Local travel: Crumpton
What could be more romantic than waking up at the crack of dawn and driving to what feels like the end of the earth to stake you claim on a wrought-iron table, a worn-out ukelele or a trunk full of old doll's clothes?
Well, if that sounds like your idea of fun, you won't want to miss Dixon's, the auction house in the tiny north Eastern Shore town of Crumpton. You could make it a late Valentine's Day getaway.
Crumpton has waterfront, a sliver of it anyway, and it's only about 10 bendy miles from Chestertown. It doesn't have a stoplight, or much of anything, but follow the trail of cars going to Dixon's every Wednesday and you won't go wrong. You have entered the biggest antiques auction on the East Coast. Park wherever you can find a spot on the grass and start bargaining! Even the delicious Amish roasted chicken will be auctioned off at the end of the day.
Wednesday is hard for a weekend getaway, but you could make a trip out of it by staying in Chestertown or Rock Hall the day before and take the early part of a week off. Chestertown has no shortage of lovely lodging places: the White Swan Tavern if you want something centralized and homey; the Imperial Hotel across the street if you want elegance and a restaurant with delicious oysters; and the Brampton Inn if price is truly no object.
The auction runs rain or shine. You may hear the lore of the guy who bought a $400 rug and sold it for something in the five figures, but I have found in my own Crumpton experiences that it is hard to know what is junk and what is not, so just buy what you like and watch those New York dealers with the sharp elbows.
A quaint Eastern Shore hamlet it is, but the dealers are big city all the way.
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I report on the environment and Chesapeake Bay. A native of West Virginia, I have focused mainly on Maryland's environment since moving here in 1983. Along the way, I've crewed aboard a skipjack in the bay, canoed under city streets up the Jones Fall from the Inner Harbor, and gone deep underground in a western Maryland coal mine. Recently, I have been covering the growth and development transforming the landscape. I love seafood, rambles in the country and good stories. I hope to share some here.
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That auction house is the greatest thing ever made. I spent many a summer days there as a kid when I went to camp outside of Chestertown. The Amish donut stand and pretty much every other food booth there are to die for.
We once bought a bevy of furniture there for twenty dollars, one such piece being a couch for some of the counselors to sit on. It ended up on a beach somewhere where an eagle decided to make a bathroom out of it, and people still sat on it. True story!
Posted by: Evan | February 13, 2008 2:35 PM
I remember the couch.
The fresh pretzels and home made ice cream were alway worth the bus ride.
Plus managing to sneak fire crackers back, despite getting frisked, was always pretty cool too.
Posted by: hcoppola | February 14, 2008 10:29 AM
Have you thought about taking a trip down the Choptank to Greensboro, MD? I've been there and they have a fabulous restaurant called 'Harry's'. Definitely worth the trip - plus it's right off 404 if you are taking that route to the beach.
Posted by: bryanintimonium | February 15, 2008 10:34 AM