Monday, May 10, 2010

Wind, Ocean and Horses



No kayaking! We went to Assateague Island, Maryland to get out on the water for what seemed like an eternity away from it. But not this time. The 20 mile long barrier island was getting blasted with high winds all weekend.

I really missed kayaking when we were in Switzerland. Luckily, I found other ways to play in the water there, being so close to the Rhine. This summer I am sure to miss Rhine schwimmen, but last year I missed kayaking.

So this was supposed to be the first trip back in the water. We hoped for scenic bay coves full of wildlife and plant sitings. And maybe a little foray into the wavy Atlantic, if the weather was warm enough. All still in the spring, when kids are in school and beach-bakers are too cold to come out and shed their cover-ups. But it wasn't meant to be this weekend. The kayaks never even made it off the roof racks.

But that didn't stop us from exploring the island and the great parks. We camped at the State Park, right near the ocean. Just one dune separated us from it. It was nice to see a smooth, foot friendly beach. The beaches we visited in Italy were downright painful to walk on in some areas. I made it in the water knee deep. It was pretty chilly, but nice for May. But the crazy wind and blowing sand didn't let us stay at the beach too long at a time. Sort of felt like microderm abrasion, or what I would expect it to feel like if ever I had it.

We decided to go to the National Seashore Visitor Center to get some information. We watched a short film about the wild horses. The first full day brought some rain storms. We had walked through the State Park to get a better look around. Then when the rain came, thunder lightening and blinding conditions, we stopped under the overhanging roof of one of the bath houses for a while to wait it out. Then the sky turned nice again and we headed back to do damage control on the tent situation. One good thing about high winds is that they dry tents out quickly!

The next day, we headed over to the National Park side of the Island to do some hiking. They have 3 short trails that wander through the 3 ecosystems found on the Island: forest, dune and marsh. Each trail has educational signage to tell you what to look for. It was pretty interesting that each ecosystems share a common plant palette. Lots of Myrica pensylvanica, Pinus taeda and Hudsonia tomentosa, as well as Toxicodendron radicans.

From the National Park, we got a better view of the bay, coves and inlets. The whitecaps were still there, so no kayaking that day either. But the wildlife was pretty impressive. The famous wild horses were around, grazing and sleeping. I am no bird watcher, but it was easy to spot all types of shore birds in the marshes. They are really big things. I guess they need to be to survive Assateague's elements. We were lucky enough to spot one of the Island's Sika deer. They are small and always look like fauns. They retain their spots throughout their life.

I was interested to learn that the whole area was once a development, with 9000 homes planned. One nasty storm in 1962 wiped everything out and the idea of development was forgotten. Then the Island was made into parks and reserves. Remnants of one of the old development roads remains along the Dune Trail. It was an interesting juxtaposition of man-made elements and succession.

This scenery of this place was quiet and understated, although the 22 mph winds were not. We went from 85 degree days to 40 degree nights. It was amazing to experience the serenity of a barrier island with little development, against the extreme elements that nature casts upon it.

Next time, hopefully nature will allow us to add kayaking to the itinerary.

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