New Adventure, Lots of questions (Baltimore, Annapolis: to rent, neighborhoods, buying)

[tashacleo]

Greetings!

My husband and I are moving to Aberdeen Proving Grounds in January. We are in our mid thirties with only four legged children. We are a career military family and usually every new move is an adventure and we embrace the experience. Unfortunately we are also watch Gangland on the History Channel and the gangs along the I-95 corridor have been featured a few times... So, I'd like to learn about the great aspects of MD and focus on that instead and get some advice on the area.

1. I've never been a fan of military housing, but it seems as this might be one of he safest options if you want a reasonable commute. Any suggestions on fun, safe, preferably walking communities with a commute less than 30 min? We would prefer to rent but have large dogs. Max budget for buying would be low 300k. School districts are not a concern.

2. What are the must see and do's in the area?

3. Any dog parks, dog beaches, or restaurants with patio seating that welcome dogs?

4. How is public transportation to DC/Baltimore/NYC?

Thanks!

[Njrover0216]

1. My best advice would to stat northwest of Aberdeen and you should be safe. Definetly do not go closer to Baltimore!


2. What are the must see and do's in the area? There is so much to do here in Maryland and the surrounding areas. Six Flags, Baltimore Aquaruim, Port Discovery in Baltimore, Science Museum, Felts Point, Urban Pirates, a trip to Annapolis, a trip to Hershey park...especially at Christmas time. Gettysburg is close by as well.

3. Any dog parks, dog beaches, or restaurants with patio seating that welcome dogs? I only know in the Annapolis area, maybe someone else can help with this one.

4. How is public transportation to DC/Baltimore/NYC? My husband usually travels to NYC out of the BWI train system

[poisonchild]

OMG.....DO NOT WORRY about gangs....lol thats almost laughable. Maybe it was living in Baltimore for 40 years or just seeing a lot in life. APG/Edgewood is an awsome place and has like the worlds largest armament museum if you're into that. Njrover named a few cool places but you can get lost in downtown balto with things to do and see. You have a killer mall right down the road in White Marsh great camping at Elk Neck State Park and better state parks in Western Maryland. I'm big into the nations history and theres tons of it there...battle fields gallore....and don't leave without seeing FtMcHenry all US citizens should go there!
As far as public transportation i'm not much on any public trans. but my recomendations are drive your car close and then take public around if you're not much for city driving.
If you have dogs you gotta be cool people...lol.One thing I always hate is when people exclude where they're moving from for comparison.
My brother is USACE at FtMeade and moving back to NE Baltimore from WesternMaryland around the same time you'll be getting to APG. If you're looking for another person into their dogs maybe I can hook you guys up. He knows everything about the area and into some of everything and would be great to give suggestions and only a local call away . I'd volunteer but i've moved to Pensacola Florida "Home of the Blue Angles!"
See what happens when i get bored and do a city search...I turn into a tour guide ...lol
Poison~~~~~~~~~~~~>

[gavin1177]

Anything near Aberdeen is is fine. You could safely go as far south as White Marsh (although that's quite a drive) and going north of Aberdeen is fine as well. That part of MD is nice

[tashacleo]

Thanks for the replies. I know my mind is running away with itself about the gang activity, but it's never been a worry at all for our other duty stations Unfortunately people tend to emphasize the bad about new places rather than the good.

My husband and I are huge history buffs, so we're really excited about exploring this area. That has been one of the best parts of this assignment at HAAF/ Savannah, GA. We love it here and it's one of the most pet friendly cities we lived in. Yes, are total dog people, we take our furry kids with us almost everywhere. Poison, we'd love to get in touch with your brother if he's up for it. Meeting new people with similar interests is always fun and having a built in tour guide...SCORE! LOL

Nj, thanks for the Hershey tip around Christmas. I did some research and it looks amazing. We may spend X-MAS there before heading to APG.

[poisonchild]

The best way to get in touch with him is through his website Sparkchasers.org he has his e/m link in there. He's pretty active with,and keeps busy running the ships youth program now but if you're also into old ships thats another thing he can tell and show you everything about...lol.He also works on the "John W Brown" a US WWII Liberty Ship in Baltimores Harbor. Drop him a line and tell him your story about moving to APG soon and that you talked to his brother in Pensacola.Get to know each other and let me know how it goes....keep in touch and any questions for me poisonchild@aol.com
=) put something about the Brown in the title so i dont mistake it for spam

[sobo16]

Originally Posted by Njrover0216

1. My best advice would to stat northwest of Aberdeen and you should be safe. Definetly do not go closer to Baltimore!


2. What are the must see and do's in the area? There is so much to do here in Maryland and the surrounding areas. Six Flags, Baltimore Aquaruim, Port Discovery in Baltimore, Science Museum, Felts Point, Urban Pirates, a trip to Annapolis, a trip to Hershey park...especially at Christmas time. Gettysburg is close by as well.

3. Any dog parks, dog beaches, or restaurants with patio seating that welcome dogs? I only know in the Annapolis area, maybe someone else can help with this one.

4. How is public transportation to DC/Baltimore/NYC? My husband usually travels to NYC out of the BWI train system

The ignorance and hypocrisy in the post quoted above is laughable. Advise them to stay away from Baltimore and then in the next sentence recommend that they do 4 things in downtown Baltimore?

If you're in your mid-30s with dogs, there are several neighborhoods in Baltimore City that you would greatly enjoy. There is a lot of history in the city and a lot to explore. Many neighborhoods are quite walkable, and you'll meet plenty of other dog owners in the parks. Many young professionals meet up daily in the parks with their dogs after work. You'd enjoy a 45 minute reverse commute to Aberdeen Proving Ground. I did this commute for a few years, and it was a breeze. Check out the sticky at the top of the Baltimore sub-forum for some neighborhood suggestions.

If you still decide that Baltimore is not for you (I recommend checking it out), Havre de Grace might be an option. It has a walkable downtown, something that is pretty rare in Maryland. And it's pretty close to APG.

Good luck!

[sobo16]

For transportation, Amtrak has an Aberdeen stop on the Northeast Corridor. The MARC train also stops in Perryville, Aberdeen, and Edgewater and continues on to Baltimore, BWI, and DC.