Posted August 8, 2021 – Narrated by Carmen
“When the good times come around, they gallop in like wild horses. You just try to stay on them for as long as you can”
For the most part, the wildlife we see is printed on road signs …
As feral free-ranging seniors, living in the great outdoors of North America, one would think that by now we’d have spotted a real live moose in the wild.
Nope. Not a one. Grand Teton’s, Canada, Indian Lake, New York, home of the Moose Festival … and still no moose.
Bears? Okay, we’ve seen two juvenile brown bears foraging for wild apples near the road in the Canadian Rockies. But, for all the months we stayed in The Florida Keys, we never spotted a single Key Deer – not even when we drove thirty miles out of our way on Key Deer Boulevard to a sanctuary.
Yup, we couldn’t even spot a Key Deer in a Key Deer Refuge.
It’s all about priorities.
I love wildlife.
And the best places to view wildlife is anywhere Jim doesn’t have to drag my lazy bones out of bed at 0-dark-thirty to beat the crowds and traffic. Yeah, I’m talking about you, Yellowstone National Park.
It’s rare to find an uncrowded place where people of average ambition can observe free-ranging animals at a decent hour in the middle of the day. We reserve early morning and dusk for more important things, like sleep and Happy Hour.
Three places to view animals at non-bothersome hours (for both us and the animals) are: Teddy Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota for wild horses, bison, and prairie dogs galore; and Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge in Chassahowitzka, Florida for manatees and water fowl.
And, our newest find … Tada! … Assateague Island National Seashore in Maryland for migrating birds, protected osprey, snakes, sika, fox, horseshoe crabs, turtles and, of course, “wild” horses.
Getting There
On April 15th, we took the ferry from Okracoke Island and drove out of Hatteras. Then, deciding it would be a shame to rush this epic 297-mile coastal drive, we stopped overnight in Grandy, North Carolina because we brake for beer and brats.
There we enjoyed a solid German meal and a remarkable beer tasting (wow, we liked them all!) at a delightful family establishment on the list of Harvest Hosts participating businesses – The Weeping Radish.
A light, cool rain fell throughout the night and the next morning we woke to a partly cloudy blue-bird sky. Perfect conditions for some spontaneous sightseeing.
Wonder called. What a great day to explore. Let’s eat!
The weather conditions were ideal for some outdoor dining at The Kill Devil Grill before …
a stroll along America’s greatest airfield, The Wright Brother’s National Memorial, where on December 17th, 1903, Orville and Wilbur tested The Wright Flyer, their first successful flight of a motorized aircraft.
The experience had a powerful effect on us. We felt as if we were being drawn into the moment, as we also considered how much the world has changed in 118 years.
Maybe that’s why I experienced my own breakthrough – or maybe it was that glass of wine with lunch – but, for the first time, I faced a very long tunnel …
without freaking out …
… or lying down on the floorboard with sound-canceling earphones singing “The Lusty Month of May” in a trembling, breathless soprano.
I rode through with no anxiety whatsoever.
Jim showered me with congratulations as we crossed the Sinepuxent Bay via the Verrazano Bridge and onto Assateague Island.
Then, what a delight to enter the park just as the mares were on parade, showing off their new Spring colts.
That afternoon we settled into the Bayside campground (no electricity, water or sewer) for the maximum 14-day stay.
The Ok, Corral
Americans are still in retreat from covid and – from sea-to-shining-sea – the campgrounds are filling up with RVs. So, at least for the present, we are abandoning our free-roaming lifestyle for a less sexy, but okay solution … reservations.
Oh, it’s not so bad. At first we bucked the system but we’ve come to respect the benefits of trip-planning. Yes, being corralled by pre-payments and no refunds for changes and cancellations can be frustrating. But there are some juicy carrots too.
Between our scheduled two-week stays at selected destinations, we like to jump the fence and enjoy an exhilarating one-or-two day gallop through No-Reservations Land. Spontaneity is key to LIB and wandering is one of the best reasons to travel in an RV.
Here on the East Coast, open-range camping on government land is scarce. So, our Harvest Hosts membership is even more important here. With a pre-planned schedule, we can still treat ourselves to a day or two to stop and smell the flowers between scheduled locations. It’s the best of both worlds.
