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Flag Ponds Nature Park

1525 Flag Ponds Parkway
Lusby, MD 20657

Park Office: 410-586-1477
Group Reservations: 410-535-5327 

Regular Hours begin September 5
  • Monday: 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
  • Friday: 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
  • Saturday and Sunday: 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
  • Closed Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 
  • Park entrance fees will be collected weekends only. 
General Park Hours Information
  • Plan ahead for capacity closures. During periods of high visitation, when the park’s capacity is reached, the park will be closed and traffic will be turned away from the park entrance.
  • No walk-ins allowed when park gates are closed.
  • Last entry one hour before park closes.
  • Beach area closes one hour before park closes.
  • Please check the Park Hours and Trail Closings updates from the Natural Resources Division.
Directions

Flag Ponds Parkway is 3 miles south of the traffic light at Calvert Beach/Ball Rd.

Just 10 miles south of Prince Frederick, look for the sign along ROUTE 4 and turn LEFT onto Flag Ponds Parkway.

Get a Directions to the Park

Trail Map (pdf)

Calvert County Natural Resources Flag Ponds page

UPCOMING EVENTS


PARK REGULATIONS

Dogs are permitted in the park and on the beach, but they must be kept on a leash. Owners must pick up after their pets.

Groups of 30 or more must make reservations to schedule a naturalist-led program and pay any applicable fees. Contact the Division office at 410-535-5327 to make a reservation.

Calvert County Parks & Recreation Rules & Regulations

eNTRANCE fEES 

Effective January 1,2023. New Fees in effect. The entrance fee is per vehicle while the park pass is per household. 
Society membership does not include free entrance into Flag Ponds.

UPDATE: We now accept electronic payments. We still accept checks or cash only, exact change is appreciated. 

Daily Entrance Fee

Fee is per vehicle and good for the day of issue. If a visitor leaves the park, there is no guarantee of re-entry into the park.

January - March: 
$5.00 for in-county resident or non-resident.

April - October: 
$5.00 for in-county residents
$15.00 for non-residents

November - December: $5.00 in-county resident or non-resident.

Walk-in/Bike: $2 person

Bus (commercial, private, or public vehicle able to carry more than 15 people): $40 per bus for county groups $60 per bus for non-county groups

Annual Park Pass

$30 for in-county residents
$50 for non-residents.
Vehicle registration is required for annual pass holders.

$10 for each additional vehicle registered in the same household.

Military Discounts Available.

THINGS TO DO

See a Calendar of All Our Programs

Program participants do not pay the entrance fee on the day of the program.

  • Beachcombing
  • Birdwatching
  • Cross-country skiing
  • Observation piers at pond and on the bay
  • Fossil hunting
  • Managed Hunting (permits through Maryland DNR)
  • Metal detecting (beach only)
  • Nature study
  • Picnicking
  • Scuba diving
  • Swimming (no lifeguard on duty)

Bring a picnic to enjoy on the beach or at the picnic area. No grills are allowed on the beach; we provide grills at the picnic area by the Visitor Center.

Check the Tide Tables for Long Beach.

INTERESTING FACTS

  • Millions of years ago, sharks, whales, crocodiles and other creatures inhabited the waters and shores of this area. Most of these animals are now extinct, others are just no longer found here.
  • To the sharp-eyed visitor, shark teeth and other Miocene fossils may be found along the park's shoreline.

Flag Ponds Nature Park is also part of Maryland's history.

  • From the early 1900's until 1955, three shanties housed fishermen during the main fishing season who worked a major "pound net" fishery supplying croaker, trout and herring to markets as far away as Baltimore.
  • Known as "Buoy Hotel", the last shanty was destroyed in 2012 in a fire. It was rebuilt in 2015.

Flag Ponds Nature Park Shoreline


The Board of County Commissioners entered into a project agreement with the State of Maryland Department of Natural Resources (MD DNR) for a no-interest loan to design and construct a living shoreline at Flag Ponds Nature Park. The design is complete, and all permits have been received, with the bid documents for construction pending. This project only covers the first 500 feet of problematic shoreline. Future phases of shoreline protection would extend approximately 6,000 feet south of the proposed project, ultimately protecting the entire shoreline of Flag Ponds Nature Park. Shoreline erosion threatens the two freshwater ponds separated from the Chesapeake Bay by a narrow beach dune system. A breach and intrusion of brackish water would essentially destroy the freshwater aquatic and wetland ecosystems. Duncan’s Pond (approx. 9 acres) is the southern, most vulnerable pond; Richardson’s Pond (approx. 28 acres) has a well-traveled boardwalk where visitors observe the unique freshwater pond ecology, while environmental education programs provide meaningful watershed experiences and field studies.

Charlene Osborne of Mission Drone Services provided aerial photograph of the Flag Ponds Shoreline.

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