After the gorgeous sunrise we packed up our things and hit the road again. The plan was to cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel and follow the coast up the Delmarva Peninsula.
We were really looking forward to stopping at the restaurant and visitor's center along the Tunnel. Unfortunately, since neither Earl nor myself had traveled this way in well over a decade and a half, our memories of the stopping point being far out into the bay was incorrect.
Or we had always came from the other direction.
In any case, unbeknownest to us, as I snapped this picture we were passing right under our designated stop.
Once over the bridges we seriously considered turning around....
...but, with a promise to the girls to stop "next time" we continued our trek.
After stopping for a great view, of course!
We also made a quick stop at the visitor's center just north of the bay, on the peninsula. They had a great setup with many hands-on things for the kids to get into!
Next stop was one of my family's regular vacation destinations - Assateague Island, Maryland. Assateague and Chincoteague are barrier islands lying along the coast of Maryland and Virginia (going south, the barrier islands become the Outer Banks - another excellent place to visit!). The islands are known for their wild pony populations. Chincoteague, to the south, is more settled, and is also the site of the annual pony round up. Which happened to be happening while we were there.
Needless to say, venturing on to a small island along with 50,000 or so other people is not my idea of a good time. So we passed up Chincoteague and hit the more wild Assateague.
Even it was crowded! Considering the relative obscurity of the little island, we had a hard time finding a beach that wasn't blanket to blanket.
And we did find ponies! Not all of them had been rounded up for sale to fund Chincoteague's fire department.
The beach was fantastic, with soft white sand, gentle waves, and lots of seashells and beachy creatures.
Of course, we dug another hole...
And got our clothes soaked (again)....mental note - wear/bring/make accessible swimsuits.
I met my goal to catch another crab - this time a blue crab!
We did not eat him.
The girls enjoyed checking him out and them we watched him scurry back into the ocean.
After an hour or so of sun, sand, and surf we rinsed off, changed clothes, and continued our journey.......
