Maryland 2018 - Day 1

I left the house at 3:30 a.m. to get to the airport for a flight to Maryland. Yes! I was on my way to MSWF (Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival). Friends and I went to this event last year and ever since I wanted to go again. It was only at the last minute before sheep entries were due that I found that I could get a ride for my sheep (to be shown and are going to PA with a new owner) so I booked a flight for myself. I got here on Thursday afternoon and wanted to make the most of my time to see some of the country. I checked into the hotel and then got back in the car heading toward the Potomac River and the C & O (Chesapeake and Ohio) Canal.

                  I didn't want to take the main highways because I love seeing the farm country.                         I pulled over in a couple of places just long enough to get photos with my phone.                 You can't tell from this photos but that tractor is big enough that the car I'm driving could have almost gone right under it. I don't know what crop that is for.            Crossing the Potomac River. I crossed a couple of times before I found the parking area for the National Historical Park at a place called Point of Rocks. (Actually I parked elsewhere and finally found this when I started walking toward the river.)             The C & O Canal follows the Potomac River for 184 miles and was used for about 100 years as a way of transporting lumber, coal, and agricultural products.                      The bridge from below.                  I walked along the towpath for an hour or so.              Here is a tree I haven't seen before. Flowers on the pawpaw tree.                      I don't know what kind of insect this is but it is a big one.                      There are some lock houses still standing along the canal. These were houses provided to the locktenders who would be available to operate that lock 24 hours a day. This house, built in 1837,  has been fixed up and is available for rent.

                                                                 A view of the lock.

                              This photos shows the scale and proximity of the house, the canal and the railroad. Point of Rocks is famous because it is where the battle for the transportation rights played out. The mountain on one side and the river on the other left a narrow strip of land. "Both the C&O and B&O [railroad] fought in court for primary access to this “point of rocks.” The C&O won but the two companies compromised, sharing the narrow passage from here to Harpers Ferry.

There is plenty more history to learn and sites to see but I'm going to be spending the next couple of days with sheep. I will get back to this on Monday.