Rail Western Maryland
Top 10 Cumberland Maryland Travel Ideas
Cumberland Maryland, nestled in the “Narrows” of the Western Maryland mountainside, is an up and coming travel destination for those looking for exciting dining, shopping, sightseeing, arts, theatre and outdoor activities. A quaint and historic city, Cumberland, also known as the “Queen City”, has a rich history stretching back to early American history; at one time a stronghold for Union forces during the American Civil War and later evolving into a major industrial and transportation hub. Once the second largest city in Maryland (after Baltimore), Cumberland went into a period of decline as industries closed, jobs were lost and the city had to reinvent itself. Now, Cumberland is a vibrant urban center enjoying a renaissance in part due to a growing arts, theatre and tourism community. In addition, Cumberland has become a destination for outdoor enthusiasts anchored by a the cities geographical position at the center the Great Allegheny Passage biking and hiking trails which connects Washington, DC to Pittsburgh, PA. The growing popularity of biking on the trail has seen a niche support industry born in the area catering to the needs of outdoor enthusiasts looking for tours, hiking and biking equipment as well as related supplies. Beyond tourism, which is arguably becoming Cumberland’s next major industry, the region is also a growing hub for medical care, is the seat of the Allegany County Government and is home to many regional businesses based in the downtown and surrounding area. Cumberland Maryland Things to Do Cumberland Maryland is rich in options that can suit any taste, budget or lifecycle. The Cumberland region offers all the amenities including first class hotels, spas, golf courses, outdoor adventures, shopping, dining and culture. Spend a day or stay a week just to try and explore it all.
- Visit an Art Gallery or Museum. In addition to traditional Art Museums, Cumberland now offers first class art galleries displaying works from local, regional and national artists. At last count more than 20 galleries displaying visual art call the Cumberland region their home. Baltimore Street in Downtown Cumberland is the hub of the local art scene but galleries can also be found along its side streets, at Canal Place and in the nearby college town of Frostburg. The Saville Gallery, operated by the Allegany Arts Council, is located in downtown Cumberland and displays a wide variety of artwork including photography, painting, ceramics and more. Call 301-777-2787 for more information and schedules.
- Buy tickets and enjoy an evening of theatre. Don’t be surprised if you see some Broadway type shows such as Fiddler on the Roof or a Neil Simon comedy stop in town. Of the three traditional marquee front type venues in downtown alone, the Cumberland Theatre hosts professional casts performing drama, comedies and musicals scheduled June through December. Call 301-759-4990 for more information. Also check out what is playing at the Palace Theatre or the New Embassy Theatre as well as at the area’s half dozen or more performing arts arenas. During the summer months many outdoor performing arts events are presented downtown and at Canal Place.
- Go on a history kick. History abounds at every turn and alleyway as you explore Cumberland Maryland. For the history buff at heart, visit the single log cabin that was George Washington’s headquarters located on Greene Street a short walk from downtown. There are many museums to choose from, themselves hosted in historic buildings and former grand residences, offering an abundance of views into Cumberland’s past. Recently relocated to Baltimore Street in downtown Cumberland is the Allegany County Museum. Explore the many exhibits highlighting Cumberland’s past industrial, transportation and cultural history. Canal Place is a good starting point to get oriented and offers historical markers and information throughout the complex. The National Park’s Visitor Center, located on the 1st floor of the Western Maryland Railway Station at Canal Place, offers maps, brochures and additional information about sites in the area.
- Bike the C&O Canal and Great Allegany Passage. People from all over now come to the Cumberland region to enjoy the hundreds of miles of biking trails and paths. The most popular trail is the Great Allegheny Passage which marks the transition from the C&O Canal tow path to the rail trail section of the passage. Experience the beauty and sights riding through the Narrows, Helmstetter’s Curve, Bone Cave and Brush Tunnel as you make your way between Cumberland and Frostburg. Many local businesses offer tours, guides and bike rentals.
- Shop until you drop. Whether its window shopping or you’re on a mission to buy out the town, Cumberland Maryland will not disappoint. Antiques, keepsakes and collectables are almost a natural resource in this region and as a result you can find an antique or collectables store at almost every corner. Explore the side streets off Baltimore Street in downtown Cumberland as well as the main drag in Frostburg. If you’re looking for more modern items; art stores, souvenirs and clothing boutiques abound. Country Club Mall in La Vale serves up the national chain names to round off your shopping excursion. Visit explorecumberland.com/shop to view a list of local businesses and shops.
