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By Leslie Adkins

As we drove along, I looked around at all of the signs of nature, smelling the forest around us. As we crossed into the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge we heard, “Have your cameras ready,” from our publisher and driver on this weekend visit, Robert Boswell, who also was calling out camera settings for us to figure out.

Then we headed toward the Bateman information center which is where everyone should begin their visit to this wonderful piece of American earth.

Let’s get straight on where we are. It can be a little confusing. The Refuge is actually located on Assateague Island. Both Chincoteague and Asasateague are barrier islands on the east coast of Virginia, connected only by a short bridge.

The Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge is one of the most visited national parks. It is also home to the famous Chincoteague wild ponies. On this day, we were off to explore and take pictures to share with our website viewers.

As we entered through the main door of the information center, I knew that I had a story to write. I went to the main desk and talked to Bertie McNally, a long-time park ranger for the Refuge. Bertie is probably the face seen by more info seekers than any other, she is always at the desk.

Bertie gave me some information on the eagles at the Refuge that had created so much excitement this summer in 2008 because their nest and just hatched eaglets could be seen on a live cam. The cam drew a constant audience.

We also talked to Diane Wien, a volunteer at the main desk, and with Kate and Tom who were among the visitors enjoying the eaglets on the cam.

I took some notes and jotted down a few quotes for my story. On the cam were two baby eaglets huddled together in the nest, one larger than the other, the larger first-hatched. Soon the parent eagles dropped in for a landing, their beaks carrying fresh fish for their little ones. The fish was fed to their babies in small pieces. It was a little dramatic because the camera is just focused on the nest, so you can’t see them flying in, just swoop, and they’re there. After finishing feeding, the grown eagles dove out of the nest.

After watching the eagles on the camera for a short time, we left to explore the wildlife along Beach Road. As soon as we were on the trail, we saw activity.

The first action for our cameras was a few of the ponies from the southern herd that were grazing on the grass. They were hard to bring close enough with our standard 105-mm. lens. But with our Canon 100 to 400-mm. lens, the ponies came alive, full frame, as if they were right next to us. These ponies, which tens of thousand of visitors come to see, were dining on new shoots of grass that had popped up.

As we came upon Black Duck Trail, which is a biking and walking trail that runs between the Loop and Beach Road, we were surprised to find five northern herd ponies outside of the fenced boundaries. They sensed no threat and actually let us photograph them easily and up close. We caught several clear shots. A week after our visit, Chincoteague firemen and volunteers repaired the fences which had allowed the ponies to escape.

We left the ponies to keep on our schedule. Along the rest of the Loop we saw various shore birds. Mr. Boswell said that many of the photographs in the Wild Pony Tales gallery had been taken along this 3 ½ mile stretch. We also looked in the tree tops for the eagle nest which we had been told was on the Loop, but did not find it.

People say, ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.’ That is also true for spending a day working on a story and taking pictures. We eventually took a break to relax and admire the ocean at the beach, which at this time of year has a few walkers but no swimmers.

Our little break included finding shells and scaring seagulls. We also took some photos of the native sandpipers. After this, we ruefully ended our break. Everybody left with clear thoughts and their own personal treasures.

After our break, we circled back through the park. We soon saw a snapping turtle on the side of the trail, and stopped to take pictures.

“On your bellies. Get in close”, said Mr. Boswell as we took pictures. The turtle, age unknown, which turned out to be a snapper, sat as hard as stone as we took photographs. We got some excellent head-on close-ups. We soon left him, or her, behind.

We rode in silence until there was commotion on the side of the road. We pulled onto the curb wondering what was going on. When we looked, we were bewildered to see a skimmer, a bird native to the beach area, in a creek, perched bravely on a log. He could not keep his balance, and fell into the water. He was not bothered; he just preened his feathers aloofly.

As we passed by Black Duck Trail, the ponies were still grazing. There was a new guest this time; a beautiful blue heron. Some people may think that shots will come again, but this shot was once in a lifetime.

We soon had to leave to get everyone home. It was mostly quiet until we stopped to eat at McDonald’s. I ordered a double cheeseburger with a medium order of fries. Despite my carefulness, I managed to spill Coke on everyone. It took us a while to get the mess cleaned up. We all ate our meal while chatting excitedly about the day. It was sad to have to end such a wonderful day, but nothing lasts forever. It was a short, quiet drive from Chincoteague to Greenbackville. When we got to my house, everyone said his or her short, sorrowful goodbyes.

I know I was thinking how super it was to live close to such a wonderful part of our country and be able to write about my discoveries in the Refuge that I could share with viewers to our website, some even in foreign countries as well as all over the U.S.

The writer is an 9th grade student from Arcadia High School in Accomack County. She and the photographer are regular staff members of www.wildponytales.info. (Both moved on to the 9th grade for the 2008-09 school year.)