Scheduling keeps us true to a relaxing 4-3-2 pace – our solution for full-timing burn-out – and we can experience undeveloped camping opportunities as well.
Assateague Island
Two states – Maryland and Virginia – straddle the 37-mile long barrier island. Formerly used by the Department of Defense, Assateague Island is currently governed by a tangle of state and federal entities who manage the limited resources.
The Virginia side – managed by the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge – is famous for the Southern Herd Roundup and Pony Penning Day. Marguerite Henry’s youth-novel Misty of Chincoteague brought Assateague into popular culture. The 1947 book and 1961 film about a brother and sister and their encounter with a wild mare – Phantom and her colt, Misty – still captures hearts and stimulates tourism.
No doubt Henry’s pen has also saved the lives of thousands of feral horses and, more importantly, her work still contributes to the environmental protection of this magical place.
In the 1950’s, investors acquired fifteen linear miles of Assateague and sold thousands of very inexpensive lots. A paved road, “Baltimore Boulevard,” ran down the center of the island. The General Assembly approved construction of a bridge linking the island to the mainland. If not for a devastating storm in 1962, Assateague Island would be a tacky, crowded vacation resort.
The Herds
Divided by a fence between the state lines, the horses are separated into two herds. Each herd is managed according to each state’s needs and requirements, with striking differences between them.
The Virginia side is held to a stock-breeding approach because the Chincoteague fire department owns the herd.
Arguably, unrestricted breeding can be tough on this delicate environment. So, Maryland’s herd protection program is a combination of birth-control and natural selection – an earth-friendly approach which supports other species as well – and facilitates a humane solution to keep the herd together.
Though the island is small, a variety of camping environments are available. We stayed on the Maryland side in the National Park, but a Maryland State Park campground is also within walking distance of our site.
Our campsite on the Bayside of Assateague Island National Seashore was only a half-mile walk to the Oceanside campground.
Walking, cycling and kayaking provided all the transportation necessary to navigate the island.
Early Spring, before bug season, is a good time to visit. The mosquitoes had not hatched and the notorious horse flies were not a nuisance.
But, it wasn’t beach weather either. You make your choices.
But some people didn’t mind the high winds at all …
Most days were sunny and cool. Perfect for bike rides on our Dolphin e-bikes and horsing around.
Camping on the bay side, rather than the ocean side, spared us a sand blasting. And we enjoyed the tree canopy occupied by a host of fiercely territorial songbirds who serenaded us all day, and all night.
The two consecutive days of high winds gave us an opportunity to catch up on sleep. We also filled the time playing Five Crowns, binging on Schitt’s Creek, and feasting on Hot Pot – a traditional and oh, so comforting Asian soup. Most of the ingredients arrived in a care package from our friend Cyndy and our son, Chris.
The local fish market provided fresh tuna from the Chesapeake and Sinepuxent Bay.
When the wind finished having its say, a stretch of calm sunny days came out to play. We kayaked in the marshes, hiked the dunes and cycled on the designated bike paths, spotting Sika …
Osprey …
Eastern Hognose Snakes …
And, of course, horses.
“Once I catch you and the kissing starts, a team of wild horses couldn’t tear us apart.“
The Super Pink Moon in April was something to celebrate – but only at home. Because horses eyes do not reflect light, night-driving in the park is discouraged.
So, we lunched in Berlin – America’s coolest small town. And, yes, it was cool.
On Sundays, we hung out at Sinepuxent Brewing Company, in Berlin to drink cold beer and listen to the coolest music.
We still don’t know what to think about Ocean City on Maryland’s Grand Strand. Seasonal tourism hadn’t started up yet. The beach, boardwalk and streets of this highly developed and rather large town were almost completely empty. Hundreds of hotels, restaurants and shops which exist only for Summer business were abandoned … tiki bars, taco joints and Hawaiian shirt stores … the effect was weirdly apocalyptic.
But several locals, and a LIB follower, advised us to check out Waterman’s for an authentic Maryland dining experience. It was cool, and the price was right.
