Sinepuxent Bay — the island's calm, shallow back side, opposite the surf. A crabbing, clamming, and paddling water, and the horses' pantry.
We talk a lot about the ocean out here, but glance off to your right, toward the mainland, and you'll see the island's quieter half: the bay. Sinepuxent Bay on this stretch — a wide, shallow, protected lagoon tucked behind the island, and a completely different world from the pounding surf on the other side.
The bay is warm, calm, and mostly only a few feet deep — you could wade a long way out. That makes it perfect for the slow pleasures: paddling a kayak along the marsh edge, wading for clams, or dropping a line with a chicken neck to catch blue crabs, which is about the most Maryland thing a person can do. The shallow water heats up in the sun and turns the whole bay into a giant nursery for crabs and young fish.
Here's the thing about a barrier island — it always has these two faces. A wild, dangerous ocean side that faces the storms, and a gentle, sheltered bay side that faces home. The horses know it: when the greenhead flies get bad or a storm blows in off the sea, they drift over to the bay side to graze the marsh and cool off in the shallows. Two coasts, one thin island, and only a few hundred yards of sand between them.
Photo: Acroterion · CC BY-SA 4.0
