Dr. Norene Moskalski
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Mahon Beach, Delaware

3/9/2012

11 Comments

 
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Mahon Beach Is Ideal for Field Trips for Earth Sciences, Biology, and Geology Courses --- Plus Local History, Fishing and Bird Watching!

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Entrance Road to Mahon Beach

East of Dover, Delaware, Port Mahon Road extends nearly four miles from Delaware Route 9 toward the remains of an old fish factory and adjacent piers along the western side of the Delaware Bay. 

The area is an excellent bird watching area and is near the ponds and marshes of the Little Creek Preserve. Since water sometimes covers the road during heavy rainfalls and high tides, there are some eroded areas that drivers must be careful to avoid. 

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Boulders Line the Bay Side of Port Mahon Road.

Boulders and large rocks line the bay side of the road, providing protection from washouts and entertainment for the rock hunting set who love to identify all the different kinds of rocks and minerals here that are so easy to access.   

Planned field trips for Earth Sciences classes and Geology courses would keep students busy all afternoon identifying the various boulders, and granite enthusiasts might enjoy seeing their granite counter top material in the rough.   

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Shore Birds Occupy the Old Pier Pillars

One of the nicest things about Mahon Beach is that the road is so close to the water and the water fowl that persons with disabilities and limited walking abilities can observe nature up close from their cars. 

One of the disappointing things about this beach is that . . . there is no beach here!  There are just a few small coves of sand, covered in stones and cracked shells that the birds have left behind. Bird watchers, however, will enjoy the large variety of shore birds and inland birds present along the bay shore and inland marshes. At the end of the road in the large parking area for the boat docks, there is an osprey nest on top of a tall pole. 


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Modern Piers Stretch Out Into the Delaware Bay
Several long, modern piers jut out into the Delaware Bay, in sharp contrast to the old, weathered pilings still upright about ten to twenty feet from shore. They remain as a testament to the once busy piers that supplied the area's prominent fish factory. 

The local history of Port Mahon and Mahon Beach attracts history buffs and photographers who reconstruct the fallen architecture while people interesting in fishing the bay today set out from three newly constructed boat launches.

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Three Boat Launch Docks Are Near the 75 Car Parking Lot
11 Comments
Mike
3/16/2012 01:30:13 pm

Nice to know more about Mahon Beach! Thanks!

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Anne
3/16/2012 01:32:55 pm

Yes, I've been trying to find this beach for quite some time. Didn't realize it was more piers than beaches.

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Patti Phillips link
3/20/2012 06:32:46 am

Great info about Mahon Beach. You had a wonderful day for picture-taking. :-)

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Connie Cook
4/21/2012 12:27:04 pm

We accidentally stumbled upon this area and I have started researching it. We were so sad to see how dirty and oily the water was...even took pictures because I had never seen black water with the "white caps" that were actually dark gray or "black caps". Why is this? Where is this pollution coming from. Very sad!!

Reply
Norene Moskalski
4/23/2012 12:46:06 pm

You are right, Connie, the water at Port Mahon Beach is sometimes quite dark. One reason may be the mud flats that lie close to shore in that part of the bay. Motor boats churn up the mucky sediment and the oils that have been mixed in with the mud over the years. Residues from the oil refineries upriver may play a role in the shiny water we sometimes see at this beach. If you were there recently, you may have seen residue from the huge tire fire in the Port of Wilmington that occurred a few weeks ago. All the water poured on that fire would have eventually washed the ash into the Delaware River and south past Port Mahon. While this beach is not for swimming, it is still a great place for bird enthusiasts and nature observers. I hope you visit the beach again on a day when the water is cleaner. While you are in the area, try a few of the back roads to see the huge ponds that are being managed for wildfowl. Peaceful and beautiful!

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boat dock supplies link
12/25/2012 06:27:28 pm

Everything you need for your boat safe trip, you can find in one place

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Mary Lou Powers
10/6/2015 11:56:48 am

Hi Connie, can you tell me if you can find sea glass on the little beaches or coves. If you have any other places along the DE Bay or Chesapeake that you know you can find sea glass, I would be eternally grateful.

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EARL FISHER.
2/19/2016 06:50:00 pm

THERE USED TO BE A STORE , AND, AN OYSTER SHUCKING HOUSE. THERE WERE MANY OYSTER DREDGE BOATS THAT RAN OUT OF PORT MAHON , INCLUDING MY DAD 'S BOAT THE BETTY.L.IRVIN JIGGS JENKINS AND, HIS WIFE CLAUDIA, RAN THE STORE. SAM FOXX RAN THE SHUCKING HOUSE. I ALSO REMEMBER THE OLD LIGHT HOUSE WHICH BURNED IN 1984. A LOT OF MY HAPPIEST DAYS WERE SPENT GOING OUT ON THE BOAT WITH MY DAD CAPT EARL FISHER, SR. THOSE WERE THE GOOD DAYS.

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Norene
2/21/2016 08:50:27 pm

Hi Earl,
Thank you very much for visiting my Ecology Blog and sharing your memories of the area with all of us. Those really were the good days, and hopefully, we can imagine some of those memories as we walk around this peaceful site. Thank you for introducing us to some of the important people involved in business and in the oyster industry.

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EARL FISHER
4/3/2016 06:27:22 pm

THE LAST TIME I WENT TO PORT MAHON , WAS IN THE FALL OF 2006. ALL THAT WAS LEFT OF THE DOCKS WHERE THE OYSTER BOATS TIED UP WERE THE PILINGS AND, THE FRAMEWORK. THE ROAD IS ALWAYS AT THE MERCY OF THE BAY. NOT ONLY DID THE BETTY. L TIE UP THERE BUT, OTHERS LIKE THE J.ROBERTS BATEMAN, MAGGIE. S MYERS, FINNEGAN, MARIE , AND, THE CAROL ANN THOMAS, ANNIE R .SHILLINGSBERG. RAN BY HEN BUCKALOO , HARRY BLADES, KENNY WRIGHT, HARRY KILLEEN, SAM FOXX, AND, THE MISS RUTH, RAN BY THORNTON SLAUGHTER. BACK THEN THE STATE BOAT WAS THE RINGOLD BROS ,RAN BY HARRY HAGGARDY. THERE ARE SOME OYSTER BOATS THAT ARE DEAD IN THE MARSHES THERE.

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George Helm
1/21/2019 06:52:01 pm

Notice the pier is a pipeline to a tank farm back on the mainland. What is stored there and who is the operator?

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    Dr. Norene Moskalski can often be found walking the beaches of the Delaware Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, collecting sea glass, weathered minerals, unusual shells, and artifacts from colonial shipwrecks. A naturalist and environmentalist by nature, and a medical diagnostician by avocation, she has a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration and has held administrative and teaching positions at Penn State University and Temple University. She has spent most of her life preparing administrators and teachers to lead and teach ethically with love and respect for everyone. The settings for her novels are authentic vignettes from university campuses and places around the world she has visited. Each novel presents a variation on a theme, using literary techniques and musical innuendos to move the action forward. Her plots revolve around the unexpected: What if the most beautiful things in the world are the most dangerous?

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