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As the largest estuary in North America, the Chesapeake Bay has touched and influenced much of the American story, including early settlement, commerce, the military, transportation, and recreation.
The bay and its surrounding 64,000 square-mile watershed span several states, from New York in the north to Virginia in the south. The bay itself is an estuary stretching from southernmost Virginia to northernmost Maryland, a distance of 180 miles. In textbook terms, that means the bay is a tidal area where ocean water and fresh water mingle.
The Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network connects visitors with the bay's special places through a system of 120 parks, refuges, museums, historic communities, and water trails. It is administered by the National Park Service, which also manages about 10 of the network’s sites. Other gateway sites are managed by local, state, and federal agencies and non-governmental organizations.
The Susquehanna River is the biggest single source of fresh water to the Chesapeake Bay. It gathers force as it moves through New York and Pennsylvania and when it flows into the Chesapeake at Havre de Grace, it does so at an average rate of 19 million gallons a minute, supplying about half of the fresh water in the bay. Other rivers, including the Potomac, also feed the bay.
Strategically located along the Atlantic Flyway, the Chesapeake Bay's diverse habitats and food supply have attracted many resident waterfowl species as well as millions of migratory waterfowl in search of rest and food. Each year, the Chesapeake Bay hosts about one-third of all migratory waterfowl wintering on the Atlantic coast.
Gateway parks and recreation sites offer a wide range of activities. You can take a nature walk at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge or paddle a canoe down the Susquehanna River Water Trail.
Other activities include fishing, hiking, biking, canoeing, nature walks, boating, camping and more.
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Chesapeake Bay is a critical flyway in North America.
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