"ATLANTIC FLYWAY BYWAY"

THE "ATLANTIC FLYWAY BYWAY"
Draft Text for Project-Consortium Brochure
May 5, 1996
JG Eugster B:\AFBRCHR


Introduction

Sidebar Quote:
"The waterfowl are the "glory" of the Chesapeake, in view of
author William W. Warner. The Bay is a key point on the
Atlantic flyway for hundreds of thousands of migratory birds.
Many of the forty-three species of native waterfowl winter
on the Bay. The skies begin to come alive in September,
as shorebirds leave for the winter quarters in Central
and South America and the first waterfowl arrive from their summer places in Northern Canada and Greenland. Later, Geese, swans, and ducks migrating south fill the skies, ponds, and marshes around the Bay, which provide both food and protection during the cold months. By December, the presence of noisy waterfowl is overwhelming as many of them settle down for the winter along accommodating shorelines".

"Adventuring in the Chesapeake Bay Area", Sierra Club Travel Guide by John Bowen, 1990.

WHAT IS THE "ATLANTIC FLYWAY BYWAY" ?

The Atlantic Flyway Byway is a network of highways linking waterfowl attractions throughout the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay region. The proposed Byway envisions a road corridor, identified through signs, maps and printed information, which connects various Atlantic flyway public
and private waterfowl attractions and services.

The Byway is a way for the communities within the Delmarva Peninsula, and Upper Chesapeake Bay region, to work cooperatively to promote the public understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of the migratory and resident waterfowl of the Atlantic flyway through the creation of a automobile and bicycle tour route. The proposed tour route, which stretches from Havre de Grace, Maryland to Cape Charles, Virginia, generally follows roadways designated by State governments as "Scenic Highways" and connects existing wildfowl areas, museums, interpretive centers, galleries and services.


WHAT IS THE ATLANTIC FLYWAY ?

The Atlantic flyway is one of four migratory highroads that lead from breeding grounds in the Arctic and the northern plains to wintering grounds in the southern United States, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.


The Atlantic flyway is shaped like a vast funnel that stretches from Alaska in the west to the Hudson Bay in the east, narrows at the Chesapeake Bay and continues along the coast to the Caribbean and South America. Over twenty-five percent of the millions of birds on the Atlantic Flyway stop in the Chesapeake Bay region where abundant food and protected waters provide a wayside habitat.


WHAT IS BEING DONE ALONG THE FLYWAY NOW ?

State and federal governments, and private organizations, have taken significant actions to protect the bird species visiting and living within this region. Numerous wildlife refuges, waterfowl management areas, nature preserves and forests have been established to provide food and habitat for birds using the Atlantic flyway.

Many of these areas, such as the Blackwater and Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuges in Maryland, Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge and Delaware Seashore State Park and the Virginia Coast Reserve include public access and places for bird-watching, nature walks, interpretation and education.

The vast numbers, and diverse types of waterfowl, visiting this area has long attracted bird-watchers and tourists. The wildfowl populations of the flyway have also inspired various painters, sculptors, writers, folk-lyrists and carvers to describe the sights, sounds and settings of this internationally renowned area.

In response to these visitors and artistic traditions, public and private organizations have established a number of museums, galleries, events and activities related to the Atlantic flyway, the wildfowl and cultural activities of the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay region.

Museums, such as Salisbury's Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art, the St. Michael's Maritime Museum, and the Havre de Grace Decoy Museum offer tourists and residents alike the opportunity to experience and enjoy carvings, wildfowl art, habitat exhibits, interpretive displays and guided tours about the bird species, people and places of the Atlantic flyway.

These museums, in addition to State and county tourism offices, private conservation groups, National and state wildlife refuges and parks and travel organizations, actively promote "bird tourism" through various publications, events and activities. These special Atlantic flyway promotions and activities make the region a popular destination for visitors from the U.S. and other countries.


WHAT IS BEING PROPOSED ?

The Atlantic Flyway Byway involves a voluntary public and private effort to prepare and carry out a cooperative strategy for increasing ecotourism, protecting natural and cultural values and increasing locally-based economic development opportunities along a network of roads in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia.

