Everything worth doing.Within 20 minutes.

Garrett County's only winery, a short drive from the lake near Friendsville, minutes from Wisp and FireFly Farms. Paul Roberts and Nadine Grabania have run the estate more than fifteen years, working European-style and natural wines from Maryland grapes, some grown on-site. Small enough that a Saturday tasting feels like a conversation with the winemaker rather than a pour-and-move-on line.

Crab cakes and a patio with its own outdoor bar on Glendale Road, across the bridge from the main Garrett Highway strip. Weddings and events fill the calendar on summer weekends, so a walk-in dinner works better midweek. The lake view from the deck is the reason regulars tolerate the wait for a table in July.

Sits on the shore at the lake's widest point, which makes the deck the pick for watching boat traffic work the main channel. Craft cocktails get more attention here than at most Deep Creek kitchens — ask what's new before defaulting to a rail drink. Reserve for a Friday; the bar side seats walk-ins most other nights.

Fifty-plus years running as the lake's default lakeside hangout — the kind of bar regulars measure summers against. Casual food, an outdoor deck over the water, and live music most weekends from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Go by boat if you can; the dock fills before the parking lot does on a Saturday afternoon.

Steaks, seafood, and a bourbon list deep enough to spend an evening working through, on Deep Creek Drive near the marina cluster. The crab cakes and crab soup get mentioned as often as the steaks — order both before deciding the kitchen's specialty. One of the few McHenry dinners worth booking ahead on a summer Saturday.

West Virginia brewery's Deep Creek outpost on Garrett Highway, wood-fired pizza alongside the year-round lineup. Cold Trail Blonde Ale and the Miner's Daughter Stout are the two that travel best with a slice of the wood-fired pie. Big open room built for a group that can't agree on plans — order a pitcher and split the argument later.

Newer taproom on Deep Creek Drive with the lake and mountains actually visible from the outdoor seating — a view the older breweries on Garrett Highway don't have. Wednesday and Thursday run short, 3 to 8; Friday and Saturday stretch to 9 with live music some nights. IPAs rotate fastest — ask what's newest rather than ordering from memory.

Garrett County's first brewery, on Main Street in Accident, twenty-some minutes from the lake — a farm-to-table kitchen built around Oakheart Farms' own Scottish Highland beef. Smash burgers and smoked pit beef sandwiches pair with eight taps that turn over often. A second, smaller location runs on Alder Street in Oakland. Closed Tuesdays at the original; Mondays at the Oakland spot.

The lake's central public anchor — a mile of shoreline, two lifeguarded swim beaches, 20 miles of hiking and biking trails, and a 112-site campground open mid-April through mid-December. The 6,000-square-foot Discovery Center covers black bears, the lake's watershed, and the region's logging history for a rainy afternoon. A nominal day-use fee applies year-round.

Home to Muddy Creek Falls, Maryland's tallest waterfall, plus several smaller cascades and a stand of old-growth hemlock that predates the state park system itself. The 1.4-mile loop trail hits every waterfall and works for a family with young kids. A 5.5-mile trail connects here from Herrington Manor for anyone doing both parks as one hike.

A 365-acre park built around its own 53-acre spring-fed lake — swimming, canoeing, and twenty furnished log cabins that rent year-round, Saturday-to-Saturday in peak summer. Twelve miles of hiking trails ring the property, including the loop that runs 5.5 miles one-way to Swallow Falls. Quieter than Deep Creek itself, and the smaller lake warms up faster in June.

Handmade goat cheese creamery and tasting room on Main Street in Accident, running more than twenty years on milk sourced from family farms within thirty miles. The wine-and-cheese tasting is the move if you're making the drive out — award-winning cheese, a short pour list, and a market counter to take some home. A genuine detour, not a drive-by.

Friday-afternoon market in the Garrett College parking lot, late May through early October — produce, artisan goods, and prepared food from a rotating list of Garrett County growers. Three to six, later than most lake-town markets, which works for anyone who's spent the day on the water. Smaller than Oakland's market but closer to most rentals.

The main public ramp, open 24 hours weather permitting, four-vehicle-and-trailer capacity, with restrooms and a pump-out station on site. Free voluntary boat inspections run Memorial Day through Labor Day to catch invasive species before they hit the water. The most central launch on the lake, which also makes it the busiest by mid-morning on a summer weekend.

Full-service marina renting pontoons and speedboats alongside kayaks and paddleboards — the wider range covers a family split between a lazy float and someone who wants to actually drive the boat. Office and service center both on-site, which matters if anything needs attention mid-week.

Maryland's only ski resort, 33 slopes and 11 miles of trails lit for night skiing most of the season, roughly early December through late March. The same mountain runs a mountain coaster, scenic chairlift, mini golf, archery, and disc golf all summer, plus lift-served mountain biking. A High-5 Pass bundles five summer activities into one ticket rather than pricing each ride separately.

Maryland's tallest waterfall at 53 feet, inside Swallow Falls State Park and reachable via the easy 1.4-mile loop trail. Runs hardest during spring snowmelt and often freezes into a solid sheet by January, which draws its own crowd of ice climbers and photographers. The old-growth hemlock along the approach is nearly as much the point as the falls themselves.

A 1,900-foot man-made whitewater course on the mountaintop above Wisp — a recirculating river built at elevation rather than diverted from a natural one, one of only a handful in the world. Hosted the 2014 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships. Guided rafting and inflatable-kayak trips run for the general public, not just competitive paddlers — one of the few genuinely unusual things to do here that has nothing to do with the lake itself.

A 6,000-square-foot nature center inside Deep Creek Lake State Park covering black bears, the lake's watershed, and the coal-and-logging history that shaped the region before it was a resort. Daily programs run through the season. The rainy-day answer when the beach plan falls through and the group still wants to be at the park.