But home is where the horses are …
But, of course, the horses are the draw for most out-of-town visitors. For those lucky enough to live near the park, the herd is their community and many locals can identify each horse by name.
Living with horses is really cool if you remember to watch your step. But, for us, the herd is only part of the magic of Assateague.
The horses compliment this atmospheric landscape. Ethereal as a fairytale, the geography and history and mysteries of Assateague are as softly contoured as a secret.
Where did the horses come from anyway? Were their ancestors the survivors of La Galga, a Spanish shipwreck?
Or were they herded here across the water to be kept out of sight from tax collectors and to avoid costly fence laws?
I can believe all of above, but I’m sticking to the romantic shipwreck story because I was raised on it. So there.
“If I paint a wild horse, you might not see the horse … but you will surely see the wildness“
But the silent, unsung warriors here, are the trees…
standing up to the salt earth and air, and to the rising sea … bearing up against the blazing summer sun and icy winters. Holding their ground, dignity intact until the very end …
and then some …
There is a survival mechanism at work here.
It’s almost supernatural.
Only the scrappy can make it on the crusty edge of the earth, where every plant and creature worth its salt must learn to live, eat and breathe the stuff.
But, if it can survive, it thrives. Self-emancipation is the natural order of things.
Resistant to restraints and exploitation, Assateague evicted the developers. These barrier islands are managing their own retreat from us, not the other way around.
Here, in this relentless expanse of marshland, the fighting spirit of my favorite American disruptor, Harriet Tubman, was born. This is also where the Freedom Seekers gathered the salt to put one foot in front of the other and march.
Conquest and domination hasn’t been great for horses either. Equestrian DNA studies continue, but so far it’s obvious that six-thousand years of domestication cannot be undone.
But, when domesticated horses survive abandonment and roam in herds, they have a better chance of working out their origins and purpose.
Left to browse naturally and to breed freely, the exterior signs of servitude diminish with each generation and their proportions change from that of a beast of burden into an animal – wild, free, and highly opinionated.
“Blame it or praise it, there’s no denying the wild horse in us.“
And that’s what we came to Assateague to see with our own eyes, plain and clear, in the full light of the sun, at a proper hour of the day, between brunch and Happy Hour.
What do horses look like when they are not living an existence that is designed for my comfort, protection or amusement?
Absolutely nothing like a moose, unfortunately.
A horse is a horse.
If you want to see our exact route, click here.
*photos in this post (unless otherwise noted) were taken and copyrighted by Living In Beauty.
Hello we are traveling in our 2016 FC and have just visited Chincoteaque Island! Stayed at the KOA! You can follow us on Instagram under Beadotcalm! We are enjoying your travels! Bea aka Liz
Hey Liz! Thanks so much for being with us. Sounds like you enjoyed the area. We will visit your IG account.
Safe and Happy Travels!
LIB
We kinda did the reverse trip: Ocracoke is our old favorite, the wife hadn’t seen Assateague light (and it’d been since I was a little fella that I’d been there), so last month, we went to Chincoteague for a few days, then drove south to Ocracoke for the rest of a week. One interesting thing on the trip: while going through one of the tunnels on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, the aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower passed over us….
Hey Leslie!
Exactly. Most people don’t think about those things when they’re driving through a tunnel or crossing a bridge or taking a ferry. But I do. Ohhhhh yes. I keep the odds in mind while I imagine everything that can go wrong.
Last year we overnighted in the parking lot directly under that Memphis bridge which closed for months due to serious corrosion. Tunnels, bridges, ferries … every time we make it I feel like we just dodged a bullet. I hope the infrastructure bill will be signed and work will begin ASAP.
Thanks for sharing.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Great read, thank you…
You’re welcome, A!
Thank you for being with us.
Safe and Happy Travels!
LIB
Love your post and beautiful pics! (May I borrow your Jimmy Buffett quote?😉)
Hey Lula!
I think you’d better ask Jimmy about that 😉
It’s a good quote. Life moves fast and good times move faster and the older we get the more important it seems to hold on.
Wonderful to hear from you Lula. It’s good to know you are well.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
I was in Maryland and wanted to go there but didn’t have time. I hear it is beautiful. I swear this country rocks.
