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Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Cambridge, MD

Photo: Jcantroot, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

Sports & OutdoorsOutdoor AdventureLocal Gem

Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge

Drive, bike or walk a marsh loop on Maryland's Eastern Shore to spot bald eagles, migrating geese and ducks.

2145 Key Wallace Dr · Cambridge, MD

About Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge

Blackwater covers more than 28,000 acres of tidal marsh, forest and water south of Cambridge, and it hosts one of the highest concentrations of nesting bald eagles on the Atlantic coast. The paved Wildlife Drive follows the Blackwater River, and you can add hiking trails and 17 miles of paddling trails. In winter the marshes fill with thousands of geese and ducks. About half the refuge lies within the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument, and the visitor center shows a live eagle cam.

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  • #bald eagles
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What's around here?

The closest stops to Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Sightseeing
    History Buff

    Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park

    No admission fee

    Learn Harriet Tubman's story at a visitor center with exhibits and a film, set in the Dorchester County landscape where she was born.

    1.1 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sightseeing
    History Buff

    Dorchester County

    No admission fee

    Maryland's Eastern Shore county centered on Cambridge and the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway.

    Transit: reachable by public transit

    8.5 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Shopping
    Local Gem

    Bay Country Antiques

    No admission fee

    A family-owned antiques shop on Dorchester Avenue in Cambridge, Maryland, selling antique and vintage furniture and collectibles.

    Transit: reachable by public transit

    8.6 mi awaySwitch it up: Shopping

  • Sports & Outdoors

    Martinak State Park

    Check prices

    A Maryland state park in Caroline County on the Choptank River, offering fishing, boating access, hiking, camping, and a nature center.

    33 mi awayMore like this

  • Sports & Outdoors

    Janes Island State Park

    No admission fee

    A Maryland state park on the Eastern Shore offering saltmarsh paddling, fishing, crabbing, camping, and access to Chesapeake Bay beaches.

    33 mi awayMore like this

  • Sports & Outdoors
    Outdoor Adventure

    Trap Pond State Park

    Under $25

    Paddle or ride a pontoon boat through the northernmost natural stand of baldcypress in the US, then bike the 4.6-mile loop around the pond.

    35 mi awayMore like this

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