5 St Michaels &
Tilghman Island
Tiny St Michaels has
evolved into a tourism-
oriented town, but for
centuries this village
was known for building
some of the best boats
in the country. Later,
this became a waterman
community, and many
watermen still set out
from the local docks.
If you want to learn
about these watermen,
their community and
the local environment,
head to the lighthouse
and the Chesapeake
Bay Maritime Museum
(%410-745-2916; http://www.cbmm.
org; 213 N Talbot St; adult/child
$13/6; h9am-6pm summer;
c), which delves into
the deep ties between
Shore folk and America’s
largest estuary.
When those Shore
folk work the water,
they are often joined
by the Rebecca T Ruark
(%410-829-3976; http://www.
skipjack.org; 2hr cruises adult/
child $30/15), one of the
last surviving skipjacks
on the Bay. Skipjacks
are sail-powered oyster
dredgers; there’s a real
art to the way they work
the breeze and the Bay
floor simultaneously, and
it makes for fascinating
viewing.
The Ruark sails out of
Tilghman Island, an even
smaller, quieter town
than St Michaels, where
many come to arrange
fishing and huntingPHILIP SCALIA/ALAMY ©
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