The Wild Horses of Assateague Island

You didn’t think I’d give up on seeing the wild horses of Assateague Island that easy did you?

After squinting to see the “fenced” wild horses on the Virginia side of Assateague Island, we hoped in our truck and decided to make the hour and a half drive to the Maryland entrance.

Really, what’s an hour and a half after driving from California? We didn’t drive all the way across the country to have my childhood dream of seeing “Misty” (the horse in one of my favorite childhood books, Misty of Chincoteague) roam free on the beach be contained by a stupid fence.

This drive was filled with more anxiety than before. I know it was silly and certainly childish but I really really REALLY wanted to see the wild horses. It was as if I’d have a life of regret if I didn’t get to see these legendary creatures roaming free on the beach.

I’m not obsessive or dramatic or idealistic, not at all.

It was late afternoon when we arrived at the Maryland side of Assateague.

I held my breath as we drove through the entrance gate. I secretly prayed we would see some horses. (Yeah, sometimes I pray for trite things like that.)

Then I squealed and I’m pretty sure there were some tears.

A wild horse!

He was grazing freely on the side of the road completely indifferent to the crazy girl telling him how beautiful he was and taking pictures as if she had never seen a horse in her life.

Satisfied that there were indeed wild horses on Assateague Island, we went to the visitor center just minutes before it closed so the boys could turn in their Jr. Ranger stuff we had picked up on the Virginia side and we could learn a little more about the horses.

The horses have been living on Assateague Island since the 1600′s. No one knows exactly how the the wild horses of Assateague came to be. Legend is they swam to shore after a Spanish shipwreck. However, the more probable story is they were put on the island by their owners who wanted to avoid paying livestock taxes on the mainland.

Spanish galleon or tax evasion? Hmmmm…..

We drove further into the island and it wasn’t long before I was screetching again.

A mama and a baby or “Phantom and Misty” for us once (still?) horse obsessed little girls!!!

Someone has an itch.

I think I took 200 pictures of these guys and Thing Two loves animals as much as I do.

The horses were every bit as beautiful as I had imagined and so were the beaches.

As we drove around the island, we soon saw there were horses everywhere.

In the campsites.

Hanging around the bathrooms.

This guy just stood by the water spicket for the longest time.

People were petting the horses but I had seen pictures of the horse bites in the Visitor’s Center and having been bite by a horse before I know horse bites are no joke.

But more than that they were almost too wild and too beautiful to touch as if petting them like they were dogs would a sign of disrespect.

As the sun set we found a quiet spot near the beach.

Brent grilled.

And I read Misty of Chincoteague to my two favorite little boys.

Yes I actually brought the book all the way from California. Over the top, I know.

Then we watched the sunset from our little spot of horse heaven on Assateague Island.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

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