Rediscovering America_ Exploring the Small Towns of Virginia & Maryland - Bill Burnham [138]
Pet-friendly: Walnut Ridge B&B takes dogs only (no cats) in their cabin, but not in the main house. Add a $10 charge and be sure to have a copy of up-to-date vaccinations. Inside the main house are two guest rooms and a suite, with either a fireplace or a kitchen. There’s even a player piano in the parlor. Outside there’s a hot tub, gazebo, gardens and porch swings. (92 Main Street, tel. 888-419-2568, www.walnutridge.net, $$)
Information
Greater Grantsville Business Association, tel. 301-895-3332, www.grantsvillemd.com.
Garrett County Chamber of Commerce, tel. 301-387-4386, www.garrettchamber.com.
Events
The Spruce Forest Artisan Village hosts summer music series Saturdays at 7:30 pm, June-September, ranging from chamber music to Celtic, a bluegrass concert series and a summer festival and quilt show. (www.musicatpennalps.org)
Oakland & Deep Creek Lake
Around Town
Fishing, sightseeing and hiking take visitors far afield in Garrett County, Maryland’s mountainous western county. But historic Oakland, where Garrett County life revolves around small shops and services, keeps drawing them back.
We spent an afternoon browsing shops on Second Street in Oakland’s historic district. Set off the main highway, the district is easily overlooked by hasty travelers looking for jet-ski rentals on nearby Deep Creek Lake. To miss this would be a shame. From old-fashioned street lamps flutter bright-colored banners declaring this “A Great Small Town.” All the proof you need is found at the soda fountain on the corner of Second and Alder streets.
We weren’t in the purchasing mood, but the town’s book store, men’s shop (in business since 1939), and handful of antiques shops and boutiques were stroll-worthy. The Garrett County Historical Society Museum houses a Victorian surrey, an 1873 hotel gazebo, and an extensive genealogical library. We were drawn to the museum by an array of local history books displayed in the window that tell the story of loggers, railroads and ghosts. The museum volunteer kept us enthralled with tales of Henry Ford and his Detroit buddies who vacationed in the surrounding state parks. (Open May-December, Monday-Saturday. 11 am-4 pm; free admission. tel. 301-334-3226)
Then we headed out into Garrett County for some adventure in the mountains and waters north of Oakland where some truly unique sights await.
Deep Creek Lake
When the Heise family opened the Will o’ the Wisp Motel, they made only $14 during their first month. That was February, 1950. Looking for new ways of attracting winter visitors, they opened a ski resort. Their efforts solidly planted this area in the “four season” resort category.
Deep Creek Lake’s 65 miles of shoreline today are packed with vacation homes, resorts and condos. Still, the area retains much of that 1950s family atmosphere and charm. There’s lots of shopping, from local crafts to antiques, fishing and boating on the lake, rafting the “Upper Yough” (short for Youghiogheny; the short form is pronounced “Yock” and the full name is “YOCK-a-gany”) river, golf, skiing, biking or horseback riding.
About 10 miles north of Oakland via Herrington Manor Road, are two state parks. The first thing you notice about Swallow Falls State Park (tel. 301-334-9180 or 301-387-6938) is the deafening roar of the Youghiogheny River. The next thing you notice is the marked stillness when you leave the river and enter a virgin stand of hemlock, a rarity in this part of the country. The park encompasses two falls – the park’s namesake, and the even more spectacular, 63-foot high Muddy Creek Falls, one of the highest in Maryland. Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone and Thomas Edison used to camp at the base of the falls on their early SUV excursions in Model Ts. Hiking trails lead from the park to the very edge of the falls (dogs are allowed only on the trail on the opposite side of the river from the park). There’s camping,