I went hiking today. #52hikeschallenge #mdstateparks #calvertcliffs
The Choate Mine, the largest of the chromite mines still visible.
The serpentine barrens are still recovering from the fires from two years ago.
Magnesium rich serpentine barren soil means that the ecosystem here is very specialized. Indigenous peoples used fire to drive wildlife into traps, and keep the savannah grassy. A lot of the barren in modern times has been taken over by invasive Virginia pine.
One of the smaller chromite pits. The serpentine glistens in the late afternoon sun, but that doesn't show up so well in this photo.
Today's #Hike9 of the #52HikesChallenge was at Soldier's Delight NEA. I was going to do the Choate Mine Trail. There was still ice beyond the big mine, so I did the usual Serpentine Trail across the serpentine barren, then went up the opposite end of the mine trail for the smaller pits. #ParkChat
East Beach of Sandy Point State Park in Maryland. This was the beach for "colored people" in 1952. Small, and muddy compared to the South Beach, it's also prone to rip currents in the Chesapeake Bay.
East Beach of Sandy Point State Park. The Sandy Point Shoals Lighthouse can be seen in the distance.
Dune grass on East Beach at Sandy Point State Park
The Chesapeake Bay Bridge, as seen from the East Beach at Sandy Point State Park
#Hike7 of my #52HikesChallenge was at Sandy Point State Park (so, working on my New Year Resolution too!). This MD State Park was established in 1952, but segregated. A month later, the NAACP sued to integrate. That suit failed, and a second suit won (and an appeal was refused by SCOTUS). #ParkChat
The sunken road in January snow.
Looking down towards the sunken road from the cornfield. This is part of the Bloody Lane Trail at Antietam National Battlefield
The very late afternoon sun over a field along the Sherrick Farm Trail at Antietam National Battlefield
Burnside Bridge (also known as the Lower Antietam Bridge and Rorschach Bridge) in mid-January 2025
Today's hike (Hike 3 in my #52HikesChallenge) was at Antietam National Battlefield after helping mom clean up her social media after a hacker attack. The snow makes the battlefield look very different. #ParkChat #FindYourPark