The project is being accomplished through a series of cooperative action projects along the corridor. The action projects are being prepared by local interests with State, federal and private assistance. The primary elements of the Atlantic Flyway Byway include:

1. An identified auto, bicycle and walking tour route including side-trips. The route will be signed and placed on ecotourism brochures and promotional maps.

2. The tour route will be proposed for recognition by state and federal government programs as a scenic byway, recreational trail or heritage corridor.

3. The tour route will feature museums and art galleries featuring wildfowl art and the interpretation of birds and their habitats. Areas included are:

* Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art Salisbury, MD.
* Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, St. Michaels, MD.
* Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center, Chincoteague, VA.
* Decoy Museum, Havre de Grace, MD.
* Fisherman's Island National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center, Cape Charles, VA.

Sidebar Quote:
" Next to fishing, the Bay is best known for its wildfowl. Even the casual observer is instantly aware of the abundant birdlife. The graceful ospreys soar over the marshes and byways, while the cautious blue herons stay a safe distance from intruders into their habitat. Peregrine falcon wheel over nests built on platforms in isolated areas. red-winged blackbird and numerous other small fowl can easily be observed on most trails and farmlands. The bald eagle, once scarce in the region, now nests safely in a number of parks and forests".

John Bowen, 1990

4. The tour route features a number of public and private wildlife refuges, preserves, seashores and forests including the following areas:

* Eastern Neck Island, MD.
* Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, MD.
* Elk Neck State Park, MD.
* Wye Island Natural Resources Area, MD.
* Tuckahoe State Park, MD.
* Elliott Island Marshes, MD.
* Irish Grove Sanctuary, MD.
* Michaels Marsh, MD.
* Virginia Coastal Reserve, VA.
* Fisherman Island National Wildlife Refuge, VA.
* Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, VA.
* Assateague Island National Seashore, MD.
* Assateague State Park, MD.
* Kiptopeke State Park, VA.


5. The effort promotes flyway-related seasonal festivals, events and activities including:

* Susquehanna Flats Carving and Arts Festival, Perryville, MD.
* Bel Air, MD Festival for the Arts
* Havre de Grace Arts Show
* Dorchester Art Exhibit, Cambridge, MD.
* Havre de Grace Decoy, Wildlife Art & Sportsman Festival, Havre de Grace, MD
* Nautical & Wildlife Art Festival & Craft Show, Ocean City, MD.
* Easter Decoy Art Festival, Chincoteague, VA
* Decoy Museum Duck Fair, Havre de Grace, MD.
* Ward World Champion Carving Competition, Ocean City,MD.
* Fish & Fowl Day, Furnace Town, MD.
* Ward Exhibit of Wildfowl Art, Salisbury, MD.
* Birding Festival, Cape Charles, VA.
* Waterfowl Festival, Easton, MD.

Sidebar Quote:
"The best times to see waterfowl are in November and December and again in March and early April, when migrations peak. Later in the spring there are migrating shorebirds, breeding herons and egrets, and other marsh birds".

"In the late fall when the marshes of the Chesapeake are gold and rust, muted green and brown, an extraordinary event occurs. Millions of waterfowl--snow geese, Canada geese, whistling swans, bay ducks, and marsh ducks--converge on the bay, flying in wispy lines above the marsh, bursting from the ponds, or gathering offshore in huge fleets".

John Bowen, 1990


6. The effort will publicize seasonal natural wildfowl events including the following selected examples:

January:

* Wintering Bald Eagles
Conwingo Dam, Susquehanna River, MD.
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, MD.

* Snowy and Short-eared Owls
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge/ Elliott Island, MD.

* Wintering Gannets and Loons
Ocean City Inlet, MD.
Chesapeake Bay-Bridge Tunnel, VA.

February:

* Pelagic Birding Trips Ocean City, MD.

