The Pocomoke River originates in the Great Cypress Swamp on the
Maryland-Delaware border and flows 55 miles through Maryland before
it empties into the Pocomoke Sound at the Chesapeake Bay four miles
south of here. Its total length is 73 miles.
About 400 feet wide on average below Snow Hill, the depth of the
Pocomoke ranges from 7 to 45 feet, averaging about 15 feet.
According to the Earth Mapping Laboratory at the University of
Maryland Eastern Shore, “For its width, it is the deepest
river in the United States. It is the second deepest in the world,
next to the Nile.”
Local tradition says that the word “Pocomoke” is an
Indian word that means “black water”. Its tea color,
characteristic of cypress swamps, comes from the tannic acid in the
roots and decaying leaves of trees and plants that line the
banks.
Upstream from this location the river passes cypress swamps and
then forests, fields and several communities. The swiftly flowing
tidal waters tend to erode those banks and return here bearing
sediment from erosion and agricultural areas.
Here the shorelines are predominately marshy wetlands, which
tend to absorb the energy and diffuse the velocity of the flowing
water, and collect water-borne sediment in such a way as to nullify
the expected erosion.
Data shows that the visible shorelines change very little
through here. In 1975 researchers described wetlands as "nature's
counterpart to bulkheads, groins, and revetments for erosion
abatement in areas not subject to direct ocean exposure"
On the other hand, the transported sediment primarily tends to
collect four miles from here where the river reaches the Chesapeake
Bay and create a muddy shoal officially listed as "The Muds".
In the late 19th Century it became increasingly difficult to
keep a channel dredged to allow steamboats and large schooners to
enter the river for commerce, so in the 1930's a canal was created
just above the shoal.
In spite of legislation and improved agricultural and
construction methods, enough sediment is transported to require
regular maintenance of the canal necessary for commercial and
recreational boats to safely enter the river.
More than 27 species of mammals, 29 of reptiles, 14 of
amphibians, and 172 of birds have been seen in the wetlands
bordering the river, and 72 families of plant life have been
identified.
A descriptive sign explains the reconstruction of the parking
area to protect the river and the surrounding habitat from
stormwater runoff.
In the past, before the improvements, it was quite common to see
an oily sheen on the water, and an ugly high water mark on nearby
structures and marsh plants. Some of this may have resulted from
careless boatmen pumping their bilges, or spillage, but much of it
could be blamed on rain washing the petroleum products leaked by
parked vehicles into the river and nearby marsh.
In order to prevent this, the parking area and the adjacent
marsh were reconstructed, incorporating features proven to enhance
the river’s water quality and improve the wildlife
habitat.
Student volunteers from Pocomoke High School planted 950 native
plants and trees as part of the plan to preserve our scenic
Pocomoke River for future generations.
TO CLAIM A FIND YOU MUST:
Send us an email with the answers to the following
questions:
FROM THE TEXT:
a) How long is the Pocomoke River?
b) According to the Earth Mapping Laboratory at the University of
Maryland Eastern
Shore, “For its ________ , the river is the
_______________________________”.
FROM THE DESCRIPTIVE SIGN:
c) Name the two distinct areas that filter the stormwater
runoff.
d) Name the three layers that the polluted stormwater flows
through.
e) On the descriptive sign are pictures of six native plants and
trees. Look around you
and list as many of them as you can see.
OPTIONAL BUT NOT REQUIRED: We’d enjoy seeing a
picture of you with your GPS (or just your GPS) and the
interpretive sign, but please be sure that your picture does not
reveal the wording on the sign!
SPOILER LOGS OR PICTURES WILL BE DELETED!
For more information:
http://www.visitworcester.org
http://www.dnr.state.md.us
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/ed/casestudies/EDI_Poster_LegalSize.pdf
McCormick, Jack and Associates, Inc, The Coastal Wetlands of
Maryland, 1982
Truitt, Dr. Reginald and Les Callete, Dr. Millard, Worcester
County, Maryland's Arcadia, 1976
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/streams/res_protect/projects.html