Wye Island Natural Resource Management Area

Eastern Shore


This small, marshy island encapsulates much of the soft-focus beauty of the Eastern Shore. It's all miles of gently waving sawgrass and marsh prairie, intercut with slow blackwater and red inlets leeching tannins from the thick vegetation. Six miles of easy, flat trails run through the NRMA, weaving under hardwood copses and over rafts of wetland flora. The interlacing tide pools and waterways look like a web, especially in the morning sun.

Keep an eye out for bald eagles, osprey, white-tailed deer and red foxes.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Eastern Shore attractions

1. Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum

8.23 MILES

Throughout its indoor-outdoor exhibits, the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum delves into the deep ties between Shore folk and America's largest estuary…

2. Cannonball House

8.55 MILES

This was the only house in St Michaels that was hit during the War of 1812. According to lore, a cannonball bounced off the chimney, barreled through a…

3. US Naval Academy

19.27 MILES

The undergraduate college of the US Navy is one of the most selective universities in America. The Armel-Leftwich Visitor Center is the place to book 75…

4. Kunta Kinte–Alex Haley Memorial

19.35 MILES

Beside City Dock, the Kunta Kinte–Alex Haley Memorial marks the spot where Kunta Kinte – ancestor of Roots author Alex Haley – was brought in chains from…

5. William Paca House & Garden

19.44 MILES

Take a tour (offered hourly on the half hour) through this Georgian mansion for insight into 18th-century life for the upper class in Maryland. Don't miss…

6. US Naval Academy Museum

19.47 MILES

Preble Hall contains the US Naval Academy Museum, which traces the history of the US Navy, with a central exhibit area dedicated to the history and…

7. Hammond Harwood House

19.5 MILES

Of the many historical homes in town, the Hammond Harwood House, dating from 1774, is the one to visit. It has a superb collection of decorative arts,…

8. Maryland State House

19.59 MILES

The country's oldest state capitol in continuous legislative use, the grand 1772 State House also served as national capital from 1783 to 1784. Notably,…