned that, although only 35 feet high it was the 3rd highest lighthouse above the waters of th Chesapeake Bay, because of the 100 foot bluff on which it was built.

There were a few historical markers near the light house providing  information on the historic events that took place in the area, including the early explorations of  Captain John Smith,   the  landing of General William Howe and the British army during the  Revolutionary War, and the female lightkeepers at the light house. There was also this  marker warning about the dangerous cliffs near the lighthouse.

I walked to the edge of the cliff taking in the view of the scenic and historic bay.

As I stood on the cliff I watched a steady parade of birds soaring overhead, including a ospreys,

a couple of bald eagles,

and a lot of turkey vultures.

High clouds  formed over the point creating some nice sky scenery.

I left the lighthouse and followed a steep trail down cliffs,

the trial was covered with roots and reminded me of the trail I tripped and fell on while walking to fast last year. I slowly walked down the trail where many young pawpaw trees grew.

The trial  took me down to the shore of the North East River and  Chesapeake Bay.  Here I reflected on the history of the Chesapeake Bay and the many folks who could have stood where I was, from Native Americans, the first explorers and settlors, the soldiers  in the Revolutionary  War and the War of 1812, and the countless visitors to this beautiful area.

After taking in the view I walked up a another  steep, but wider , trail, that took me through a woodland with towering mature tulip trees.

The trail looped back to the trail to the lighthouse and here I followed a trail into the  fields I walked past earlier .  There were a lot of milkweed plants now laden with seed pods,

yellow ironweed flowers,

and a lot of field  thistle still blooming in the fields.

The thistle flowers attracted a variety of butterflies including monarch butterflies,

spice bush swallowtail butterflies,

eastern tiger swallowtail butterflies and

and, I believe,   a few silvery checkerspot butterflies.

I also saw this northern flicker,

and white eyed vireo in the trees along the fields.

The clouds broke up again and I walked back to the lighthouse,

hoping to see more eagles and ospreys but  I only saw  a few crows and turkey vultures flying overhead.  I also saw a few Carolina  chickadees,

 and an eastern wood-pewee.

I then finished my 2 mile hike. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos from my hike to the the Turkey Point Light House. Elk Neck State Park, Maryland  September 3 2026.

I drove back to North East looking for a  restaurant to have some breakfast. I didn’t find any diners  so  I returned to   Woody’s Crab House where I had great meal the previous evening .  It was around 11 a.m. and the restaurant didn’t open until 11:30 a.m. so I decided to take a walk through  the streets of North East.

The  main street is a one-way  street lined with colorful, small gift shops,

businesses and

restaurants.

I  walked to a bridge over the North East Creek,

where I found a small park,

and here I saw an osprey,

and belted kingfisher perched in trees,

and some mallard ducks swimming in creek.

I walked back to the restaurant and had another great meal with another bowl of the Maryland crab chowder and a  fried cod sandwich with fresh green beans. Both were delicious.

I returned to my hotel and as I usually do on my travels, I edited photos and  rested from my morning hikes. And, as usual,  late in the afternoon, I got restless, and hungry, again, and looked for a place to hike and then eat. This time I decided to eat first then hopefully see a sunset at the Cummunity Park in North East I visited in the morning.   I drove to the nearby Tokyo Sushi restaurant, highly recommended by a few folks I met in North East. The recommendations were right, I had an excellent meal starting with a ginger salad, a bowl of seafood soup,

and a salmon  teriyaki Bento box. The food was delicious.

It was  near sunset when I finished eating.  I   drove back to the  Community Park. Once again I found it crowded with locals enjoying the  pleasant September evening.

There  were also a lot of mallard ducks and Canada geese on the waters and flying overhead.

It was a mild evening and there were still a lot of  butterflies  attracted to the wildflowers, including this  yellow tiger swallowtail. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos of the wildlife I saw in town and state park. Elk Neck State Park – North East , Maryland wildlife   September 3 2026.

Unfortunately the  clouds obscured a sunset but it was a very pleasant evening to enjoy this peaceful town  in north-east  section of the Chesapeake Bay.  I walked about a mile through the park,

and returned to my hotel. It was another  great day exploring another small part of  this  large,  wonderful world we live in.  I retired early planning on one more hike before I headed back to Northeastern Pennsylvania with some pawpaws, and  steamed blue crabs. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos from my walks in the quaint and historic town.  North East Maryland  September 3 2026.

“There is but one entrance by Sea in this County, and that is at the mouth of a very goodly Bay, 18 or 20 myles broad… Within is a country that may have the prerogative over the most pleasant place ever knowne, for large and pleasant navigable Rivers. Heaven and earth never agreed better to frame a place for man’s habitation…..”  Captain John Smith  Chesapeake Bay   1608