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To See Chincoteague Ponies, Wildlife Assateague Bus Tour Is Best Bet

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By Cyndel Brunell

”What kind of bird is that?”

“How much smaller are the Chincoteague ponies from regular sized horses?”

“Are there any foals this time of year?”

“How deep is the water they swim in?”

If you want answers to these questions and many more you should take the bus tour out into the wilderness of Assateague Island on the East Coast of Virginia. On this ride you will see the world famous Chincoteague ponies and other wildlife in their natural habitat. 

The tour bus begins it 2012 schedule April 6 with a Friday trip at 4 p.m. For current information regarding wildlife tours, or to purchase tickets, inquire at the refuge visitor center or call the CNHA office at (757) 336-3696

The CNHA offers visitors the opportunity to tour the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge during the months of April to November. The tour accesses areas of the refuge that are normally only open to foot traffic. The tour covers approximately 15 miles and lasts about 90 minutes.

Depending on the time of year, foals may be frolicking in the vast forest and bush of the island or mares may be grazing in the saltwater grasses. Always standing guard nearby, is the stallion who commands a band of mares and foals. The bus leaves from near the information center and has now been in operation for a little over six years. In October I went on my first bus tour. The tours are ran by the Chincoteague Natural History Association, a large group of volunteers that supports agencies that run this national park in many ways.

The bus takes you 7 ½ miles out into the wilderness. Inside the bus there is a wheelchair lift, two double seated flip up benches, and individual seats two next to each other going down the aisle. Each seat has a very large window with hatches so you can take pictures without the interference of glass. Some drivers will tell you not to open the hatches, however. Many people from around the world go to the refuge to experience this tour of the island trails.

You can see many ponies of the larger northern herd on this trip, the herd that is kept out of sight of the public until Pony Penning. This is the big event that draws thousands to Chincoteague and Assateague each July. Ponies are not the only animals you will see on this relaxing yet exciting nearly two-hour journey. The smaller southern herd of wild ponies is sometimes seen right from your car on the right side of Beach Road, on the way out to the Atlantic Ocean.

On your bus trip you may also see sika elk, white tailed deer, turtles, egrets, snow geese, hawks, eagles, Canada geese, the glossy ibis and other migrating birds. With any luck you might see a Delmarva fox squirrel, an endangered animal that gets lots of attention from park managers. And in the nesting season you might get a distant look at a piping plover cage that provides protection against predators. The piping plover is a small at risk bird. Each trip promises something new.

The driver will stop or slow down whenever they see something and will normally give you a description of the animal. On rare occasions however, there can be a few surprises that you may not see regularly. Horses sometimes interact with other animals, or a predator bird catching food in a near-view. There are always unexpected happenings on this tour.

One thing is for certain though, you are sure to learn a lot about this historic barrier island from the driver-tour guides. The drivers are very well informed and just full of interesting details. You will most likely be with people from all over the country and even other countries. The questions above the first paragraph were asked on a tour this past summer by guests from Annapolis, Md., Long Island, New York; Michigan and Accomack County.

This is not a rushed tour and it is not expensive. For tour times and prices go to www.assateague.com. One word of caution, there are nice, clean restrooms at the information center where you buy your tickets, but this is the last one you will see until you return. Passengers are not allowed to get off the bus.

The information center which now runs the bus tours is where you buy tickets. It is a good idea to call in advance, because many trips are sold out. Officials of the historical association have talked about getting another bus. Also they run special tours upon request in advance. I hope I have inspired some readers to consider going on this tour. It is the only way, really, to be sure you will see the wild ponies up close by traveling on land. Unless, of course you want to hike the seven miles out, which some people do. The drivers and tour guides are well informed. I will assure you that you will at least be stunned, marveled, fascinated or surprised at things you may see or learn. I know I enjoyed this wilderness adventure and hope you will too.