March:

* Migrating Ducks and Geese
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, MD.
Shores of Kent County
Choptank River mouth

* Rare and Unusual Gulls
Conowingo Dam


May:
* Horseshoe crabs and Shorebirds
Port Mahon Road, DE

June:

* Marsh and Shorebirds
Assateague Island, MD-VA
Elliott Island, MD
Delaware Seashore State Park, DE
Cape Henlopen State Park, DE
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, DE
Port Mahon Road, DE
* Southern Cypress Birds
Pocomoke Swamp, Gumboro, DE
Trap Pond State Park, DE
Pocomoke River State Park, MD

July:
* Heronries
Pea Patch Island, DE
* Marsh Wrens
Fishing Bay Wildlife Management Area, MD
Elliott Island, MD
Little Creek Wildlife Management Area, DE
Assateague Island, MD-VA
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, DE
Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, DE

August:
* Autumn Shorebirds
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, DE
Port Mahon, Road, DE
Little Creek Wildlife Management Area, DE
Assateague Island, MD-VA

* Fall Landbirds
Cape Charles, VA
Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel

September:
* Migrating Hawks
Assateague Island, MD-VA
Cape Charles, VA
Eastern Shore of Virginia National Wildlife Refuge, VA


October:

* Avocet Concentrations
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, DE
Little Creek Wildlife Management Area, DE
Chincoteague National Wildlife refuge, VA

November:
* Autumn Waterfowl
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, DE
Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, MD
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, MD
Pocomoke Sound, Saxis, VA
Choptank River, Cambridge, MD

* Snow Geese
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, DE
Prime Hook, DE

December:
* Songbirds
Cape Henlopen, DE
Delaware Seashore State Park, DE
Assateague Island, MD-VA
Cape Charles, VA
* Winter Sea Ducks
Ocean City Jetty, MD
Indian River Jetty, DE
Chesapeake bay Bridge-Tunnel, VA
Cape Henlopen State Park, DE
* Brant Concentrations
Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, VA
Assateague Island, MD-VA

7. Tour route information will feature places to stay
( ie. Fly-Inns such as Bed & Breakfasts, hotels, motels, and campgrounds.) ecotourism related shops and services (ie. tour guides, bicycle and boat rentals, special train rides, etc. ).


Atlantic Flyway Byway Consortium

The "Atlantic Flyway Byway Consortium" has been formed to lead the effort. The Consortium is a collaborative group of diverse organizations working to ensure the appreciation and conservation of natural and cultural resources in communities throughout the Delmarva Peninsula and Upper Chesapeake Bay region. The intent of the Consortium is "to promote regional economic sustainability through environmental education, eco-tourism and habitat protection".

The goals of the Atlantic Flyway Byway Consortium are:
* To promote ecotourism and cultural heritage on the Delmarva Peninsula in an environmentally responsible manner which also will provide positive economic impact.
* To promote the Atlantic Flyway Byway through education and interpretation at sites along the Flyway, increase the awareness of natural resources, to build on the economic base of communities.
* Development, preservation, conservation and promotion of regional Flyway Byway theme with a strong education component.
* To focus on the Atlantic Flyway as an important environmental-ecological area for supporting seasonal bird migration, bring attention and awareness about the problems facing migratory bird populations due to urbanization, increased pollution and natural causes.
* To promote awareness and appreciation of the Atlantic Flyway Byway migratory bird habitat on the Delmarva peninsula through education, ecotourism and support of member environmental and development organizations.
* To ensure the long-term conservation of wildlife and wild lands in the Delmarva Region through coordinated environmental education, ecotourism, preservation and sustainable development efforts of member organizations.

The Consortium is organized into the following four subregions:

* Upper Bay: Harford and Cecil Counties, MD
* Mid-Shore: Kent, Queen Anne's, Talbot, Caroline Counties, MD
* Delaware Bay: Newcastle, Kent, Sussex Counties, DE
* Lower Shore: Dorchester, Wicomico, Somerset and Worcester Counties, MD; Accomack and Northampton Counties, VA

WHY IS THERE A NEED FOR THE "ATLANTIC FLYWAY BYWAY" ?