- Dine Al Fresco on Baltimore Street. Whether it is Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner, dining outdoors on Baltimore Street and watching people walk by is the entire rave. The Baltimore Street pedestrian walkway creates a pedestrian friendly corridor on what was once the town’s busy main street. Enjoy the landscaping, water fountains and regularly scheduled entertainment and events as you dine at the popular Manhattan, City Lights or Oxford House restaurants just to name a few of the many options. Beyond Baltimore Street many dining options from casual, national chains, fast food and pub fare are also available. Visit explorecumberland.com/eat to view a list of restaurants in the Cumberland area.
- Take the Western Maryland Railroad to Frostburg. Make it a round trip or bring your bike onboard and return on your own wheels on an exciting downhill bike ride back to Cumberland via the Great Allegany Passage. As soon as you enter the restored terminal you will be brought back in time to when the train travel was the backbone of the nation’s transportation system. The Western Maryland Railroad brings you back to the day of steam engines and its role on moving people west and beyond. Enjoy the scenic mountain beauty of winding and weaving through the Narrows up to Frostburg. Choose from many different packages and options including First Class car Lunch or Dinner, Rail to Trail packages and Murder Mysteries. Enjoy lunch and shopping in Frostburg and then watch the train spin around a large rotating platter to prepare for its return trip to Cumberland.
- Take a day trip. Cumberland Maryland is an excellent launching point to plan trips to sites and cities not too far away . Make a day of it to drive to Washington, DC, Baltimore, MD or Pittsburgh, PA, all within 130 miles and only 2.5 hours away! Checkout the college town of Frostburg, offering a quaint downtown area lined with shops, restaurants and art galleries. Head out to Deep Creek Lake, the areas playground, and enjoy boating and water sports in the warm months or skiing in the winter. Civil war buffs visit the Antieum Battlegrounds or check out the attractions just over the border on Pennsylvania such as the coral caves, nemacolin and many other national parks.
- Go Camping. Pitch a tent, hike the trails and enjoy the great outdoors. Only miles from the urban yet quaint hustle and bustle of downtown Cumberland exists the natural beauty of state parks, lakes, rivers and campgrounds. Green Ridge State Forest in Flintstone, MD is just a few exits from Cumberland yet a world away. The public park offers biking trails, hiking, canoeing and kayaking on the Potomac River. The nearby Hidden Springs Campgrounds offer full hookups and many amenities. Other parks and camping sites nearby include Rocky Gap State Park, Allegany Fairgrounds and Little Orleans Campground and Park Area.
- Become a local. See a High School football game, eat a hot dog, and bring a lawn chair to downtown Cumberland’s popular Friday’s After Five festivities. There is nothing better when visiting a new destination then to experience it as a local. Cumberland loves its local sports scene, visit in the fall and attend a High School Football game to watch Fort Hill High School take on cross town rival Allegany High School. Eat where the locals eat? Visit Curtis’s Coney Island Wieners on North Centre Street in downtown for a hot dog with a secret meat sauce to die for. Check out D’Atris Restaurant in La Vale and order a cheese steak sub, like no sub you will find anywhere else. Every Friday in the summer starting at five, bring your lawn chair and find a good spot to take in the scene while enjoying musical performances, outdoor vendors, food and, most important, cold beer that can be bought at the event.
Whether it’s an outdoor adventure, soaking up the art scene, becoming a local for the day or just enjoying a relaxing dinner, Cumberland Maryland offers something for everyone’s taste and budget. Visit ExploreCumberland.com where you can plan and even book your next trip to Cumberland Maryland online.
About the Author
Lee Ginsberg is the founder of explorecumberland.com, a site dedicated to promote and market Cumberland Maryland tourism. ExploreCumperland.com is a member of the warpsite.com family of directory and information sites.
Rail Western Maryland
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Howl Aboard! Let a Spooky Halloween Train Ride Spirit You Away
Booo... chooo... chooooooo... there's an eerie express on the horizon... it's a haunted Halloween train ride... trolling down a track near you!
Halloween train rides are super, natural choices for celebrating the year's spookiest season. Trains are as varied as the ghosts that haunt them, from quaint narrow-gauge steam trains to diesel-powered streamliners. Pumpkin trains head out into sun-baked fields, their passengers in pursuit of the perfect jack-o-lantern. Party trains assemble a masked mob of witches, warlocks, super heroes and storybook characters to compete for best costume prizes. Night trains venture down isolated rail beds and through shadowy landscapes lit only by the light of the moon.
Among the range of Halloween themed trains, trick-or-treating and haunted house excursions are favorites. Unique rides featuring on-train dining and murder mystery performances are not uncommon. And pick-your-own-pumpkin excursions are always full. In any event, costumes are always encouraged.
Conjuring up a Halloween train ride event in your area doesn't require a lot of hocus pocus. Scenic and heritage railways offering hosting Spook-tacular celebrations can be found in dozens of states. The 2009 guide to Halloween train rides (http://www.traintraveling.com/events/halloween-trains), posted on TrainTraveling.com, features an extensive list of such railways.