 

A Better Life Now for Rescued Chincoteague Ponies

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By Robert Boswell
Publisher, Wild Pony Tales

The three Chincoteague ponies who were rescued by Debbie Ober and her husband, Tom, from an auction barn in Pennsylvania in September are nearly back to full health. As a result of our stories some donations have come in and so have requests for adoption.

More donations are needed though. See the information at the end of the story.

The moment the three Chincoteague ponies she had rescued from near slaughter came out of the trailer Debbie had sent to get them is not a time she will ever forget. She still can’t talk about it without her voice breaking up. 
Saturday, November 5, with our writer/photographers Misty Thornton and Kate White, we traveled the two hours from near Chincoteague to the Ober’s Hawkeye Stables in Ridgely, Maryland. There was more to the story, we knew, of what goes on at the Ober horse farm where Debbie cares for 20 ponies. Some of them are Misty of Chincoteague descendants and most are closely connected to the famous Chincoteague wild ponies.
The three rescues were all bought at the 2001 Chincoteague pony auction but little is known about where they spent their years until now. All three are registered Chincoteague ponies, sired by island stallions.

Debbie had earlier described what confronted her when the rescued ponies arrived at her place. There was Clipper, a small bay gelding, who had no hair from under his jaw to his chin with pus oozing from a dozen sores. When he came out of the trailer he laid down, unable to get up.

Ginger, a big chestnut mare, was very thin and weak from starvation and parasites. And Captain, a bay pinto gelding, was very thin too. He had the worst parasite problem of the three, so bad he had stopped eating.

From communicating with Debbie, we knew they were much better but we didn’t really know what to expect. Because they had all come down with strangles, a pneumonia-like illness the rescue ponies had been quarantined in their own pasture and shelter.

Upon arrival we followed Debbie from the barn area to the rescues’ pasture with her pulling a small wagon with hay, grain buckets, brushes and, if needed, halters.

As we neared the fence she asked, “Are you ready?” In a minute we had climbed through the fence and set up cameras. The ponies, however, were nowhere in sight. But with a call from Debbie, three specks in a distance, actually three pastures away, began moving toward us at a gallop. It was the three rescues, who did not slow up until they reached us.

Two things were obvious. They were ready to eat and they were glad to see Debbie.

Debbie spends several hours each day hugging and caring for her horses. She is devoted to them, spending more time with them than she does with people, more time outside with them, she says, than inside her house.

She has a routine.

“I check all of them daily from head to tail. Making sure there are no kicks, cuts, etc. Also, I make sure they eat their grain in a reasonable time. If they don’t eat, I know I have a problem. I always check noses, especially this time of year. The foals tend to get a runny nose, but unless they run a fever, my vet suggests that I let it run its course without interference to build immunity. I always check halters on the young stock. They can be fine one day and too tight the next as they seem to grow in spurts.”

Imagine this and she left out mucking stalls, driving two hours for hay every few weeks, and of course her house work.

When Captain, Ginger and Clipper arrived they were in poor shape. Debbie spent most of the next three nights with these Chincoteagues, making a bed for herself under the shelter and wrapping up in a horse blanket to stay warm. Debbie changed her clothes several times a day to keep strangles from spreading to her other horses.

Who knows what the three ponies think has happened to them, but they have to know someone now cares. Since coming to the Ober home they have not been a day without proper food, medications, and lots of hugs and kindness. They can thank Debbie and Tom, but also others who helped put up money for their rescue, including Debbie Elliott-Fisk and other members of the Buyback Babes, friends and family.

While our time with the rescues has its special memories, they were not the only ones we brought back from the Ober farm.

One pony rehabilitated by Debbie is the majestic Tornado which has sired many foals born on Assateague Island. Tornado is the sire of Prince, bought by the Buyback Babes in 2007 for $17,500, the most ever paid for a pony at the Chincoteague auction.

In 2008 Tornado was injured while on the Assateague range and the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company, which owns the Virginia herd, decided to remove him from the herd and arranged with the Obers to care for him the rest of his life. In an article that ran in the Caroline Review in July 2010 the Obers wrote, “Though he inhabited the sandy beaches of Assateague made famous by “Misty of Chincoteague” Tornado became a legend of his own. He is one of the most photographed stallions on the island.”