Hey SK!
Hopefully you will be able to see Assateague someday. I hear that some people prefer it in the middle of winter with almost no one there but the horses moving across the frosty dunes, their noses steaming. That would make some amazing photos.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Thanks! We will be joining you guys in the full time ranks next May – if not sooner!
Hey Lula!
Wow! Will your Airstream have wings?!!!
Best to you as you prepare for The Big Out There!
xoxo,
Carmen@LIB
Amen to that! We love it so much here we host 3 months a year in our Airstream!
Hey Carol!
Wow! You are practically an Assateague resident! Lucky you!!!
Thanks so much for reading.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Fabulous story and great photos! Would love to see these wild ponies
Hey Laura!
Thanks so much for the encouragement We hope you are able to go to Assateague someday.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
I loved Carmen’s writing about Assateague! She has a wonderful way with words.
Hey Jann! Thank you so much.
Assateague is an inspiring place. For years I’ve heard stories about pirate treasure that is still buried there. But my research turned up that it was just an old legend with little to back it up. Seems to me the old story was dug up and re-run to perpetuate a scheme to sell cheap lots on the island. Now, that would make a good comedy. But I can understand how easy it is to believe because the place has such a mysterious pulse.
Thanks so much for being us, Jann!
Safe and Happy Travels
Carmen@LIB
Another great post. Loved the pictures. We were there years and years ago with our kids when they were small and it’s a cool place. Back in those days we had a pop up camper but didn’t camp there. We instead stayed across the bridge at a motel in Chincoteague. We rented bikes for a few days and rode all over the island. After seeing the island and the campground we wanted to go back with the pop up but never made it. So my question is, what did Pico think of the horses? Was he curious? Did he bark? Was he concerned or afraid? Looking forward to the next installment of the LIB saga.
Hey Steve!
Pico has a history with horses.
Horses are the only animal he withdraws from. He treats them with caution and great respect. I don’t know why that is … but I can imagine.
Pico was feral for his first six months. He was born in south Mississippi shortly after Katrina. Abandoned, and living under a trailer on a country road where his previous owner lived, he had to steal food to live.
A woman across the road had a ranch and a horseback riding school. Pico would go across the road and steal food from her big dogs and she could see that her dogs were going to kill him one day. So when she was out riding she’d call him over and he’d respond to her call. Then she would reach down from the side of her horse and he would jump up onto her hand and she’d lift him into her lap and feed him kibble out of her pocket. She did that through the summer and fall thinking Pico’s owner might come home.
Then one cold and stormy day just before an ice-storm the woman called my sister’s animal rescue service to say this little dog needed an inside home for the night. We picked him up just before the storm hit. Next day the ground was covered with snow.
I imagine that in Pico’s quests to find food, he must have had some scary encounters wit the horses and learned some lessons at a very young age. He never barks at them and he turns his head submissively whenever they are near.
Always great to hear from you, Steve!
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Pico had quite the beginning in life! Poor little guy. So glad this lady helped and that you adopted him!
My brother in law has a lab. He was very curious about horses and got a little too close to one. The horse kicked him quite a few yards. He no longer gets close to horses. Maybe the same happened to Pico.
We were there many years ago but could not stand the biting flies and bugs. It was very beautiful but with 3 small children and my mother in law the bugs got the best of us.
Hey Debra!
Thanks for sharing your experience at Assateague.
We wanted to avoid the distraction of bugs. Everything we read warned us about preparing for insects during the warm months. April was breezy and cool with no bugs.
However, the bugs are great for the migrating birds. The entire area is a birder’s paradise.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Fabulous destination and photos, you two. My favorites – other than the wild horses, of course – were the ones with the trees. And the food. Mouth-watering. You have a way with words, Carmen, and I love how you weave some (dry) humor and fitting terms throughout your prose. 🙂
I think it’s just great that you always spend a chunk of time in each destination. We should learn from that. Making reservations would never fly with us, though. I hope our lifestyles of free camping and boondocking at will can resume soon.
Where are you at the moment?
Hey Liesbet!
Lovely to hear from you! Thank you for stopping by.
