Chincoteague planning help, please
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
| You'll have to pay a fee to get to Assateague beach. If you have a national park pass, take it to use. If you're going to visit lots of national parks this year, calculate whether you should buy an Assateague pass or a yearly pass for all parks. |
Anonymous
|
You might see a launch
https://www.nasa.gov/wallops-launch-schedule/ The timing is very weather dependent. |
Anonymous
Even better- you can get the free 4th grader National Park pass! |
Anonymous
| We love taking one of the pontoon cruises around the island. There are multiple companies that offer tours. |
Anonymous
|
I grew up outside of Chincoteague, and don't get there enough now, but I love it there.
The drive to Ocean City is no joke. At least an hour on back, country roads. But, I love Ocean City and think it's worth it for a day trip as something totally different in terms of vibe from Chincoteague. There are two main ice cream places and people tend to fall into one of the two camps - Mister Whippy is generally soft serve and is delicious. Island Creamery is local made scooped ice cream and is delicious. I am camp both! It could be fun with a youngster to say there's a competition. Some friends of my brother's own and operate Smash Brother's burger truck. They are now set up someplace in Chincoteague - I'm not sure where - but the burgers are tasty! Woody's BBQ is another great place (bring bug spray if you are going to eat outside). If the fair is open, definitely go. Very small town feel. Get a fried oyster sandwich! Rent bikes, rent kayaks. Check out the visitor center for both the National Park service (closer to the beach) and the Fish and Wildlife Service (closer to the entrance). Both offer talks, walks, guided events and are a nice way to really get a sense of the place. (I was a park ranger for the National Park Service for a few summers a while back so I'm biased, but both are great). It is such a great place to visit! Happy to monitor this and answer any specific questions you might have. |
Anonymous
+1 Now is not the time for natural or safe repellant. You need to spray yourself down all day, every day. Renting kayaks is fun because you're not just kayaking across a large body of water, which is always a little boring to me, since there are so many waterways to choose from. Wallops Island is definitely worth checking out as well, especially if your DS is into space and rockets at all. You can get string, chicken necks, and nets and pretty much go crabbing anywhere you can get close enough to the water. I'm not sure if you have an Airbnb or hotel, but even if you can't eat them, it's fun to catch and release. You can also check out oyster and clam farms -- this place has a tour: https://cowboycruisecompany.com/our-tours/ I don't like to eat clams or oysters, but I used to love going to the wharf and watching people shucking the oysters when I was a kid. Have fun! |
Anonymous
If it was a girl, did you name her “Misty?” |
Anonymous
PP, saw after posting that somebody already mentioned “Misty.” Someone beat me to trying to be funny |
Anonymous
and full body armor. I thought I would go for a run through the nature preserve. mad it about 100 ft in and was covered in mosquitoes. they were biting through my leggings. It turned ran out of there. The beach was fine minus the sea lice that came out one day...ugh. |
Anonymous
OP here. This is helpful. I love fried oyster sandwiches— anywhere in particular? Thanks for the description of drive to OC and agreeing it is a doable day trip. I really want my son to get a taste of it —it was a big part of my childhood — but I don’t really want to go as a trip in its own. It’s actually a big part of why I want to go to Chincoteague. My son loves smash burgers— they are his current obsession, and MY brothers used to own and operate a food truck too, so I feel like I’ve got to find it and support it while we’re there. I’ve actually been to Chincoteague and Assateague before but never tried to combine them with OC or been the one planning the trip or doing the driving, so it’s actually those logistics I want feedback on the most. I’m thinking we will drive in Sunday, look around Chincoteague then get something to eat in our hotel room. Monday go to OC. Tuesday bike the wildlife loop thing then go to the beach at Assateague. Wednesday go to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and then head home. Maybe do a short kayak early in the day. Does this sound reasonable? Thanks again for the info. |
Anonymous
Yes, I have never seen so many mosquitoes. |
Anonymous
OC is and hour or so from Chincoteague, VB is 2+ hours. |
Anonymous
| Get a meal at Captain Zacks. |
Anonymous
I think that all sounds reasonable but it is a lot of driving. You can drive to OC on highways, but there's a shortcut that is very rural so just be aware. The Chincoteague Carnival is centered around pony penning, which is the last Wednesday and Thursday that both fall in July (so July 30 and 31 this year). The carnival is weekends in July and the entire week of Jul 28. It's a hometown carnival, and as you enter there are all kinds of booths for food. That's where you get the fried oyster sandwiches, but you can get burgers and carnival food there, too. I just think it's funny that carnival food in Chincoteague is this kind of seafood. (crab cakes too!). So the one thing that I think is a little wonky you wrote is visiting the refuge and the wildlife loop. Those are essentailly the same thing. It's hard ot explain this without a map, so bear with me. Assateauge is a 24 mile long barrier island, and the state line of Maryland and Virginia is right around halfway. Tucked behind the barrier island of Assateague right on thesouthern end is the island of Chincoteague. So to get to Chincoteague you cross a bridge to get on the island. To get to Assateague from Chincoteague you cross a bridge, too. The southern end of Assateague - the Virginia portion, is ALL Fish and Wildlife Refuge, except for the beach on the Atlantic Ocean, and that part is National Park Service. So when you drive across the bridge from Chincoteague to Assateague, you are driving into the Chincoteague National Wildlife REfuge. As you drive through the Refuge, crossing Assateague Island, driving toward the beach, once you get to the beach you are at Assateague Island National Seashore. So, the Fish and Wildlife Service visitor center is the first one you come to, in a wooded area, and you can access the wildlife loop there. As you drive toward the beach, there's another visitor center, and that's Park Service. (side note - the Maryland side of Assateague is mostly National Park Service, but there is also a Maryland State park, and the MD State park has a campground. you access the Maryland side from Berlin - if you were driving up from Chincoteague before you get to Ocean City you'd pass the turnoff for the MD side of Assateague. Also - someone posted earlier about coolers and cars and ponies - that's much more likely ot happen on the Maryland side than the VA side, just FYI). Hope that all makes sense. I would definitely stop at the Wallops Island Visitor CEnter before you get to CHincoteague, it's fun to look around but doesn't take too long. The Smash Burger Truck is called Smash Brothers because it's two brother who operate it. They are nice kids (my brother is good friends with their Dad). funny connection to your brother having a truck. I jut lookd them up on insta at smashbrosesva - they set up on the corner of pension St and Ocean Blvd. |
Anonymous
As someone mentioned, you're talking about the Maryland side. There are no ponies on the beach on the Virginia side of Assateague, which is where Chincotegue is. |