Tornado is a buckskin pinto stallion born in 1988. He might have been a wild stallion for 20 years, but around us he was just another friendly head to pat, nose to rub. Or maybe he just wanted Kate to take his picture again. She was clearly his favorite visitor on this day.

The other memory we will have forever was provided by Tornado’s newest offspring, one of four now with the Obers. She is a nine day old filly Debbie calls Freckles due to her red leopard coloring. We have video of this baby making her second trip outside her stall, trying to make up her mind how far to venture. It is precious and we will share it with you soon.

Meanwhile, Debbie is in need of financial help for these rescues and future ones. “We would be grateful for donations to go toward feed and care,” Debbie said. She said if anyone knows of a Chincoteague pony in need, she can be reached at hawkeye@goeaston.net. Her cell is 410-829-3026 and messages may be left on her Facebook page. The mailing address is P.O. Box 125, Ridgely, MD 21660.

The Obers are looking for personal and corporate sponsorships for the ponies and the rescue organization. Corporate sponsors will be listed on the horse trailer and elsewhere, she said. A new website will be chincoteagueponyrescue.org and it is expected to be up and running soon.

The writer is publisher of www.wildponytales.info, a web magazine that covers Chincoteague and Assateague Islands in Virginia. 

Editor’s note: A photo gallery and video clips will be posted with this story soon.
 

 

 

Children, Parents Enjoy International Migratory Bird Day at the Refuge

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By Misty Thornton

Co-Editor, Wild Pony Tales

On an hot early morning on Assateague Island, VA, bird-lovers, park rangers and visitors gathered to enjoy a day full of family learning as well as some games and entertaining exhibits.

As we crossed the Assateague Channel Bridge to the beautiful island of Assateague, the air was moist and the sun was hot, but nothing was going to stop the excitement that was fluttering in the hearts of children and their parents. At the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge parking lots were filling up fast as people from all around came to enjoy themselves at the International Migratory Bird Day Festival.

Tee shirts and carving lessons were available just ouside the refuge information center, along with hotdogs and bottles of water.

Walking through the first set of doors to the information center four exhibits lined the lobby’s walls. Carver Bill Cowen had on display about 20 of his best power carved birds of all shapes and sizes from an arrangement of owls to a bright red cardinal.

Mr. Cowen said one of his birds made second best in the world at a competition.  As a carving teacher of about 30 years he said, “I love carving. It’s just something you can sit back, relax, and not even think about it. It’s like everything around you disappears and only you and your carvings are left.”  Mr. Cowen has a place on the island but mainly lives in New Jersey with his family and his business.

Then, there was an assortment of birds, ducks, and fish carvings on the next table done by Ed Kuhn of Onancock, VA., and there was also an exhibit that had photographs of birds, sunsets and wildlife taken by Robert Wilson.

The next exhibit was by Donnie Thornton. His had bird feathers with hand painted fine art on the front. He’s lived on the island all his life and painting feathers is just what comes natural. He’s been painting island houses, ponies, birds and plants on feathers for 17 years now. “When I’m not painting, I’m playing with my horse, Nugget,” said Mr. Thornton.

Inside the information center there was plenty more for visitors to experience. The conference room was the place for children. There was face painting, woodcarving for kids, experts to talk about birds and fuzzy, live birds that would later get center stage in the Scales and Tales program in the auditorium.

Coming out of the conference room and back into the main center, were two main exhibits. Residents Wayne and JeanBonde had on exhibit a large variety of duck stamps representing each year since 1934.

“The migratory bird stamps have been around since the first one in 1934. We decided to collect them which meant we had to go back and get all the other stamps in the series that we didn’t have from 1934 until 1977, ” said Ms. Bonde. “We went to stamp shows trying to find as inexpensive  used ones as we could fine. It took us a while, maybe about 20 years.”

