Recreation

Commuting, Water-Taxi Style

Talk about a pleasant commute! As a complement to its free bus service, the Charm City Circulator connects both sides of Baltimore's harbor with three commuter routes, which it offers in partnership with the Baltimore Water Taxi. The Harbor Connector travels from Harbor East to Harbor View (Federal Hill), the Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park (Fell's Point) to Tide Point (Locust Point), and the Canton Waterfront Park to Tide Point. Each route has just two stops, making the service as quick as it is convenient. The Harbor Connector operates Monday-Friday, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Commuters, businesses and residents on both sides of the harbor appreciate this service, as it allows people to get to and from work easily without a car. While these patrons at the Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Museum stop are clearly heading to the office, people use the service for all kinds of trips, from grocery shopping at Whole Foods in Harbor East to a quick visit to Fell's Point for some ice cream.

For additional car-free convenience, the Harbor Connector offers free, weatherproof bicycle storage.

Of course, many people need or simply want to bring their wheels with them, as the person featured in this photo does. Fortunately, the Harbor Connector welcomes bikes.

As Monday morning approaches, I cannot help but think how lucky these people are to be able to walk, boat and bike to work. This looks like a fun, social and healthy way to travel to and from work.

Ice Skating at the Inner Harbor 

A gorgeous late December day is the perfect opportunity to ice skate with family and friends at the Ice Rink at Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

Located in the heart of downtown, Baltimore's ice rink boasts the National Aquarium as a scenic backdrop and a slew of restaurants to choose from - from Federal Hill to downtown, and the Inner Harbor to Harbor East - after working up an appetite on the ice.

The ice rink attracts visitors and residents of all ages and skill levels.

The pink La Cakerie food truck also provides hungry skaters with fuel in the form of award-winning cupcakes and pastries.

The Waterfront Partnership and many corporate sponsors support the rink, which will remain open through January 19.

Fresh Air Fun

A relatively new addition to the Inner Harbor, Pierce's Park's unique features, such as the musical fence shown here, a horn sculpture that children can walk through (shown below), a living Willow tunnel, and some more traditional playground equipment, draws families throughout the week.

Families enjoy outings to the park because it is a great place for kids to play ... and the adults often get a chance to socialize, too. 

The Waterfront Partnership programs events at the park,such as the Shamrock Shindig and morning yoga.

Every Thursday night in the summer, families and friends gather on the side of Federal Hill Park to watch outdoor movies. The American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM) sponsors Flicks from the Hill. Each year, AVAM selects a theme for the series inspired by one of their current exhibits. This year, movies such as Time Bandits and Back to the Future evoked the "Human, Soul & Machine: The Coming Singularity" theme.

Baltimore's Rash Field attracts hundreds of volleyball players throughout the week, spring through fall. With men's, women's, and coed leagues playing Sundays through Fridays and drop-in matches on weekends, Baltimore Beach Volleyball's seven courts are always busy.

This view captures the beach volleyball courts at night from the top of Federal Hill Park.

The basketball courts at the base of Federal Hill Park also are always busy.

Baltimore residents have a wide variety of options when it comes to seeking quality outdoor time, including just sitting on the steps in front of the Science Center to do some work ...

  ... or enjoying a sunny and quiet early evening in their neighborhood park, such as these Mount Vernon residents ...

... or kayaking from a dock in Fell's Point.

Many of Baltimore's parks also host youth sports, of course. Here, youngsters play soccer at Herring Run Park in northeast Baltimore's Mayfield neighborhood.

Baltimore Bike Party Prom Night

What's more fun than a real prom?  This month's prom-themed Baltimore Bike Party!  On the last Friday of every month, Bike Partiers get together for a leisurely and lighthearted group ride through the city, which often sports a theme.  I first encountered the Baltimore Bike Party last October, when I came across hundreds of bicyclists decked out in Halloween costumes, complete with plastic pumpkins for candy collecting. 

The Baltimore Bike Party always sets off from St. Mary's Park in the Seton Hill neighborhood, but the routes differ each month.  With hundreds of participants including families with kids, the ride is an increasingly popular social event, as well as an eye-opener for people who think that there aren't many cyclists in Baltimore.

More prom dresses!

If you look closely, you will see that the guy on the left donned a tuxedo vest for the occasion. 

The tiny and usually quiet neighborhood of Seton Hill, ensconced near the University of Maryland, Baltimore, experiences a big uptick in activity on the last Friday of the month, thanks to the bicyclists.

The Baltimore Bike Party is doing a great job of raising the biking community's visibility in Baltimore.

Good night from Seton Hill!

