A Day at the Beach`

I needed a getaway. I needed to go somewhere fun. I wanted to go play outside. Unfortuently, it's October and that means one thing - ragweed. Outdoor activities are pretty much out, until we get our 1st freeze, which usually occurs mid-Nov (ugh.). I'd read somewhere that the beach was pollen free. I wasn't sure I believed that but the beach is only 3 1/2 hours away and if I could enjoy a day outside it was certainly worth it.

I decided that I'd go out to Assateague Island National Seashore, even though it's quite possibly the furthest beach from my house! I was thinking that it would be a good opportunity to get another stamp in my passport and it would be more "outdoorsy" than the beaches at Rehoboth and Ocean City.

I'd thought if I left home by 7 or 8am I could be at the beach by lunch, I could stay until 4 or 5 and get home by 8 or 9pm. I was a bit nervous about driving back over unfamilar roads (in the rural sameness of Delaware and Maryland!) after dark. I left home at 8:00, a bit nervous about the long drive and the possibility of feeling miserable on the drive back. I stopped to get gas and it was 15cents cheaper than it had been the last time I got gas, so I took that as a good sign! And then when I stopped at a Royal Farms (kinda like Sheetz or WaWa) in Seaford, DE and saw that gas there was $2.99 I knew it was a sign! :)

I arrived at Assateague about 11:45 (exactly 3 1/2 hours after I left the gas station in Lake Ridge!) and went to the visitor center - got my passport stamped and got a map. I then headed out across the bridge and on to the island. I drove to the furtherest point I could then got out and walked the beach. I enjoyed a picnic on the beach and walked about a mile down the beach and back. There weren't that many people there - most people were surf fishing and had driven their cars on to the beach (over sand vehicles are allowed at the far end of the park). There was also a bunch of horseback riders.

The pictures below are a bit out of order, I uploaded them to blogger not realizing that it was putting the new ones on top!), but I hope you enjoy....

The requsite "sign" picture!

There are 2 "trails" on this portion of the island, a dunes trail and a forest trail. This was taken on the forest trail that lead to an obersavtion tower over the bay and the marshes. This lone egret was hanging out quite a distance away - Iwasn't sure if it was a bird or a bouy with the naked eye!

A view of the bay and the marsh from the top of the observation tower.

This is a different egret. There was a place where you could walk out on the marsh and people could go crabbing and clamming and this egret was sitting all by herself (himself?) in the middle of a piece of land pretty far from the parking area. I walked out there and she/he put on quite a show - I got pretty close (but I still had to use the zoom to get this picture!) and he/she didn't make any moves to fly away.

There are 2 main parking areas for beach access - this is at the north beach area, not close to where the cars can drive on the beach. In the distance you can see the big hotels at Ocean City. Also the beach further north is much more crowded than the beach where I was - there is a Maryland State park on Assateague, I'm guessing that their day use fee is lower than the National Parks which is why more people were there. That's fine with me! :) This was along the road into the park - there are 7 white birds in this picture - I'm guessing they are the same egrets that I'd seen at the marsh.

The other trail is a trail through the dunes - each trail is about 1/2 -3/4 miles. This trail was very hard to walk on because the trail bed was soft sand!

These yellow flowers were everywhere at the southern beach access point. They were all over the dune trail too. I didn't see them at all on the bay/marsh side of the island.

In the middle of the dunes trail there was a little observation platform. You can see the ocean lust above the trees.

Some footprints in the sand. I'm not sure what animal made them.

A very cool butterfly on the plentiful yellow flowers!

Assateague is famous for it's wild ponies! I saw a few "herds" - they might have been all the same poines though - along the road.

There were only a few birds on the shore - mostly gulls - this one is probably a gull, but he/she looks different from the other gulls.

Looking north up the beach from the southern beach acess point. You can see the car on the beach and the fishing gear. The ocean water was warm and just before I left the beach I put my daypack down and waded into the surf. Not exactly swimming but I was throughly wet when I was done! It was fun, until I had to walk all the way back across the beach and I was wet and the sand stuck to me like glue!

On the way back the sun was shining though the clouds and it created this cool rainbow in the cloud!

This shot was taken from the bay bridge as I was zooming across! I was grateful that I'd made it though the trick ruralness of DE/MD before it got dark (from the bridge home is easy -50 to 495 to 95), and now I know the way so next time I go out there I can stay later and drive home in the dark.

I stopped for dinner in Annapolis and got home about 8:30. It was a wonderful day! I spent 5 hours outside and had no allergy symptoms! The beach seems like it's a good "pollen free" day trip location! I think next time I may explore Cape Henlopen and Rehoboth beach area since it's about 20 miles closer!