Baltimore was our next, and final, stop on our East Coast spring trip.  Visiting friends, we began our stay with lunch at Liquid Earth. Featuring fresh juices, they also serve vegetarian sandwiches.  My meal began with an Orange Pearrot – orange, carrot and pear juice.  I had a Rueben, something vegans do not get served often.  The rye bread was super fresh and warm.

We then went to yet another National Park Site, Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine.  Our friends, who have lived in the city for a while, had not really explored Fort McHenry before.  The fort itself is well preserved, and very busy!  Many people were taking advantage of the spring day to wander along the seawall and picnic on the vast lawns.  Families had their kids and dogs out for a nice day on the harbor.  We wandered through the fort itself, reading the information on Francis Scott Key – during the War of 1812 the flag flying over this fort after the Battle of Baltimore was the inspiration for The Star Spangled Banner.  Fort McHenry has a much longer history than just the War of 1812 though.  It was built in 1776 and transferred to the National Park Service in 1933.  It saw much conflict and generations of soldiers.  Our last spot for the day was Hampton National Historic Site in Towson.  Preserved for its Georgian mansion, Hampton was a thriving estate in the 1800’s.  The grounds are beautiful, and we were able to meander on some of the paths before calling it a day.  We sadly arrived too late to tour the inside of the mansion, so we will have to return!

On our way home the following day, we decided to make one last stop – Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. This fun little town is preserved and you can walk the streets as they were generations ago.  This is also a big stop on the Appalachian Trail, since the Appalachian Trail Conservancy headquarters are located here.  For those hiking the AT, it represents the halfway point.  They can get their photo added to the albums of hikers, and the ATC keeps those photos, so you can search for someone who hiked in a specific year.  As we renewed our membership, we had a great chat with the volunteer working in the visitors center.  Since we both dream of hiking the AT someday, it was a nice inspiration to look through the pictures on the walls and for me to purchase yet another published trail journal – since I read them frequently.

All in all, we visited eleven National Park Sites in a week!