Harford County

 Harford County! This is the sign going the other way across the Route 40 Bridge.

 View of the Susquehanna from Havre de Grace where we parked the car. I had the dumb idea to park in the first spot and follow the signs, and then we ended up walking 3 miles in the blistering heat to get to the lighthouse through the residential streets. Lesson learned: keep driving until you know where your destination is. Then park.

Mary with Revolutionary War General Lafayette, known to have visited the city. Now that we have made it a stop on our tour, we are awaiting a plaque of some sort.

Walking through the town. Is it an obstetrician office, or a post office? We'll never know.

The Concord Point Lighthouse, oldest lighthouse in continuous use in the U.S. There is no lighthouse keeper anymore, as it is under automatic control, but there is a museum and the old lighthouse keeper's house.

The historic Havre de Grace sign, which basically says the British came and burned the town down, but that the locals struggled to defend it. Havre de Grace is in a very strategic location, where the Susquehanna meets the Chesapeake Bay.

The Havre de Grace promenade, which looks out on the Chesapeake Bay.

On our struggle back to the car through the streets of Havre de Grace in the brutal midday sun, we found an shop that sold homemade ice cream. Mine tasted like cake. It was super good. 

 The Ripken Stadium, where the minor league Aberdeen Ironbirds play. Since there was no game we got to drive through the VIP parking lot.

The Aberdeen Ironbirds VIP van. I'm going to call it a party van, because it looks pretty decked out, at least on the outside. 

 I have no idea what this sign actually says, all I know is that its on the road to Aberdeen Proving Grounds and this is as close as we could get without going through the military checkpoint. I was trying to be casual and touristy and taking pictures, but the thought of military intervention scared me enough so that we don't actually have pictures of the checkpoint. Fortunately there was a little cutout right before the checkpoint, so we turned around, and very casually, sped back to the highway. 

Jericho Covered Bridge near Gunpowder State Park Headquarters, as well as part of the park. It is the only covered bridge remaining in Baltimore and Harford Counties, but more importantly than that, its supposed to be haunted. I'll have to go back at night one time and verify that....

 OOOOOOO HAUNTED BRIDGE!!!!!!

 Final Thoughts: Park by the attractions, not three miles away, so you don't have to wander around in the heat. Also, stop by that ice cream place if you're ever in the area. Future Goals: Get invited to ride in Ironbirds VIP Party van. Also go to haunted bridge at night.

Cecil County

 Cecil County! This is the sign going over the Route 40 Bridge, the only official County sign we could find.

Our first stop: Hollywood Casino at Perryville

We just drove around the circle outside the casino and held up traffic. And by traffic I mean one elderly couple. The casino isn't really a hopping place on a Sunday morning.

Port Deposit

A deceptively quiet street. Everyone had a motorcycle or a boat. We felt left out as we have neither. Yet.

The Susquehanna River at the Susky River Grill, where they had good mozzarella sticks but funky music. Not good funky.

These are the steps leading up to a house on the steep hill bordering Port Deposit.

 An archway to the parking lot. Formerly Washington Hall, the first building of the Tome School, a prep school in the area.

Fortunately it was the 2nd Sunday of the month. Here we learned a lot of local Port Deposit folklore, including its history. The town is sometimes subjected to floods, courtesy of the Conowingo Dam, and also used to have large gorges where tons of ice flooded the streets. Port Deposit also has a large quarry, where a lot of granite for the foundations of nearby cities was gathered. It was also home to a large Naval training base, and they made the tunnels here for along I-95. That is a brief summary of the less controversial information we learned about Port Deposit. After this we left, as we were feeling left out without a motorcycle or a boat.

A covered bridge that is no longer connected to a road. This picture was difficult to take, because Mary had to pull over on the side of the road since we were tailgated most of the way by large trucks driven by bearded men. They did not appreciate our slowing down to view the historic signs.

The Conowingo Dam, culprit of the floods that occur in Maryland and Pennsylvania.

The Susquehanna by the dam, where the water becomes so shallow and rocky that John Smith just gave up and couldn't go any farther up the river. When he stopped he named the spot Smith Falls, but we couldn't stop because of aforementioned tailgaters. But there is a sign there.

Crossing the road at the Conowingo Hydroelectric Plant.

Entering Rising Sun, an alleged past KKK hotspot.

 Two minutes later, the Rising Sun Town Hall, as we attempt to leave Rising Sun and head west....

Final Thoughts: Cecil County is really nice if you have a boat, enjoy gambling, like granite, want to go fishing or wading in the Susquehanna, or enjoy country drives. There is a lot of beautiful land for a nice country drive.

Our Mission

Mary and I are going to tour all of Maryland's 23 counties and Baltimore City! Our plan is to take a picture of us by the county sign (we'll try to get the nice ones, not the green ones). We also plan to do something interesting, unique, and fun in each county, and then get a picture of us there. Right now we are having some trouble finding something to do in each county, so if anyone knows of something fun, especially in Baltimore County, let us know!