For someone who has lived in Western Maryland for most of his life, I had never been to the Deep Creek Lake area of Western Maryland – an oversight I happily corrected over the recent Easter weekend. 

Located in western-most Garrett County, it is Maryland’s largest fresh-water lake (fun fact – all the lakes in Maryland are man-made), covering over 3900 acres and consisting of over 65 miles of shoreline.  As one can imagine, it has year-round outdoor opportunities – swimming, boating, and fishing in the summer, leaf peeping and long hikes in the fall, or skiing and other winter pastimes when the weather turns cold.  As luck would have it, my wife and I planned our visit in the slowest season – spring.  Most of the portable boat docks were still up on the banks and there were only remnants of snow on the ski slopes.  Crowds were also low, so it was almost as if we had the whole lake area to ourselves.

Getting there was almost half the fun.  After a Friday drive west from home through the wonderfully scenic Western Maryland mountain terrain of Washington and Allegheny counties along west Route 68, we took a turn south on route 219 at Keyser’s Ridge, heading down towards the lake.  We passed through the small town of Accident, MD and made our first stop at Firefly Farms, an artisan cheese shop and specialty market on the outskirts of town.  They specialize in locally handmade cheeses and other products, and the enthusiastic and friendly staff helped us sample some wonderful varieties of goat cheese, blue cheese, and other offerings.  Picking up other fun items for a future charcuterie picnic such as duck breast prosciutto, pickled Brussels sprouts, and a nice bottle of wine, we then continued on to  our lodgings at the Lake Pointe Inn in McHenry, MD, just on the upper edge of Deep Creek Lake.

The inn is a quaint and beautiful B&B, tucked on the north shore of the lake, with a large wrap-around porch, plenty of Adirondack chairs and rocking chairs for sitting, and an overall craftsman vibe that suits the location perfectly.  A warm and friendly staff greeted us and gave us a brief property tour before showing us to our room.  Each room is uniquely appointed and named (we had the Glotfelty room), and ours featured a separate sitting area (with pass-thru gas fireplace visible from both the sitting area and bedroom), a king-sized bed, and a sumptuous bathroom with all the trimmings (including bathrobes and a cute elephant-shaped towel sculpture to greet us).  The view from our balcony framed the lake like a picture postcard, and a glance in the opposite direction gave us a stunning vista of the nearby lifts and hills of the Wisp ski resort.

After getting settled, we headed out for some local exploring to get a lay of the land for the weekend.  Continuing south on Route 219, we wound our way around and over the lake, taking in the vistas and checking out opportunities for later investigation.  We stopped in at the Arrowhead Market, a wonderful place to pick up staples, beverages, or a handmade sandwich from their large and busy deli section.  Lots of locals were also popping in for grub – a good sign for a hungry traveler.  We then headed for an early dinner and some local music at Moonshadow restaurant and bar.  We sampled some tasty small plates (tuna tartare, pork belly deviled eggs, and loaded truffle fries were our choices for this visit), had some good beer (a wonderfully spicy Mexican-inspired ale) and listened to some live music (dubbed “Appalachian Blues” and featuring lots of slide guitar) before heading back to the inn for a glass of wine in front of the fire before turning in for the night.

Saturday was a brisk morning, our alarm clock consisting of geese honking along the glassy lake.  We headed downstairs for breakfast at the inn (included in our stay) and were greeted by fresh pastries, hot coffee, and a choice of several, made-to-order offerings for our breakfast plates.  My wife enjoyed a light and veggie-filled frittata and I had eggs, toast, and sausage.  Dubbed the “GOM”, I later learned that this stood for the “Grumpy Old Man”, and to their credit, it seemed as if other gentlemen in the small dining room were also ordering the same thing, so the proprietors jokingly seem to know their clientele.

On our way out we stopped in at the small gift shop/pantry of the inn, and if one needed any additional wine, beer, or other snacks (to supplement the complimentary coffee, sodas, and water offered by the inn on all floors), one simply took the item desired and marked it down on an “honors system” pad for later tabulation and addition to the room bill.

Refreshed from breakfast and ready to take on the chilly outdoors, we drove over to Swallow Falls State Park for a morning of hiking and outdoor exercise.  We traversed the Canyon Falls trail, and easy loop (just over a mile in length) that passed by three beautiful waterfalls and wound its way through a 300-year old native hemlock forest.  Each of the falls was unique, one dropping over 53 feet into the creek below, one allowing hikers to scramble out over the flat rocks to gaze over the precipice into the churning white water, and one tucked deep into the lush understory of trees and foliage.  Dappled rays of morning sunlight dropped beams of warmth down to the forest floor, adding to the ethereal beauty of the landscape around us, and as we were there in the morning, the trails were relatively empty and we generally had each one of the falls to ourselves.

Following our hike, we headed back to the inn for some downtime, quiet reading, lakeside chair sitting, and some early afternoon naps (I can’t recommend this enough on a long weekend).  We then enjoyed a lazy afternoon sampling our charcuterie larder (picked up the day before) with some wine while gazing out at the water from our room before heading out for more exploring.

We first stopped off at Honi-Honi, a tropical-themed oasis along the shoreline.  While I can only imagine what this place is like during the height of summer, we had our drinks in an empty bar and uninhabited outdoor patio.  Still, the drinks were tasty and we enjoyed the time and conversation.

We then made our way up the road to Firewater Kitchen and Bar, where we sampled some wonderful craft cocktails, interacted with an exceptional staff, and again enjoyed some small plates (this time it was “Old Bay” deviled eggs, soft pretzels and queso, and some blistered Shishito peppers with lemon aoli dipping sauce).  We then followed that up by sharing a tasty “smash” burger, but the menu also featured higher-end fare such as braised short ribs, sea scallops, and shrimp, pork belly, or wild mushroom-filled Bao buns.  For us, small plates and appetizers seem to suit us better on these road trips, as the menu selections tend to be more interesting and unique.  The atmosphere at Firewater was top notch, the views of the lake were amazing, and the bar staff made the evening unforgettable.  Then it was back to the inn for another nightcap in front of the fireplace before calling our day complete.

Our last morning was again greeted by clear skies, abundant sunshine, a wonderful breakfast at the inn, and a leisurely Easter Sunday drive eastward towards home.  We hated to leave Deep Creek, and can’t wait to come back again to see it in another “season” – hopefully with some friends in tow on our next go-round.