Solomons, MD: Cove Point Lighthouse

Yesterday we took a trip down south with my high school friend Robbie to a little island town near where his fiance lives. He had mentioned showing us around sometime last year and we realized we ought to get on that before we leave! So we took pretty much all day yesterday to travel about an hour and a half from where we live to Solomons, MD. We went to two lighthouses, a museum, a winery, walked around the island, and met up with his fiance for dinner at Solomon's Pier. One of the lighthouses we visited was Cove Point Lighthouse. If you drive into Solomons on Route 2/4, you'll pass the exit for this before you get to the main part of town, around 4-5 miles out. 

Cove Point looks pretty much exactly like Ocracoke Lighthouse in North Carolina and also like a bunch of ones we saw in Maine. Luckily this one isn't really in anyone's backyard. It's the last actually working lighthouse in Maryland, manned by the Coast Guard. The light was on and rotating while we were there. 

You aren't allowed to go up the stairs (for good reason-they need some maintenance), but you could take a peek inside. 

We got lucky and had a gorgeous day. Cove Point sits on the Chesapeake, very close to the water. So close they are constantly worried about erosion and there's a concrete seawall around the whole thing. It's free to visit this lighthouse, and there is a little visitor's center with a funny old lady working who, I kid you not, told us the lighthouse was still manned "in case any o' those al queda terrorists come up the bay on a weekend". It was the funniest thing that has ever been spoken while at a lighthouse. We are not completely sure if she was making a joke, but it was awesome.