A year or so ago, I was covering the election for the new governor and was sent to a freezing cold precinct in West Baltimore to ask people personal questions about their politics. There was a delay in getting the voting machines to work, and it was 7 a.m. and an icebox in that firehouse, so needless to say people weren't in the greatest mood. I struck up a conversation with a fellow who was going to vote for Ehrlich and he began telling me he was sick of all the problems in the city. He was getting out, building a house on the bay and planning to retire.

Where's your house? I asked.

Oh, you wouldn't know the town if I told you, he said.

Maybe I would. You'd be surprised, I said.

Ok, he said, it's Ridge.

And from there, me and this fellow from Druid Hill became fast friends, talking about the town's two restaurants -- one like a biker bar, the other one slightly more fancy, both excellent places for seafood -- and its rural charms. Suddenly, it seemed to warm up in that frigid firehouse as we thought about that Southern Maryland town near St. Mary's College and historic St. Mary's City,  where the crabs are fresh and the air is breezy.

To paraphrase a popular slogan for small Chesapeake Bay towns, Ridge isn't the end of the world, but you can see it from there. Point Lookout State park, a few miles away and technically in Scotland, offers sweeping views of the Potomac and the Bay. There is excellent fishing, opportunities to ride bikes through the green fields, and generally just relax.

I can no longer find a listing for the wonderful place we stayed while in Ridge a couple of years ago, called the Creekside Inn. Perhaps it's closed. There are, however, some other nice options: The Brome-Howard Inn of St. Mary's City. And the Victorian candle Inn. Here is a complete list of hotels, campgrounds and other accommodaitions in the county.

Added bonus: if you go to Point Lookout on the weekends when it's warm, you will probably see a lot of folks from El Salvador cooking up carne asada, playing soccer and singing. When we were there, we even saw a couple of baptisms.