Hi from Assateague National Seashore. We're here for four nights primarily to attend Ellyn's sister's Father-in-Law's 80th birthday party and to spend some time with Laura and Jay while they are here from California. A side benefit is that we have the opportunity to visit Ocean City, MD and nearby Assateague Island for the first time. The weather has been a bit chilly in the upper 50's but very sunny. Last night we walked 4 miles on the OC boardwalk with L&J. And today, we biked 8 miles around Assateague Island.
Assateague Island is best known for it's herds of wild horses. We've seen many of them grazing by the side of the road. They look pretty much like regular horses except that they are smaller than most horses I've seen. One fable about their origin is that they swam to the island from a shipwreck but it's well known that early Maryland settlers grazed their horses on the island to evade taxes and it's more likely that some stragglers were left behind. In either case, the herd has been here for more than 3 centuries which is amazing to me.
It turns out that the campgroun doesn't have any hook-ups so we're "dry" camping for the longest time, so far. The clean water and waste water tanks are great for this duration so there's no inconvenience from the lack of water&sewer hook-ups. However, the lack of electricity is a bit more hassle. We have a gasoline generator built into the RV but it's a bit noisy so most parks (including this one) limit its use to daytime hours. We have RV "house" batteries so lighting is no problem for a few hours from the battery. However, the TV and microwave require the generator. Speaking of TV, even in this location, we're getting great digital recetion for several channels - including some HD channels.
One more day here tomorrow - there's still lots to do on our To-Do list including some of the little hikes in the Seashore Park and a bke ride the Ocean City board. We're enjoying the quiet-ness of the off-season visit. Today, we shared a miles long beach only with two other humans, gulls and the plovers. We both decided that it's easy to get used to this retirement life.
Meanwhile, in case you hadn't heard, there's another delay in the sale of our house. The new date for the loan commitment is Wednesday. Can't wait for that to be done with. Our next destination is Ellyn's brother's home just outside Washington, DC - a 3 hr. drive from here.
