Meandering Along New/Old Chesapeake:

"You just make a left out of the parking lot of the Rod N Reel onto Rt. 261. It's about a mile, give or take. Go past the Beach Elementary School. At the bottom of the second hill on your right, you'll see a dirt road... w-ell, it will be a mud road if it's been raining... Pull in and park off to one side. Then grab your towel, sneakers -trust me, you'll want sneakers for this trek- and head off down the path, about half a mile to the beach." See 'em? You mean you can't see them? Million-year-old fossilized shark teeth wash up here all day long. Okay, look. Reach down and scoop up a pile of sand and shells at the break shore line. See those tiny thin opaque-black horseshoe shaped shells? THAT'S THEM! We're in Calvert Cliffs State Park, in Southern Maryland, outside the town of Chesapeake Beach, off Rts. 2 and 4. Marine biologists have determined that the area was formed under shallow warm ocean water at least 15 million years ago. Over 600 species of fossils have been identified here, mainly the teeth of various shark species, and whale and porpoise vertebrae. Now, millions of years later, the ocean that once covered this area has retreated and what once was sea bottom is now exposed in the cliff face. Most of the fossils found on the beach have been washed down from the eroding crags and are continually brought back up from the sea. About two dozen kinds of sea mammals have been identified, including sperm and whalebone whales, shark-toothed porpoise, river dolphins and sea cow bones also are found. Fossils of early land animals --teeth of mastodon-- have been discovered, which became scientists' first known appearance of mastodon in North America. The bounty is so plentiful, that Park Officials and Marine Biologists don't mind if you take a sampling of fossils with you. Chesapeake Beach has that sleepy early American hometown aura, with authentic Main Street shops and diners. Its active community of commercial fishermen, bait and tackle shops and charter boat operators keep its waterfront from becoming an affected chain store promenade. Instead, visitors encounter a simple beachfront promenade with crabbing and fishing piers, a main street donning long-standing independent stores filled with necessary staples. In the late 1800s, a railroad system was launched by ambitious developers, and Chesapeake Beach became a thriving resort community, and cruise port for Washingtonians in 1899. The resort thrived, with exclusive hotels and a lively boardwalk with a bandstand, performing bears, games of chance, a carousel, casino, theaters, and many restaurants. Surrounding the boardwalk were beachfront hotels, a race track, casino, bathhouse, and the glorious salt-water beaches. Then, the railway ceased in 1930 due to the depression, and the main rail lines bypassed the shore communities, Chesapeake Beach was all but forgotten. Just recently, the town has rebuilt a small "memorial" boardwalk, and nearby is a children's water park. When you visit, bring home some ancient sharks teeth. But, residents beg, leave only footprints behind you. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Enchanting Chesapeake-frontage towns like this are legendary bastions of early colonist, civil war and maritime history.... -- - - - - - -