Kinetic Sculpture Race and SoBo Little League Parade Make for a Fun Saturday

Fifi, the undisputed belle of Baltimore's Kinetic Sculpture race, makes her way down Fort Avenue in South Baltimore during the first leg of the day long affair.  The American Visionary Art Museum sponsors the kinetic sculpture race, now in its 16th year.  For anyone wondering, a kinetic sculpture race is a contest of human-powered, amphibious all-terrain works of art (thank you, Wikipedia).  In Baltimore, it is a rite of spring, an excuse to hang out on the stoop all day and engage in great people watching, and an affirmation that Baltimore's creativity, ingenuity, and lovable wacky side are all alive and well.

Channeling Amelia and Muriel Earhart, these pilots look fresh and energized.  Clearly they haven't traversed the mud pits of Patterson Park or splashed down at the Canton Waterfront Park yet.

This team makes it look too easy.

The race starts at the American Visionary Art Museum and swings through South Baltimore and downtown before making its way into Canton and Patterson Park.  I missed the Splashdown in Canton, but I did make it to Patterson Park in time to see Swan Song pose for a beauty shot.

Good Dog and the Big Itchy Flea Circus should feel right at home in beautiful, pet-friendly Patterson Park.

Thankfully, it isn't every day we see a 35' long crocodile in the park. 

Back in my neighborhood, the SoBo Little League Parade always follows shortly after the Kinetic Sculpture Race.  This means great marching bands ...

... and proud youngsters walking down the street with parents and teammates to the field.  Such a nice place to live.

Good bye from Patterson Park!

Pirates and Paddling

The "Fearless," Baltimore's Urban Pirates' ship, began plying Baltimore's waters in 2008 and rapidly became a favorite activity of residents and visitors with its Birthday Adventures, Family Adventures, and Adult B.Y.O.G. (Bring Your Own Grog) Cruises.  The hour-long adventures feature games, dress-up, a high-seas battle with a hopelessly over-matched dinghy boat, and the nicest, most enthusiastic group of pirates you will ever meet.  You just cannot help but smile when you see the pirate ship, which also manages to entertain fascinated landlubbers who watch the fun from afar.

Stand-Up Paddle Boarding has made its way to Baltimore's Inner Harbor, as these intrepid paddlers in front of the Domino Sugars plant demonstrate.  I love to see people taking advantage of one of Baltimore's greatest assets - the water - in so many different ways!

A Tropical Vacation Down the Street: The Tiki Barge

Baltimore's bar on a barge, the Tiki Barge, is located at the end of the Harborview Marina in South Baltimore.  Offering great views and a chance to feel like you are on vacation when all you've done is walk down the street, the Tiki Barge is a fun spot to meet friends and look cool in your sunglasses.

The members-only pool attached to the Tiki Barge provides even more of that resort feel. 

I took this picture with the Tiki Barge pool in the foreground and the Domino Sugars plant in the background just to prove that the Tiki Barge really is in Baltimore, and not in Florida or the islands.

This is one of the only photos I managed to take of the bar itself, so I decided to share.

This is the view from the Tiki Barge to the Baltimore Museum of Industry.

The Gathering Food Truck Rally - Locust Point

Everyone loves a good food truck rally!  This is at McHenry Row in Locust Point.

Food trucks and great local stores in the background - Charm City Run and Dogma, Life with Your Pet

Great place for people of all ages and a nice way to spend an evening outside.

Apparently there is a pot of gold inside the Harris Teeter at McHenry Row.

Good night from Locust Point.

Opening Day 2013 - Oriole Park at Camden Yards

Nothing looks as festive as the sea of orange on Opening Day!  Go O's!

Pickles Pub, Opening Day 2013 (My husband used to live on the third floor above the bar - the owners were happy when he got married and moved out, so they could turn his apartment into a party suite!)

I love the fact that I can walk to the stadium whenever I feel like it.  How convenient for a baseball fan!

SoBo Little League Carnival

Welcome to the South Baltimore (SoBo) Little League Carnival, an annual tradition held next to the baseball diamond in Locust Point.

Lots of colorful rides for the kids!

Every trip to the carnival MUST include stuffed animal prizes.

This is a nice, close-to-home outing.  Everyone walks, which makes treating the kids an easy, pleasant experience for adults, too.

Thanks for visiting! 

Fun in the Inner Harbor

Food Truck Rally, West Shore Park, Summer 2013

Dragon Boats in the Harbor, Summer 2013

Dragon Boat Traffic Jam

Urban Pirates

Exercising at West Shore park in the Inner Harbor on a Saturday morning

Beach Volleyball at Rash Field

Baltimore Beach Volleyball at Rash Field, overlooking the Inner Harbor

Baltimore Beach Volleyball - the Inner Harbor isn't just for tourists (though we love the tourists)