Delaware Seashore State Park has two different ways to explore, experience, and enjoy the Inland Bays this summer. Every Thursday, there are two pontoon boat trips that travel from the Indian River Marina through the waters of Indian River Bay. One’s interactive; one’s idyllic.

The morning trip is the Estuarine Ecology Tour. While almost every boat tour offered anywhere these days talks about ecology, this trip is a little different. It’s a hands-on experience in which you participate in basic scientific research. Participants help collect and analyze water samples taken from several locations in the bay. Using both old and state-of-the-art equipment, the samples are tested for salinity, turgidity (that’s a measure of murkiness for those who aren’t crossword fans), oxygen levels, and nutrients. It’s kind of fun to us semi-Luddites to see that the two types of equipment are usually pretty close in their numbers, especially when the new gizmos are super-pricey.

You pick up some interesting factoids, like the depth of the Indian River, Rehoboth, and Assawoman Bays is generally only about 5 feet. If the pontoon boat sinks, put on your life jacket, jump overboard, and walk to shore. A touch tank stocked with saltwater denizens gave everyone a chance to check out co-inhabitants of Delmarva’s water. The most popular was the she-crab who was heavily laden with a bright orange sponge of eggs. We placed her almost reverently back into the water with encouragement for her to live long and prosper.

The afternoon trip is pure enjoyment. It’s a leisurely cruise along the coastline, checking out the wildlife and landmarks and learning about past and present human history and human impact on the Bays. Keep your camera handy, because you’ll certainly see osprey, Great Blue Herons, and shore birds. And there’s plenty of time to sit in the sunshine and wave at the boaters who’ve dropped anchor in what they hope are prime fishing spots.

The trips are offered every Thursday through Labor Day, The Estuarine Trip leaves at 10 AM from the Indian River Marina in the good ship “Sand Dollar.” It’s a two hour trip and costs $20 per person. The afternoon pleasure cruise leaves the marina at 1PM for a 90-minute tour. The cost is $18. The “Sand Dollar” has limited seating, so reservations are strongly recommended. Call 302-227-6991 for more information and to make reservations.

Dedicated wine stores are few on the Eastern Shore. But we locals know to pull into the Exxon stations that are also The Wine Rack stores. Behind the displays of Cheetos, Pringles, and soda-and-beer coolers are shelves well-stocked with surprisingly extensive and sophisticated inventories of wine. The four stores have the same owner, but each is managed individually. Which brings us to The Wine Rack on Rt. 13 in Fruitland and manager Wayne Moore.

Wayne loves wine the way Julia Child loved cooking. He’ll rapturously explain every moment of a wine’s creation from choosing the grape to planting the vine to picking the moment of harvest to the fermentation and the blending all the way to who designed the label and how the winery chose its name.

In his job, Wayne visits a lot of vineyards and attending tastings. Often the wines he likes are not available in Maryland because none of the wholesalers carry them. But he’s not willing to see his customers suffer such deprivation.

So several times a year, he works with one wholesaler to navigate the Maryland’s Byzantine liquor laws and import cases of otherwise-unavailable wines. Not just a few cases. Hundreds of cases, stacked hip-high in the aisles. Not just a few labels. Over 200 different wines from nine countries. These are good wines, too. He concentrates on smaller U.S. vineyards and European, Australian, South African and South American wines you generally only read about in wine columns.

You’d expect to pay premium prices for these wines, but here’s the real kicker: because he eliminates two middlemen from the ordering process, the wines go on sale at the “c’mon, you’re kidding me” price of 6 bottles for $29. Not to mention a 10% case discount. Yes, your math is correct. That translates to $4.35 a bottle.

Wayne spreads the cases around the store, puts some bottles on display, and shoots out an e-mail that his wine sale is on. It’s part treasure hunt, part Halloween trick-or-treating, part kids in a candy store as you pull a bottle from the cardboard box, check the label, and decide if it’s something you’re interested in. Wayne and his equally knowledgeable assistant, Charles, are on hand to answer questions, make suggestions, and convince you that as long as you’ve picked 9 bottles, you shouldn’t put three back, but may as well go for 12 and get the case discount.

The wine sale continues until the inventory is exhausted. That only takes a week or so. The only way to learn about it aside from signing up for the e-mail list in the store is word-of-mouth. The store doesn’t have a web site or e-mail. And while he has a rough idea of when the shipment will arrive, Wayne himself doesn’t know that his sale is imminent until the truck pulls up.

The truck got in on Friday.

Have fun!

I did.

JULY 5

Bethany Beach Parade, Noon. Last event of the holiday weekend.

JULY 6

Rehoboth Beach Cottage Tour. Annual chance to look inside traditional and recently constructed beachfront cottages. Vicariously live the best of the beach life! $30, 10-3. www.rehobothartleague.org

JULY 8

Thursday Concert at the Park. Matapeake Park, Queen Anne’s County. D’vibe & Conga. Free. 7PM

Bonfire on the Beach. North Division St. Ocean City. 9PM Free. www.ococean.com

JULY 8-10

Tuckahoe Steam & Gas Show. How it was done before John Deere. Threshing machines, shingle sawing, smithing, antique steam and gas engines. 100 flea market stalls, 20 or more craft vendors. $6 adults. Children under 12 free. www.tuckahoesteam.org

Nanticoke Riverfest. Wild & wet weekend. Canoe & kayak races, duck dash, shopping, entertainment, vendors. Special displays about the new Capt. John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail. The highlight is the annual ‘float in” on Saturday evening. Inner tubes and whatever other floatation device you can contrive bob down the river. Shuttle to put-in site. Registration $1. www.nanticokeriverfest.com

JULY 9

Second Friday Art Walk. Onancock, Berlin. Stores, galleries, studios open late. Artist receptions. Special events.

Dance & Dine in Manokin Park, Princess Anne. Bring a blanket or beach chair, enjoy Colin Carroll’s folk music, bring a picnic or buy from the food vendors. 6-8 PM

JULY 10

Second Saturday Art Walk, Cape Charles. Studios, stores, galleries open late. Special events, artist receptions.

Cape Charles Harbor Party. Live music, hot food, cold drinks. 6PM until. At the Cape Charles beach. 757-678-0010

Lewes Historical Society Summer Craft Fair. Juried show of the finest Delmarva craft artists and artisans. Outside on the beautiful, shaded grounds of the Lewes Historical Society, which is reason enough to attend. $5. 9-4. www.historiclewes.org

Touch-a-Truck. Kids get to clamber around and on Fire trucks, dump trucks, cranes, ice cream trucks, police cars, tractors, and other vehicles. For Kids. Get it? Dads are supposed to act like Dads and stay off. Ha! At the K-Mart in Rehoboth. $5. 10-2. Proceeds benefit March of Dimes.

Sundaes and Sunset, Layton’s Chance Winery, Vienna. Enjoy the sunset, chase fireflies, chat and relax the week’s strain away. Sundaes for adults are topped with Joe’s Cool Red wine. For kids, chocolate. $5 adults, $3 kids. 6PM. www.laytonschance.com

Taste of Cambridge & Crab Cook-Off. Downtown block party with lots of food and drink and entertainment. Throughout the downtown. 5-10PM $25. www.cambridgemainstreet.com

JULY 11

Art on Somerset Street. Local artists display and sell their work on the Somerset Street pedestrian plaza. Free. 4-8 PM. www.artleagueofoceancity.org

Capt. Quint Jimmy Buffett Concert. Wind up the weekend with the Parrothead vibe. At the Bethany Beach Bandstand. Free. 7:30.