Outdoors Maryland Features Gunpowder River Watershed

Maryland Public Television's (MPT) award-winning original series Outdoors Maryland will feature the Gunpowder River watershed during its Nov. 19 episode at 7:30 p.m. on MPT-HD. Produced in cooperation with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Maryland Environmental Service, Outdoors Maryland presents thought-provoking stories that capture the state’s beauty as well as its diverse collection of ecosystems, people, and places.

Born from a springhead just north of the Maryland state line, the Gunpowder River is rich in beautiful scenery, wildlife, and history. Usually broken into multiple segments, this week's new episode will devote the entire half-hour to exploring the bountiful beauty and natural diversity of the watershed as it winds through three Maryland counties.

The Nov. 19 episode is the second of three new episodes airing during the 32nd season of Outdoors Maryland. Other new segments airing this season are:

• Underwater Marauders (Dorchester County): Fishing is good in the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, but the introduction of invasive species such as the Northern Snakehead has led to a decline of other species in the waters in which they are found. As entrepreneurial fishermen like Woolford Country Store owner Eddie Bramble and waterman Cass Kenny promote snakehead sportfishing as an enjoyable way to control the snakehead population, biologists from the DNR and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service undertake one of the first studies to examine the full extent of the species’ impact on Chesapeake ecosystems.
• The Nature Cure (Baltimore and Washington counties): While humans know intuitively that spending time outdoors is healthy, Dr. Sharon Hoover, associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, explains there is also scientific evidence that nature helps people heal emotionally, physically, and even cognitively. Birdwatcher Nancy McCormick cites the restorative effects of experiencing nature as a reason she travels frequently to North Point State Park in Edgemere. At Greenbrier State Park in Boonsboro, the Maryland Chapter of Heroes on the Water, led by U.S. Army veteran Jim Cooper, organizes therapeutic fishing excursions for military, law enforcement, and first responder veterans.
• Water from the Air (statewide): From Ocean City to Deep Creek Lake and many locations between, viewers discover the beauty of Maryland’s waterways from a bird’s eye view. With video recorded via drone, featured landmarks and waterways include the Point Lookout, Turkey Point, and Choptank River lighthouses; Swallow Falls and Muddy Creek Falls; Tilghman Island’s Knapps Narrows Bridge, Grantsville’s Casselman Bridge, and the Potomac River crossing at Point of Rocks; the Severn, Savage and Youghiogheny rivers; and the Inner Harbor and Chesapeake Bay Bridge.
• Skipjack Races (Dorchester County): For more than 100 years, skipjack boats have been used for oyster dredging in the Chesapeake Bay. Today, fewer than 30 of these special sailboats remain in operation. To celebrate bay culture, extend the skipjack legacy, and welcome the start of oyster season each fall, the Lady Katie, a skipjack sailed by Captain Scott Todd, competes in the annual Choptank Skipjack Heritage Race in Cambridge.
• A Different Lens (Dorchester County): For Jay Fleming, photography is a way to capture and preserve the unique characters and environments of an aging and changing Chesapeake region. Whether on the dock, in a boat, or under the water, there are few if any photographers who have so thoroughly documented life in the Chesapeake Bay region. Join Fleming as he practices his craft onboard fishing boats in the bay and at Rippons Brothers, Inc. in Hoopersville.

Over the past three decades, Outdoors Maryland has produced more than 700 stories on topics ranging from science-oriented environmental issues to segments about unusual people, animals, and places around the state. The series has earned more than 50 awards including several Emmy® Awards from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter.

Outdoors Maryland airs Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. on MPT-HD. Episodes are also available for streaming via the MPT App or online at video.mpt.tv/show/outdoors-maryland/. MPT’s online program schedule, available at mpt.org/schedule/, lists additional broadcast dates and times.

More information about the series is available at mpt.org/programs/outdoors-maryland.