The Atlantic Flyway Byway encourages public and private agencies and groups involved with wildlife management, museums, and tourism to work together to make the Delmarva Peninsula portion of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia a regional destination for bird and ecological tourism. A coordinated effort of this type can help to:

Consortium Benefits
* Develop common goals and organized, focused, concerted efforts Peninsula-wide.
* Heighten the awareness and communication of available resources.
* Improve the effectiveness of programs and their impact
* Consolidate and integrate programs and their activities
* Increase the Consortiums members ability to increase public-private sector, local and NGO support for conservation and education.
* Improve faint activities
* Improve staff abilities
* Establish ideas and goals of conservation and education among the public.


Ecotourism Benefits
* Attract more visitors for longer periods of time.
* Provide visitors with a higher quality experience.
* Create opportunities for business and community leaders to benefit economically from the natural and cultural resources of the region.
* Add others

WHAT IS BEING DONE ?

The project has received funding from the National Environmental Education and training Foundation, Coors Brewery, and the Chesapeake Bay Trust. The Atlantic Flyway Byway has projects underway or planned to:

1) Environmental Training: Provide environmental training for local proprietors;and hold an ecotourism symposium.

2) Ecotourism Along Recognized Scenic Routes: Promote ecotourism along recognized scenic roads through the development of car, bicycle, and hiking tour-route maps;
Develop and sell a car trip tape with information about the routes and the region;

3) Environmental Education Projects: Conduct site-based environmental education for children, youth, families; conduct outreach education at local and regional levels; develop curriculum; and conduct live performances for adults, families and children at existing sites.

4)Directory of Resources & Services: Prepare computerized and hard copy information on scenic routes and attractions; available services for ecotourists; special activities and events, including an annual calendar; and available resources for consortium members.

5)Demonstration projects: Implement local education, habitat enhancement, interpretation, and ecotourism demonstration projects;

6)Hallmark Projects: Undertake larger scale projects incorporating various elements and involving multiple members.

Local Action Highlights: The traditions of regional cooperation to understand, protect, interpret, promote and develop the natural and cultural heritage of the Delmarva Peninsula are well established. The Flyway Byway project proposes to support on the many successful regional efforts which are underway or have been accomplished. These initiatives, some of which are highlighted, illustrate the commitment and capability of the organizations of this coalition.

Chesapeake Country Ecotouring: In 1992 The Wildfowl Trust of North America, in cooperation with Maryland's Office of Tourism Development, ten banks and private industries, and existing public and private wildfowl organizations, published a directory and field guide to ecotouring sites within the Mid-Eastern Shore Region. The directory describes existing ecotourism services; museums, refuges, and parks; seasonal events and activities, and sources of further information for residents and visitors to the five county region.

Chesapeake Country Ecotouring also has developed a publication series and a Ecological Study Tour Program. The tours focus on the close ties between the Chesapeake Bay environment and the area's historic past and current lifestyles.

In 1993 the Pickering Creek Environmental Center, in cooperation with educators and environmental resource people, published "An Educator's Guide to Services, Facilities and Conservation Education Programs". The guide provides comprehensive information on environmental education resources available to educators and schools on the Eastern Shore. Specific information is provided on the more than two dozen public and private institutions currently operating environmental education facilities on the Shore.

The guide encourages communication between schools and environmental resources; collaboration between teachers and environmental educators; compartmentalize of efforts based on the expertise of educators and resource personnel; and increased fund raising for field trips.

Lower Eastern Shore Heritage Committee: In 1989 an ad hoc organization of citizens and representatives of public and private agencies and groups on the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland was formed. The coalition has sought to build a
foundation for environmental, cultural and historical awareness in the region and to promote public-private cooperation and partnerships. Results of this effort include completion of an action strategy, initiation of 55 local and regional projects including the 1,000 mile "Ocean Heritage Highway", National designation of the 100 mile Lower Eastern Shore "Beach-to-Bay Indian Trail" by Interior Department Secretary Babbitt.

