Douglas Point Special Recreation Management Area

The Douglas Point Special Recreation Management Area (SRMA) in Charles County, Maryland, offers fantastic opportunities for hiking, horseback riding, hunting, fossil collecting, and relaxing along the shore. Located near fast-paced Washington, D.C., it is one of the last remaining undeveloped tracts along the Potomac River. Douglas Point encompasses 548 acres of hardwood forest and marshes, a picnic area overlook, river shoreline, an accessible historical walk, and hunting blinds. On December 21, 2001, BLM and the State of Maryland jointly acquired about 1,270 acres of land known as Douglas Point, lying on the east side of the Potomac River. Douglas Point is part of the Nanjemoy Natural Resource Management Area (NRMA) which is jointly managed by the BLM and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (MDNR). The management of this property offers a unique opportunity for federal, state, and local agencies to work together in a seamless effort with the public to both protect the quality resources in this area for generations to come, and to allow compatible passive recreational use of these public lands. The Douglas Point tract contains magnificent hardwood forests, historic houses, and scenic views. Douglas Point is one of the most ecologically and culturally significant landscapes in the State of Maryland. The area’s outstanding natural attributes are equally matched by its archeological resources and history, including early American Indian sites, remnants from the Civil War, ruins of the colonial-era Chiles homesite, as well as dozens of World War I-era sunken ships, which now lie in Mallows Bay. Flickr Album