Linda and I enjoyed a two-day vacation in Frederick, Maryland on Aug. 4 and 5, 2022.

Day 1

After parking in the Carroll Street Parking deck – a very convenient location – we walked to the east end of Carroll Creek Park and then a few blocks south to the Frederick Visitor Center.

We picked up a brochure that had a map of a walking tour of the historic district. Before heading out to do the tour, we watched a 14-minute video highlighting attractions in the City of Frederick and surrounding Frederick County.

Walking through Caroll Creek Park was great. There is a lot to see, including restaurants, ice cream shops, breweries, sculptures, fountains and arts venues surrounding it.

There is also lots to see and do in the historic area on the streets surrounding the park. Frederick has no shortage of restaurants and we liked all the ones we visited. The first was Cacique Spanish & Mexican Restaurant on Market Street.

Following lunch we continued the walking tour and spent some time at the Barbara Fritchie House , The Bell Carillon in Baker Park, City Hall (built in 1862) and looking at the Clustered Spires, which tower above three churches that are mentioned in a famous poem by John Greenleaf Whittier. The poem also celebrates Unionist Barbara Fritchie, who waved a U.S. flag at Confederate soldiers as they marched through town.

Taking a break from the heat – it was in the 90s – we visited Brewer’s Alley and had a drink.

There’s a lot more to see on the walking tour and we plan to go back. We were wiped out by around 4 p.m. and went to the hotel.

For dinner, we ate at the restaurant connected to the hotel, a Hampton Inn on Buckeystown Pike. We enjoyed our burgers and the place after figuring out how it worked. The lone bartender-server had to walk to the hotel kitchen to get the food and bring it out to the restaurant, called “The Beacon.” When we arrived, she was not there and we waited several minutes to see if someone was working there. We were about to leave when another guest told us she would be right back.

The hotel left a little to be desired. We had a room facing I-270, so it was loud all night. The room also had a humidity issue. The carpet was damp and some of the bathroom towels were damp. We will try a different hotel on our next trip.

Day 2

We started Day 2 walking through Baker Park and visiting the sites along the 1.1-mile self-guided walking tour, a very nice paved multi-use path.

The sites include a swinging bridge built in 1875 on Bentz Street and moved to the park in 1929. Since a renovation in 2011, the bridge no longer swings, but appears the way it did when originally built.

Other sites included:

Culler Lake

The Skaters’ Shelter

Ice skating used to be allowed on Culler Lake and skates could be rented at the shelter.

A red wood covered bridge built in 1965 for students crossing Carroll Creek to Frederick High School. The bridge also allowed one lane traffic when it was built, but is now only open to pedestrians.

The Schifferstadt Architectural Museum

Built in 1758, Schifferstadt is one of Frederick County’s oldest known homes. A prime example of German colonial architecture, it has been designated a National Historic Landmark. Unfortunately the museum was not open when we were there, but it was nice to read about and view from the outside. The garden was open and we enjoyed walking through it.

Our walk in the park, again with the temperature at or near 90, worked off our continental breakfast and put us in a mood for lunch. We headed back to the historic district to Bushwaller’s Irish Pub, which was great. I had the fish and chips and a Guinness while Linda got the Rachel, which is similar to a Reuben, but made with herb-roasted turkey rather than corned beef and cabbage slaw in place of sauerkraut. We highly recommend it. The service and the food were excellent.

Following lunch, we spent a couple hours in the National Museum of Civil War Medicine, one of the attractions that influenced our decision to make the trip. There is a lot to read and we would like to go back for another look. It probably would be better to do early rather than after walking a few miles, but we still enjoyed it and would recommend it.

Before heading home, we walked around the historic district a bit more and visited South Mountain Creamery Ice Cream Shop, one of the ice cream shops along Caroll Creek Park.

We went back to Frederick a couple weeks later for my birthday weekend.