Do you have a favorite book from childhood?
If I did, I can't remember what it is. In fact, while I remember many books that I enjoyed, I really couldn't tell you much about them other than that warm happy feeling you get when thinking about something you love.
I'm not sure I can blame this on being older, I think it's just me.
One of those cherished childhood books was Misty of Chincoteague.
Growing up on the west coast, I never thought I would be able to visit Chincoteague. As time passed, I forgot about Misty and the island of wild ponies.
Then, on our only weekend in Virginia Dave brought up places to see, Chincoteague Island was one of them. I'm not sure I even heard the other options because that little girl's desire to see Misty's island took over and that was it. We were going.
Exploration day (Saturday) began with coffee and breakfast sandwiches at a general store in a charming seaside town near where we were staying. Uncertain of what to expect in the way of food (it did call itself a General Store), we were pleasantly surprised with good coffee, chai, and food to get us going.
The store was more of repository for local artists to sell their wares than the messy convenience type place we expected. I even picked up a few Christmas gifts while waiting for our order.
As we continued on our way via the backroad we discovered some places still have a road to hell. It was, not surprisingly, a very short road.
We also found the Goddard Space Flight Center, a NASA space research laboratory, which would be easy to miss if it weren't for the massive satellite dishes across the road and the extensive fencing.
We explored the small rocket garden, the excellent visitor's center, and wandered down to one of the many viewing points used for watching suborbital rockets, research balloons and research aircraft launches.
Then we were off again! After crossing marshland and water, we finally arrived at Chincoteague.
I don't know what I was expecting but what we found was a charming downtown on the bay side with a lovely homage to Misty in the form of a statue.
And the best antique sign I've seen yet.
A couple of things I learned from this trip. The ponies are actually horses and none of them are on Chincoteague. Instead, they all live on Assateague Island behind fencing distant from the roads and trails meant to keep both human and feral horses safe.
Every year, there is an annual pony swim from Assateague Island to Chincoteague Island which attracts thousands of visitors and is part of week long festivities. The swim is a tradition dating back to the early 1900s when there were no bridges to the islands. The residents would swim the ponies across and auction some of them off to raise money for fire trucks.
Today, the swim still ends in an auction, partially to keep the herd numbers at about 150, the number believed to be what the island is able to support, and to also raise money for the local Volunteer Fire Company who happen to own and manage the herd.
While there are a couple of ways to see the horses, we chose to go to the Assateague Island National Seashore. More National Parks cancellation stamps for the books!
The couple of times we did see the horses, they were at a distance and few in number. Still, it was exciting.
The National Seashore itself is a beautiful place for a walk in the woods and to play on the beach! The trails are well maintained and the beach, while narrow, has soft light brown sand that feels good on the feet.
The day ended with a rousing game of minigolf before the clouds, which had been threatening us on and off all day, finally decided to let loose and rain.
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