Center for Coastal and Watershed Studies

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Frederick, MD
Center for Coastal and Watershed Studies

The CCWS is a center of excellence within Hood College from which we study all aspects of coastal env

09/02/2026

Wednesdays are busy days for some of us here at the Center! Check out the video our student intern, Echo, put together… And you might see a few other familiar faces!

08/14/2026

New project this summer: Baseline water quality testing at Spahrs Quarry! We’ve had a great time collecting field data and water samples for lab work. One of the parameters we measure is Photosynthetically Active Radiation, which is simply a measure of light photons usable by plants throughout the water column. (“Usable” light wavelengths are 400-700nm). Fun fact: This lake, that
once was a limestone quarry, is ~46ft deep!

07/20/2026

These student workers have been hard at work this month, with continued sampling at Cunningham Falls Hunting Creek Lake and at our newest site, Clopper Lake in Gaithersburg! This latter project involves stream flow measurements and vertical profiles throughout the 36ft deep lake, and quite some boat time. 😎

06/25/2026

Yesterday, CCWS manager Catherine, and summer workers Carli, Emily, and Taegan, visited Hunting Creek lake in Maryland’s Cunningham Falls State Park to take part in water sampling!
On this gorgeous day, summer workers learned how to use a Kemmerer water sampler to capture samples at different depths (slides 3-6), and got more familiar with using the YSI to measure parameters such as pH and dissolved oxygen (slides 7-8).
Here at the Center, we proudly partner with the MD DNR to monitor the quality of the lake and compare calibrated data with buoy measurements with the goal of keeping the public safe.

06/10/2026

Our Tropical Ecology course at San Salvador brought many cherished memories, new knowledge of the island’s unique inhabitants (both terrestrial & marine!), stunning views, lots of sun (& bugs😳), closer friendships, and lasting connections from this experience. Enjoy these glimpses into what we’ve been up to the past 2 weeks!

06/02/2026

Bahamas Day 7. The group split up into 2 for either a morning or an afternoon boat trip further out into Graham’s Harbour for some snorkeling, passing by an island with many tropic birds, and stopping at an island to see iguanas!

06/01/2026

Days 5 & 6 on San Salvador Island… Lab time, revisiting Sue Reef, a visit to the straw market, snorkeling in a tidal river called Pigeon Creek, lunch and time to explore Monument Park & Lindsey Reef.

05/30/2026

The past 2 days here on San Salvador Island involved studying, snorkeling at Rocky Point, snorkeling Sue Reef, and listening to a lecture from the owner here at GRC. Check out some of the photos!

05/28/2026

Bahamas Day 2. In the morning we snorkeled Dump Reef, and in the afternoon we hiked North Point!

05/27/2026

Our Tropical Ecology class is in the Bahamas for the next 10 days! Today was our 1st full day here on San Salvador Island. We spent the day snorkeling in Graham’s Harbour. Our species list is well underway with different sea grasses, coral, and a few fish spotted today! Bird sightings included American kestrel and Bahama woodstar.

Address

401 Rosemont Avenue
Frederick, MD
21701

Website

http://www.hood.edu/CCWS

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