We’re in the upper peninsula of Michigan right now. Trying to see all we can before harsh weather sets in. Right now it’s cool with frequent drizzles and NO bugs! Maybe it’s bad luck to mention it. Maybe tomorrow they’ll hatch and eat us alive. I guess we hit it on a good year. I’m hoping that when we leave here I will have a batch of insect repellant to donate to someone who needs it more.
Yes, we’re looking forward to some free camping in the west next year! There’s so many places we haven’t seen in Utah, Idaho, Nevada … I could spend a year in those states. Years ago, Jim did the math and he thought that if we spent 1-2 weeks in key areas and did day trips we could cover the entire country in about five years. Of course that was before we were on the road – he didn’t think of maintenance, problems, break downs … So over the years, we’ve modified the strategy.
By the way, we are enjoying your book.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
How did you get so close? We rode bicycles out to the island to see them! Absolutely beautiful!
Hey Liz!
Thanks for sharing your impression of Assateague. Yes, the horses are BEAUTIFUL!
Most of the distance between us and the horses was closed by the zoom lens on my Sony (https://livinginbeauty.net/product/sony-rx100-vii/) I took all photos while standing well more than 40 feet from the horses.
Our camera with a zoom lens is a most indispensable part of our travel. It keeps us from falling off cliffs to get a better look and prevents horse and bison attacks.
I’m serious … It’s easy for me to get carried away and draw too close to danger to satisfy my ebullient curiosity.
Good lightweight binoculars (https://livinginbeauty.net/product/bushnell-legend-ultra-binoculars/) and a zoom lens have probably already saved me from humiliation, wounds and potentially, death. Sadly we have been camping at two parks when deaths occurred from getting too close – a man fell from a promentory at Dead Horse and a toddler died from a deer attack at Yosemite – the parents gave him a marshmallow to offer the deer … just horrible.
Good technology can keep you sane when trying to wrap your brain around extraordinary natural wonders and encounters with wildlife. For me, they are essential life-saving equipment.
We’re currently testing a water-proof camera with a zoom for use while kayaking – and though it is promising we’re not ready to recommend it. We need more time to test it.
Thanks so much for being with us, Liz.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Oh yess. Hope to return there soon….
Hey Domenic!
Then, you must have liked it 😉
If the wild horses are the draw, then there’s an app for that: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/assateague-horse-id/id1236172768 might consider downloading the free app
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Many found memories of all the places you mention. Though I’ve never made it to Assatague. The weeping radish introduced me to brew pubs and craft brewing. The guys submitted to going to the Christmas store knowing we could hit the brewery after.
Hey Barry!
Nothing like a good beer after a Christmas store 😉
Thanks for sharing.
The Weeping Radish rocks! We also bought fresh yard eggs there. The eggs sales were to support a fundraiser they were sponsoring for animal rescue. We bought two dozen. We go through the fresh eggs.
Safe and Happy Travels!
LIB
The flies were very bad when we were there but loved camping among the horses.
Hey Nadine!
You’re a champ to be there doing the fly season. I understand why the place is so buggy – a sign of a healthy environment – but we prefer to avoid buggy areas.
Fortunately there were absolutely no flies and maybe a mosquito or two, but no ointments were required. The mid-Spring weather over Easter week was simply perfect for our range of activities. We’d rather have cool and breezy weather than bugs.
There is a lot of signage at Assateague warning about the ticks. Of course with the horses we expected that dynamic, so every time we took Pico out we spray his scarf with a tic deterrent we found at a pet store at Saint Simon’s Island – and we’re still doing that up here in Michigan. He hates the stuff but it works. He will be happy to be out of tick country.
Thank you for sharing your impression of Assateague Island.
Safe and Happy Travels!
LIB
Wonderful post as always. Another bucket list travel destination!
You’re Yooping It? Look forward to that post!
Remote camped in Kweweenaw Peninsula last weekend. North of Copper Harbor. Hiked 16 miles-scrambling the shoreline and dirt roads.
Sticking closer to home this summer with reservations made 1 year in advance in anticipation crazy busy season at state parks: Perot on the Mississippi, water falls near Superior at Pattison and Amnicon, Lake Superior Shoreline at Pictured Rocks and Lake Michigan at Koehler-Andre and Peninsula state parks.
