Assateague Island National Seashore: a barrier island that is best seen in winter

Winter is the best time to watch Assateague Island change, and it comes without the island's famous mosquitoes. The National Park Service's "National Park Getaway" piece on Assateague Island National Seashore makes the case for a late winter beach trip.

Assateague Island has many visitors throughout the year, human and wild. NPS photo.

An island on the move

Ocean wind and waves remake the island every day, and its life has adapted to an existence on the move. Assateague is one of the largest undeveloped mid-Atlantic barrier islands, with intact coastal habitats where natural processes can unfold with little or no human interference. Many of its aquatic and land species are rare, uniquely adapted to life at the edge of the sea and dependent on those natural processes. Habitats run from ocean to bay: beaches, dunes, grass and shrublands, freshwater wetlands, maritime forests and salt marshes.

Horses and birds

Wild horses are probably the island's most famous residents. NPS photo.

The wild horses of Assateague descend from domesticated animals brought to the island long ago. The ones that survived the scorching heat, abundant insects and stormy weather formed a unique wild horse society. The park asks visitors to watch them from a distance, as living cultural resources. Winter is also among the best times for birds: many ducks and geese overwinter in the seashore's waters, and early migratory shorebirds and songbirds stop over on their way north.

What people left behind

The Assateague Beach Coast Guard Station on Toms Cove is on the National Register of Historic Places. NPS photo.

The seashore holds locally and nationally significant cultural resources, from U.S. Coast Guard stations and boathouses to archeological objects and sites. They are what remain from the relatively brief periods when people lived on the island, and together they tell of people's inability to gain a permanent foothold on a constantly changing barrier island.

Planning a winter visit

Winter on Assateague is often colder and much windier than on the nearby mainland. The park suggests dressing in layers and bringing sturdy shoes or hiking boots for the trails and beach, plus rain gear, hats, gloves and sunglasses for changing weather.

Camping is a popular way to experience the park throughout the year. NPS photo.

Visitors can camp, drive on the beach in an oversand vehicle, watch the stars from a campfire or explore on their own year-round. The piece lists expansive seascapes, panoramic views, natural sounds, ocean breezes and dark night skies among the draws. It is part of the Park Service's National Park Getaways series, which helps people find new places to connect with nature, history, family and friends.

Sources

• National Park Service, "National Park Getaway: Assateague Island National Seashore" (https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/getaway-asis.htm); the source gives the horses' age on the island in a garbled form, so no age is stated; rewritten in hubnx's own words.