Preview of the Delmarva Discovery Center in Ocean City, Maryland

During a recent visit to Ocean City, MD, I had the pleasure of previewing the Delmarva Discovery Center, prior to the Grand Opening Gala. This interactive museum displays all aspects of the Pocomoke River and Cypress Swamp. The museum also houses a wonderful gift shop featuring the work of local eastern shore artists.

When visiting Ocean City, Bethany Beach, Assategue Island, or other popular eastern shore destinations if the weather is foul, finding a way to salvage your summer vacation can prove to be a challenge. If you have already done all the shopping you care to, or can afford, a fun and educational alternative is to visit the Delmarva Discovery Center on the Pocomoke River. The scenic drive from Ocean City takes about an hour. The Delmarva Discovery Center is located on 2 Market St, Pocomoke City, MD 21851.

Wild Thing!

The Cypress Swamp display features a beaver damn large enough to crawl through and explore. This part of the museum displays birds and has an observation window for kids to look out onto the Pocomoke to identify birds themselves. The Cypress Swamp portion of the museum also highlights the Native American background of the Pocomoke River.

It's alive!

The Discovery Center is a living museum. Upon completion it will feature two touch tanks. One of the tanks will house freshwater creatures, and the other saltwater. This is because the Pocomoke River contains both fresh and salt water. During the Gala these tanks will be operational.

The highly anticipated attraction for the Delmarva Discovery Center is their aquarium. I was told the aquarium will arrive any day now. It is custom built for the Discovery Center and will feature a variety of Pocomoke River wildlife.

Old School Oyster Digging

Above all else the museum is highly interactive and kid friendly. In addition to the two touch tanks, The Delmarva Discovery Center features an animal scavenger hunt. Children are given a list of animals to check off the ones that they find as they explore the museum. There are stuffed specimens and animal models hidden throughout the displays. My younger cousin and I both had a wonderful time trying to collect all of the animals.

A huge model of a river boat is located in the center of the museum. The large boat has two floors, which allow you to observe different parts of life on the river. There are plenty of photo opportunities to be had while steering the ship and ringing the bell.

After steering the boat to its destination, try your hand at working on the river. The Delmarva Discovery Center features interactive oyster digging, using the tools of old fishermen. The oyster digging display proves to be a challenge for all ages.

Artists of the Eastern Shore

The Delmarva Discovery Center contains a large gift shop with affordable souvenirs suitable for all ages. Practically a museum within a museum the gift shop displays boat loads of original art work from local Eastern Shore artists. There are prints as well as affordable originals available for purchase. If you are concerned the kids will break the bank at the gift shop, have no fear! The majority of kids items range from .75 - 15.00, which includes, for under a dollar, commemorative color changing mood pencils for all your bird watching needs!

I highly recommend the Delmarva Discovery Center as a vacation stop rain or shine. This museum is kid friendly, interactive and reasonably priced. To learn more visit http://delmarvadiscoverycenter.org/events_permanent.html.