It’s been an awesome summer!
Hey Dean!
I’ve been wanting to answer your post but connectivity here in the YOOP is the only negative thing we have to say about it. We had to drive to the public library in Paradise to post this blog.
Wow! No bugs! How did that happen? We brought an arsenal of outer wear and ointments but we don’t need them at all!!! Yay! It’s like Hawaii here with gentle thunderstorms and an abundance of kayaking opportunities. We only got a week here, darnit.
So happy you are having a fabulous summer. I can’t wait to be able to get onto FB and see the pics … but here we go even deeper into what we expect to be “no connectivity” land.
As always, wonderful to hear from you.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
The lack of bugs was a welcome relief. The biting flies, mosquitoes and ticks were bad this summer in other parts of Wisconsin and Michigan.
Sticking to the breezy shoreline areas has been much better than inland trails.
Sorry-I haven’t posted Facebook updates for quite awhile.
Safe travels, see you down the road!
Hey Dean! We’re in Door County, Wisconsin and still no bugs. And, despite all the roadsigns, we still haven’t spotted a moose.
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
That’s fortunate!
Friends “Up-North” near Iron River, MI report swarms of mosquitoes and stings from bees & wasps.
Wondering if forest fires have anything to do with the bees or wasps? Do they get displaced?
The last two+ weeks in Central Wisconsin have been horrible. Muggy with round the clock swarms of mosquitoes. Have to cover up just to take my dog out.
I feel for all the wildlife.
Stick to the breezy coastal areas for sure!
But even there, my wife was swarmed at dusk by mosquitoes 1 block from Lake Michigan in Algoma.
Earlier this summer was lovely weather with few bugs.
Guess they’re making up for lost time.
Can’t wait to see your pictures!
Door County has been a favorite place to visit for my family since the 60’s. Memories of day trips in the station wagon. Lots of change but thankfully NO fast food restaurants!
Spring apple and cherry blossoms and fall colors are my favorite times to visit.
Lots of memories!
#1 FOOD:
-Al Johnsons-since they had just one small cafe. Swedish pancakes with lingonberries and meatballs. And if you want real goat cheese-the Scandinavian BROWN kind, they have that too. The history there is rich.
-WildTomatoes. For the best take out pizza. I love the veggie. Or a bowl of tomato soup with their grilled cheese on a brisk fall day. -And a fish boil at the White Gull Inn or Sunday brunch with cherry stuffed French toast and a side of good guy hash browns. I’ve made the drive during Covid just for that.
-Wilson’s I’ve cream and the fudge shops – just because.
#2 camping & hiking. All the little parks are great. And the Dunes as well. But my favorite is Peninsula State park. My dad camped there in the 50’s. And I’ve carried on that tradition. 3 trips this year.
They have a new lookout tower that is over the top compared to the old one.
Something to see year round on the hiking and biking trails.
#3-the less busy areas. Getting off the main drags. The smoked fish shops at the tip of he Door. One near the old ferry stop has been converted to a gift shop. There is a photographer that sells amazing photos of the Door sites there. Including photos of the winding road out to the current Washington Island ferry in fall-before many of the hardwoods died off. And northern lights photos that you’ll swear were photoshopped but they aren’t-I spoke to the man himself.
Up there stop for a pie or dry mix for potato pancakes and jams at Aunt Beas Pies-Ellison Bay. If you’re lucky you’ll get one right out of the oven and have to let it cool on your dashboard like I did. Neat trick with a mosey German Shepherd in the front seat!
#4-Washington Island. My sister was married in the small Stavkirke. It’s like a miniature version on the one near Sturgis SD. And for more history stop in for a taste at the Bitter End.
The list goes on: Seaquist Orchard shop, wineries, the Lake Michigan side.
Most I my memories are from the Bay side and yes-food!
We have 2 more trips and lakeside camping spots reserved for this fall.
Hope you enjoy your stay and look forward to hearing about your visit!
