Top 5 Reasons To Visit Maryland’s Waterfowl Festival

1. The Old Bay steam that drifts up from a cup of Maryland crab soup when you eat it outside under red and orange sugar maple trees in Easton’s colonial downtown square in mid-November.

2. The hot crabcakes and warm mulled cider that complement the Old Bay steam rising off of your cup of Maryland crab soup when you eat it outside in Easton’s colonial downtown square in mid-November.

3. That joy multiplied five times when you notice that every member of your family from the oldest to the youngest   (including the dog) is enjoying himself or herself just as much as you are.

4. The small-town charm of fishing derbies, painting, photography and carving workshops, a world championship goose and duck calling contest, DockDogs competitions, art galleries, live music, horse-drawn carriages, wildlife and conservation expos, oysters, local wines, and more decoys and duck-illustrated mailing stamps than you ever knew existed.

5. Not having to battle hundreds of thousands of people on the Washington D.C. metro to get a glimpse of what’s going on. And the knowledge that a free, open parking spot will be right there waiting for you when you pull in. Now that’s what I call sanity.

The 40th Annual Waterfowl Festival will take place this weekend, Friday through Sunday, November 12-14, in Easton, Maryland, a small town on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Admission is $10 for all three days (free for children under 12). For more information, to buy tickets, or to volunteer call 410-822-4567. Or visit www.waterfowlfestival.org for a full schedule of events. 

Photo: melissagrimesguyphotography.com