Western U.S.A.
Hollywood-style magic cranks up the Halloween mojo at railways across the Western U.S.
Among the country's dozens of pumpkin trains, Peanuts™ The Great Pumpkin Patch Express Train events are standouts. Both, the Texas State Railroad and Colorado's Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad host Great Pumpkin trains. Highlights include meet and greet opportunities with Peanuts stars Charlie Brown, Lucy and Snoopy -- plus train rides and the chance to choose a pumpkin straight from the patch (the Peanuts crew makes an additional appearance in North Carolina, see below).
In California, the "Home of the Movie Trains" stages a blockbuster Halloween bash. The Golden State's Fillmore & Western Railway rounds out its Headless Horseman excursions with an old-fashioned hay ride and BBQ feast.
Not for the faint of heart, Idaho's Thunder Mountain Line plays host to the scary Wild West Haunted Express; destination: nowhere! After sunset, Utah's Heber Valley Railroad disappears into the haunted recesses of Provo Canyon.
Midwestern U.S.A.
Railways across America's heartland treat Halloween merrymakers to a cauldron of dire delights and frightful fun.
There's fun for everyone at the Walled Lake Scenic Railway. The Michigan railway's age-appropriate Halloween calendar features scary Moonlight Ghost Trains for adults and older kids, plus nightmare-free Hobo Halloween Express Trains for the little ones. Across the state, ghosts and goodies are in store for visitors to the Crossroads Village and Huckleberry Railroad, in Flint. Doughnuts, cider and more await trick-or-treating train passengers who make their way door-to-door through the 19th century heritage site.
The Midwest Central Railroad's Ghost Train of No Return shares billing with Old Threshers' Midwest Electric Railway's Ghostly Trolley to offer Iowans a night of Haunted Rails. When the Indiana Railway Museum rolls out its Legend of the Lost Train event, goblins chase the French Lick Scenic Railway's train through a ghostly forest and into a haunted tunnel.
Southern U.S.A.
For Halloween train lovers across the Southern U.S., North Carolina's Blue Ridge holds the charm, with celebrations hosted by two separate mountain railroads. At the Smoky Mountain Railroad, Charlie Brown and the gang will be on board The Great Pumpkin Patch Express to welcome Halloween merrymakers who come for train rides, hay rides and to take home a pumpkin.
The Blue Ridge is also home to what is, arguably, America's premiere spooky-season destination: the Tweetsie Railroad Ghost Train Halloween Festival. The month-long event attracts enthusiastic crowds with a range of attractions including train rides, a haunted house, a "freaky forest" and much more!
In Kentucky, Big South Fork Scenic Railway runs both Haunted Hollow Express Trains for big kids and Trick or Treat Trains for tots.
Northeastern U.S.A.
Railways in the Northeast U.S. offer up a range of chilling choices.
Big Apple residents and visitors need only hop a Metro North train to Sleepy Hollow where a string of pre-Halloween events celebrate the Headless Horseman. From Boston, Salem-bound MBTA Commuter Rail passengers get to join in the town's month-long Haunted Happenings celebrations.
Rolling over track that crosses the site of a former cemetery, the Connecticut Trolley Museum's Rails to the Darkside takes passengers on a scary ride into the night. A daytime Pumpkin Patch Train gives folks the chance to select a pumpkin fresh from the field.
New Jersey's Black River & Western Railroad is home to the Crazy Train Maze at Pumpkin Junction, a Halloween triple-play that combines a train ride with opportunities to buy a pumpkin and to get lost in a 10-acre pumpkin field maze -- accessible only by train. In Maryland, the Walkersville Southern Railroad transforms its popular Murder Mystery Dinner Train into an adult's only Halloween Costume Party on wheels.
Ready to Go
Halloween events calendars vary with a number of railways limiting Halloween trips to the last weekend in October. Many, however -- including those highlighted in the preceding paragraphs -- host special Halloween events on selected days throughout the month. The TrainTraveling.com website features a complete 2009 guide to Halloween train rides (http://www.traintraveling.com/events/halloween-trains).
Not all trains are appropriate for all ages and some Halloween events may be deemed too frightening for younger children. Check with individual railways in advance to verify age restrictions and warnings. In cases of inclement weather, train ride events incorporating outdoor activities, may be altered, postponed or cancelled. Advance reservations are generally advisable and required in many instances. Remember to dress appropriately: many Halloween trains operate at higher altitudes or after sunset in conditions where colder temperatures may prevail.
About the Author
Michael Gleason publishes TrainTraveling.com, a passenger rail travel and tourism guide for commuters and tourists in Europe, North America and worldwide.