Thank you, Dean! We are whittling away at this list. We’ve had a mild cold (not covid) which we were told is going around. Not sure how we got it because we’re so careful, but we’re increasing our vigilance. I love how the apples are falling off the trees – just something we rarely see. And, so far, no bugs!
No doubt, we will be coming back to upper Wisconsin.
xoxo,
Carmen@LIB
We were there last year and going back again. Wonderful, magical
Hey Debra!
What season do you go to Assateague, and where do you prefer to camp? Among the regular campers we spoke on the Bayside both the beach and the bay are preferable depending on the time of year – The beach side campgrounds to avoid the bugs in the summertime and the Spring campers prefer the bayside to escape the wind.
I think we’d enjoy both and each would make for a very different experience. The beach is absolutely gorgeous and it would be fun to see the horses having a run there.
Thank you for sharing your experience of the island.
Safe and happy travels!
Carmen@LIB
I loved this post! We live close to Assateague and visit it often. It is empty and stunning in winter. We love all seasons there but avoid it during busy summer weekends.
In the off season I visit several times a week taking a couple of my dogs to walk on the beach. Each hour is different – the light changes, the tide rises or falls, the wind changes, the sun travels. One thing is for sure though. After a visit to Assateague my soul is refreshed and restored
Susanne,
Isn’t Assateague the most beautiful place. I realize that the horses are the draw for tourism and we love them, but the environment alone is enough for the body, mind and soul to contend with. It’s all that and horses too. You are fortunate to live nearby – to experience the seasonal changes. We will always be grateful for our two weeks on Assateague Island.
Safe and happy travels, Susanne!
Carmen@LIB
I still can’t get over 14 days without hookups! 🙂 Beautiful post with beautiful pictures. Love the ones of the trees. Just stunning! And Pico in his little winter jacket. Too cute. We’d like to get to that area one day, but will have to do a lot of research beforehand with a 43′ motorhome. (Sorry it took me a while to come and read this)
Hey Brenda! I’m so happy you like the trees.
So sorry for my late response to your post, but we’ve been in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Door County, Wisconsin areas having fun but without a Verizon cell signal for weeks! We have to go to coffee shops to maintain the blog.
Rigs over 30′ are usually too large for most government parks, but we saw many private parks in the area that can handle large motorhomes. I hope you have a chance to visit this amazing area.
So great to hear from you!
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Hi!
Your writing is phenomenal especially in combination with the photos. This is the best and most fun blog I’ve seen. Fabulous. I used to live for first 16 months then a few years later 6 months on Chincoteague Island and nearby captains cove in greenbackville, va.
If you ever go back, don’t miss: the island creamery on ci, best icecream ever. Pico tacqueria – Costa Rican tacos -yum. Canoeing or kayaking at nassawango creek preserve- you probably will be alone there- one of the best canoeing I’ve done-on red house road near snow hill by a small bridge- yes it doesn’t look like a launch site and it looks like it’s mosquito ridden but it’s not – you start at a small creek that widens into a lake or continue to Pocomoke river, which also is fabulous by the way. Snow hill – blue dog cafe- great food, live entertainment by owners to piano music. Hike the short “trail of change”in Pocomoke river state park ( free), shad landing. You can also canoe/kayak or boat here as well as camp for a small cost.
Oh my goodness, Susanne! Thank you for all of these wonderful TIPS! You make me want to be there right now! I could study online all day and still not come up with this treasure trove. We must return! We’re thinking it will be 2023 and see the Virginia side and work on your list.
What a pleasure to have you with us, Susanne!
Safe and Happy Travels!
Carmen@LIB
Jim and Carmen, Regarding the wild ponies on Assateague Island. I thought you might like Walt Morey’s description of one of them..)Morey is the, creator of “Gentle Ben”. Morey said, “The sight of that pony did something to me. He was more than tremendous strength and speed and beauty of motion. He set me to dreaming.”
And when my daughter and I saw them, we too, were set to dreaming.
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Beautiful quote … and I love your Facebook page! Thank you so much, Margaret!
Assateague is like another world and the horses compliment the surreal landscape as if they are unicorns in a mythic land.
https://www.facebook.com/Dont-They-Just-Set-You-To-Dreaming-2277832949150468/