USS Constellation, Inner Harbor, Baltimore, Maryland, November 2009. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Boat rack along St. Mary's River (left), St. Mary's City, Maryland, May 2009. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Kayaks (right), Snow Hill, Maryland, June 2018. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Information about licensing, boat titles, and boat registration is available from the Licensing and Registration Service of the Department of Natural Resources. The Department also provides information about public boat launch facilities in Maryland.
The Maryland Water Trails Program within the Department of Natural Resources coordinates the development, promotion, and protection of a system of water trails throughout the State.
Anchors, Havre de Grace Maritime Museum, 100 Lafayette St., Havre de Grace, Maryland, June 2015. Photo by Sarah A. Hanks.
As of December 31, 2021, there were 168,372 registered vessels in Maryland, including over 19,000 personal watercraft.
Sailboat, Patapsco River, Locust Point, Baltimore, Maryland, June 2019. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Canoes (left), Snow Hill, Maryland, June 2018. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Crab boat with crab pots (traps) (right), Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, June 2010. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Chestertown in Kent County holds its annual Sultana Downrigging Weekend Tall Ship and Wooden Boat Festival each fall. It will next be held October 28-30, 2022.
Skipjack H. M. Krentz on Miles River, St. Michaels, Maryland, February 2005. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Annapolis, Maryland's capital city, hosts the Helly Hansen National Offshore One-Design (NOOD) Regatta. It takes place each Spring, and the next one will be held in May 2023.
Sailboats, Back Creek, Annapolis, Maryland, September 2009. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
The Baltimore Boat Show is held each winter at the Baltimore Convention Center. The next show will be held January 2023.
In Baltimore County, the Chespeake Bay Boat Show will be held at the Timonium Fairgrounds in January 20-22, 2023.
The Mid-Atlantic's largest Spring boat show, the Bay Bridge Boat Show in Stevensville, as well as the Annapolis Spring Sailboat Show, are held each April. The next Bay Bridge Boat Show will be held April 13-16, 2023, while the Spring Sailboat Show will take place April 28-30, 2023.
Boats at piers, Severn River, Crownsville, Maryland, May 2015. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
In Western Maryland's Garrett County, the Youghiogheny Scenic and Wild River provides some of the best whitewater rafting east of the Mississippi. Its 20-mile stretch below the Youghiogheny River Reservoir offers whitewater rafting, beginning with class I and II rapids for the first 9 miles, and ending with a class III and IV section the next 7 miles.
Also in Garrett County, the International Canoe Federation (ICF) 2014 Canoe Slalom World Championships were held in McHenry. That international event, on September 17-21, 2014, required competitors to navigate a 300-meter whitewater course in either a canoe or kayak.
Youghiogheny River, Friendsville, Maryland, October 2015. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
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