🥾 ActiveDay trip · from Baltimore, MD
Lower Susquehanna — River Bluffs, Rock Run Mill & Concord Point
A single big day tracing the last dramatic miles of the Susquehanna River before it empties into the head of the Chesapeake Bay, only forty-five minutes northeast of Baltimore. The morning belongs to Susquehanna State Park, where the Deer Creek and Rock Run trails wind through hemlock ravines to a restored 1794 grist mill and out onto high wooded bluffs above the churning river. From there it's a short hop to Havre de Grace, a walkable colonial waterfront town where the promenade skirts the water to the little 1827 Concord Point Lighthouse — the oldest continuously operated lighthouse on the bay. Between the river-bluff hiking, the historic mill, and the seafood-and-decoy town at the river's mouth, it's a full day of movement and Maryland history without a long drive.
Deer Creek & Rock Run Mill trails in Susquehanna State ParkThe Susquehanna river bluffs and Concord Point Lighthouse promenade
Day 1 — Susquehanna State Park & Havre de Grace, MD
Day 1 — Susquehanna State Park & Havre de Grace, MD
🚗 1 hr 45 min driving📍 5 stops
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Morning
🚗
Drive
Baltimore, MD → Susquehanna State Park — Rock Run Mill
45 min8:00 AM → 8:45 AM
Rock Run Historic Area & Grist Mill
★ 4.6The heart of Susquehanna State Park is the Rock Run Historic Area, a cluster of stone buildings tucked where Rock Run Creek tumbles down to the river. The centerpiece is the massive 1794 Rock Run Grist Mill, its twelve-ton water wheel still turning on summer weekends, alongside the stone 1804 Carter-Archer Mansion and the toll house from the vanished 1818 covered bridge. Park here first to orient yourself and pick up a trail map; the historic buildings sit right at the trailheads for the river-bluff and Deer Creek routes. It's a quiet, atmospheric introduction to the milling and canal history that shaped the lower Susquehanna.
8:45 AM📍 See location
🍽️
Lunch
Susquehanna Ridge & River Bluff Trails
★ 4.7From Rock Run, a network of interconnecting footpaths climbs onto the wooded bluffs high above the Susquehanna, where breaks in the oak and hemlock open to views of the wide river sliding toward the bay. The Susquehanna Ridge Trail and the riverside Land of Promise Trail can be linked into loops of two to four miles, with a steady climb from the water up to the ridgeline and back. In spring the slopes fill with wildflowers and the river runs high and loud; in autumn the hardwood canopy turns. Footing is rocky and rooty in places, so wear real shoes and carry water.
9:45 AM📍 See location
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Deer Creek Trail
Where Deer Creek meets the Susquehanna, a gentler streamside trail follows the clear creek through a shaded ravine of hemlock and sycamore. It's an easy, flat counterpoint to the bluff climbs — good for cooling off, spotting herons and kingfishers, or letting kids scramble along the rocky banks. The creek mouth is a popular put-in for paddlers, and the flat grassy areas nearby make a fine spot to pause before continuing on to Havre de Grace.
10:45 AM📍 See location
☀️
Afternoon
🚗
Drive
Susquehanna State Park → Havre de Grace, MD
15 min12:00 PM → 12:15 PM
🍽️ Lunch12:15 PM
Tidewater Grille
A late lunch on the water at the point where the Susquehanna widens into the Chesapeake. The Tidewater Grille sits right on the river with a wide deck and Maryland classics — crab cakes, cream of crab soup, and steamed shrimp — plus the view of boats coming and going at the river's mouth. It's the natural refuel between the morning's hiking and an afternoon on the promenade, casual enough for trail clothes and positioned for the best water views in town.
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Havre de Grace Promenade & Concord Point Lighthouse
★ 4.8Havre de Grace's half-mile boardwalk promenade runs on pilings just above the water, curving along the shoreline from the city marina to Concord Point, where the tidy little whitewashed stone lighthouse has stood since 1827 — the oldest continuously operated lighthouse on the Chesapeake. You can climb the tower on open days, watch ospreys work the shallows, and wander out onto the fishing pier where the Susquehanna finally meets the bay. The adjacent streets hold the Havre de Grace Decoy Museum and a walkable grid of antique shops and cafes, making this an easy, level way to spend the back half of the afternoon before the short drive home.
1:15 PM📍 See location
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Evening
🚗
Drive
Havre de Grace, MD → Baltimore, MD
45 min5:00 PM → 5:45 PM
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