VA Eastern Shore Nature-Based Tourism: In 1994 a coalition of local organizations from Accomack and Northampton County, Virginia, hosted the Chesapeake Bay Region Countryside Stewardship Exchange to stimulate discussion about links between sustainable local economies, community character and countryside stewardship and identify ways to achieve and protect all three. Recommendations developed between the local organizers and resource specialists from the U.S., Canada, and Great Britain, included the need "to develop a comprehensive tourism plan that links the interests of existing businesses, communities and individuals".

The recommendation, which is now being implemented, builds on existing local efforts which have established the region as an "International Biosphere Reserve"; implemented an annual "Birding Festival"; produced a "Sustainable Development Action Strategy"; and begun preparing a "Eastern Shore Heritage Trail".


WHERE DOES THE "FLYWAY" ROUTE GO ?

The Atlantic Flyway Scenic Byway tour route, from the north, begins in Havre de Grace, Maryland at the Decoy Museum, within the newly established local Heritage Corridor. The Byway follows Route 161 North, parallels the Susquehanna River Heritage Greenway, providing access to the Susquehanna State Park, U.S. Route 1 ("America's Main Street") and the Conwingo Dam area. The tour continues along Route 1 North merging with Route 273 before meeting Route 213 South in Fair Hill.

The tour route follows Route 213 South affording side-trips to Elk Neck State Park and the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal area. Near Chestertown, another side-trip opportunity includes a tour of the Eastern Neck Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Route 213 merges into Route 662 South at Wye Mills and the tour continues to Easton. A side-trip to St. Michaels and the St. Michaels Maritime Museum is afforded from Easton.

The tour route continues from Easton Route 331 South, crossing the Choptank, Marshyhope and Nanticoke Rivers and offering a side-trip to the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge near Cambridge.

The tour route continues along Route 313 until it ends and continues south briefly on Route 50. From Route 50 the tour route switches to Route 347, affording a side-trip to the Ellis Bay Wildlife Management Area, and Route 349. Route 349 takes the tour route into Salisbury and the Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art.

From Salisbury the tour route continues along Route 346, crossing the Pocomoke River, through Berlin and out Route 376 to Assateague Island National Seashore and Assateague State Park.

From Assateague the tour route returns to Route 113 South, passes through Snow Hill, affording side-trips to the Pocomoke State Forest, the Beach to Bay Indian Trail---A National Recreation Trail and the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia.

From Chincoteague the tour route continues along Route 13, the "Ocean Heritage Highway", which affords numerous "Off 13" side-trips including roads through the Virginia Coastal Reserve, the Kiptopeke State Park, before ending at the Fisherman's Island National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center near Cape Charles, Virginia and the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel.


QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ?

For more information about this proposal contact:

* Dale Maginnis
Delmarva Advisory Council
Salisbury, Maryland 21801


Background: In 1963, government, civic and business leaders from Delaware, Maryland and Virginia gathered to discuss the changes they anticipated would take place on the Delmarva Peninsula as a result of the completion of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel the following spring. A conference was called "to examine the extent and nature of these changes and to determine how Delmarva can best cope with them". As a result, in April 1964, the Delmarva Advisory Council (DAC) was established jointly by the states of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia "to guide and promote the desirable development of Delmarva."

Over the past thirty years, DAC has a history of successfully coordinating regional efforts in agriculture, economic development, transportation, tourism, recycling, and solid waste disposal.

The Council, a voluntary association consisting of 43 members, is serving as Project Manager to assist government agencies and private organizations design and implement the Atlantic Flyway Byway.

* J. Glenn Eugster
Chesapeake Bay Program
US EPA
410 Severn Avenue, Suite 109
Annapolis, Maryland 21403
410-267-5722

Sidebar Quote:

"The bay lies along the Atlantic flyway, one of four migratory highroads that lead from breeding grounds in the Arctic and the northern plains to wintering grounds in the Southern United States, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. Twenty-five percent of the millions of birds on the Atlantic flyway winter here. For thousands of years, waterfowl have followed the course of the bay's tributaries, arriving here where abundant food and protected waters provide a way station on the journey south or a safe winter home".