Wildlife along the Trail

Wildlife along the Trail. Chesapeake Beach Railway Trail. , During the summer months, white-tailed deer can be seen eating along the creek in the early morning or late afternoon. Deer are good swimmers and can run at up to 30 miles per hour., You may get a chance to see a river otter along the trail. River otters can weigh up to 10 pounds and grow up to 40 inches long., Since the mink and muskrat are both nocturnal your chances of meeting one of these two animals are not as good. The mink can grow to be up to two feet long and is a natural predator of the muskrat. Adult muskrat weigh 2 to 4 pounds and measure 1 1/2 to 2 feet long. They are aggressive animals; fighting often occurs with families that share a den., Human encroachment and pollution reduce the size of the habitat available to these animals. These mammals are also in danger when they find their way to roadways where they can be hit by passing cars., Steamer Dreamland arriving at Chesapeake Beach, Maryland , Steamboats brought passengers to the beach resort from Baltimore. Over the years, a number of different steamships served the resort. During the earliest period of the 1900s; the Weems Line ran ships to Chesapeake Beach. The Dreamland, pictured here, brought visitors to the Beach from 1909 until 1925. Several other steamers, including The State of Delaware, The Dixie, and the BayBelle line served the resort from 1930 until the early 1940s. The steamship era came to an end when the ships stopped operating during the early years of World War II. For more historical information, please visit the Chesapeake Beach Railway Museum.