Pocomoke River State Park and Forest August 2000

Some years back, I picked up a brochure on the Pocomoke River on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Although the brochure was lost long ago, the images of canoists making their way down the picturesque Pocomoke intrigued me and lingered in the back of my mind since. This year, when deciding on a vacation spot, our family decided to give Pocomoke River State Park a try. Specifically, we camped at the Shad Landing camping area. (Milburn Landing, a little further south, offers camping without many of the ammenities offered at Shad Landing.)

Shad Landing is located on Route 113, a few miles south of the town of Snow Hill in Worcester County and encompasses almost 15,000 acres of wooden land. Besides the obvious camping opportunities, the campground is a good base from which to take in the various sights on the Eastern Shore. Shad Landing is within a short drive from a number of other attractions. There is no shortage of things to do and see. This was ideal for our family; there was something of interest to everyone. Plus, it was an easy trip to get there -- just four hours from our home in southeastern Pennsylvania.

Favorite Sites The sites in the Acorn Trail and Deer Run loops have electric hookups: Acorn Trail Loop: 7, 8, 13, 14, 20, 29 Deer Run Loop: 101, 107, 108, 111, 115

This was the first time we have camped in a Maryland State Park and we were quite impressed. In general, the sites were large and well maintained. In the two loops with electric hookups, the sites are heavily wooded with level pads. Each site has a fire ring, table, and another small table for cooking with a built-in pole for hanging a lantern. Nice touch. The restrooms were clean and well-maintained.

The Park's marina offers canoe, kayak, and motor boat rentals at reasonable prices. On several days, I rented a kayak for five dollars an hour (four dollars an hours with a coupon received at check-in.) I also rented a 14-foot jon boat with a 5 HP motor for ten dollars an hour. Longer term rentals are also available.

The camp store has some nice souvenier items (T-shirts, hats, coffee cups, etc.) along with essential food and camping supplies. The campstore didn't have any fire wood but a farmer a mile north on Route 113 sells it for five dollars per pallet. A 5-day Chesapeake Bay Sport Fishing License (needed to fish the Pocomoke and connecting creeks) is available at the camp store for six dollars. The park also features a swimming pool (two dollars for campers), a nature center, and a nature trail.

On week days, the park was empty. We had several empty sites on either side of our site on the Acorn Trail. That made for a very quiet and relaxing week. The mosquitoes can be abundant in the morning and evening hours. Be sure to bring plenty of bug spray and you'll be fine. (We found Off Skintastic to be pretty effective against these little critters.) Another interesting feature was the nightly visit from dozens of toads out looking for bugs to eat.