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Visitor center hours may vary seasonally but are generally open daily 9-5 a limited schedule is offered January-February. The Maryland district is open daily 24 hours while the Virginia district is open daily dawn to dusk. Lifeguard-protected beaches are open in both Maryland and Virginia districts mid-June through Labor Day.Īllow 1 hour minimum to see the island. Naturalists conduct kayak trips, campfire talks, guided nature walks and clamming and fishing demonstrations daily mid-June through August. Both the National Park Service and the wildlife refuge operate information centers at the southern end.īoating, crabbing, fishing, swimming and camping opportunities are available. General InformationThe National Park Service operates a visitor center with exhibits at the bridge approach to the north end of the island. The island is also a stop-off point during the migration of the once-endangered peregrine falcon and several waterfowl, including the greater snow goose. Both herds reportedly are descendants of a 16th-century herd that swam ashore from a sinking Spanish galleon, although a more likely story is that they descended from local farm horses. There are two herds of horses on the island, including Chincoteague ponies that eat marsh grass and drink from freshwater ponds. The national seashore encompasses 49,500 acres (19,000 of which are land), including Assateague Island and nearby small islands. Assateague Island National Seashore and Assateague State Park manage the Maryland portion of the island, and the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge manages the Virginia end. We thought we would do that at Assateague, but the pricing structure is such that purchasing an OSV permit is only useful if you plan multiple visits.About Assateague Island National SeashoreEight miles south of Ocean City, Md., via SR 611, Assateague Island is a narrow 37-mile-long barrier island paralleling the coast of Maryland and Virginia. We found this pricetag prohibitively expensive for one day of visiting Assateague, even though our truck was raring to go.Īfter living in North Carolina at the beach, we used to love driving out Fort Fisher beach and finding a remote space of sand and waves just for us. Yet an OSV is $70 to be on only the Virginia side of the park, and $90 to use both the Maryland and Virginia beaches (and, again, we entered at the Maryland side given that the Virginia side is immediately an OSV permit situation, while the northern entrance had a good portion of pavement to allow folks to get into the park). To really access the entire area, you need an OSV (over sand vehicle) permit. It is $20/vehicle to get in.Īnd something to know: that $20 only gives you access to a small fraction of the entire seashore. Assateague is one of 112 national park services that charge to get in. We eventually made it through the visitor’s kiosk and check-in using our National Parks pass. But the section of the trip that was o ur visit to Assateague was absolutely lovely (although not without its snags as well). We’ll share more about our trip in its entirety in a follow up post, I am still processing what I want to say. It is full of surprises and opportunities to check expectations and goals. Have you ever worked so hard at planning a vacation you ended up just over-thinking? Have you ever done so much research you just knew what it would all be like then were totally confused when everything was opposite? We drove up the Eastern Shore from Richmond, into Maryland, and visited Assateague National Seashore and Chincoteague Island as a family. I wove and crafted and spun and made myself dizzy until I was sure I had created the perfect potion. When I couldn’t find magic pre-made, I decided I would make my own. I spent hours on my trusty handheld device researching places and ideas, especially in a COVID-world, that might work. Two great forces collided earlier this summer: 1) we bought a used pop up camper and 2) I desperately wanted to go to the beach.
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