In the meantime, in 1977, they started buying a migratory bird stamp each year which keeps them up to date. The older used stamps, 1934 up to 1977, are all signed by the hunters using them.  “It is a requirement,” explained Mr. Bonde, “if you are going to hunt waterfowl, that you have one of the migratory bird stamps signed by you in your possession for that year. From 1977 on, all the migratory bird stamps I have are unsigned.

Right now a migratory bird stamp costs $15. “They can also be used to gain entrances onto refuges and state parks,” said Mr. Bonde.

Further along in the information center was an artist, Jenny Somers, who had hand painted over 50 pictures. She lives on Chincoteague. “Every moment of free time I have I’m usually painting the scenery and the world around me. What a better place to do that then right outside of my home.”

There were exhibits of photographs and more paintings. One thing that attracted the most attention wasn’t an exhibit at all. It was the live eagle cam which brings the eagles and on that day just-born eaglets right onto a TV screen in the information center. The actual nest is high in the pines just off the Wildlife Loop. With visitors and Wild Pony Tales cameras looking on the first of two eggs hatched right before our eyes. Visitors were overjoyed to see the mother caring for her baby. The two eggs were special to the refuge staff because the first three eggs had been destroyed in a wind storm.  (See separate story on the site.)

When the excitement died down it was time for the Scales and Tales presentation where Erica Mcgrath and Samantha Ford from the Conservation Corp. in Maryland gave detailed information on their animals they brought with them from Pocomoke River State Park. Their animals all have been wounded at some point in their life and have been taken under the park’s wing. The animals included from owls, turtles, falcons and even an Eastern King Snake. (See a separate story.)

The Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and the National Park Service both hold events and programs for families and children throughout the summer.

Eagles Return to Find Nest Destroyed by Storm

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By Windy Mason and Robert Boswell

Early last December when the eagles returned to their nest on the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, they found that high winds had damaged their home, causing it to fall about three feet. When the eagles returned a couple of weeks ago, after the November storm that pounded the Eastern Shore for three days, they found that the nest had this time been completely destroyed.

If the eagles were upset, no one could tell as they went right to work rebuilding, preparing the nest so they can lay eggs in late January. The nest is located high up in the Loblolly pine trees on the Wildlife Loop on the refuge. It is the same nest that drew thousands to the Bateman information center last year to watch live on a TV screen as the eagle parents rewove sticks and small branches to complete their structure just in time to lay eggs.

Visitors then counted the days, watching the male and female adults take turns sitting on the three eggs they laid, the first on January 25, the last on January 31. The excitement around the information center grew as time for the eggs to hatch grew near. Then, on March 2, the first eaglet used his “egg tooth” a point at the top, to break through the shell. The eggs hatched in the same order they were laid, the last by March 11.

Only one of the three eaglets survived, getting a daily diet of regurgitated fish brought to the nest from nearby waters. . The surviving eaglet left in early summer. The adults left soon after, returning recently for the new mating season.

The nest when rebuilt could be as large as 6 to 8 feet across, 12 feet deep and weigh over 1,000 pounds. But as of this week the eagles had a long way to go. Fresh, green twigs and pine needles can be seen on the screen. “They’re rebuilding it now,” said Michael Dixon, visitor services manager. “They’re both very active on the nest.”

The cable that carries the TV signal from the nest to the information center also needs repair. “We’ve had some trouble since the storm,” said Dixon. He said a repairman had been out in a kayak, trying to locate the problem.

Questions about the eagles can be directed to the visitor center through email at FW5RW_CNWR@fws.gov and by phone 757-336-6122. Other developments can be found on the at http://www.fws.gov/northeast/chinco/

While the eagles were at work on their nest, the refuge staff was also busy, restoring trails, roads, trying to reopen the park to visitors as soon as possible. Work has begun moving several feet of sand from around the circle at the beach and the parking lot to the north.

Before the full staff reported to work on Monday following the storm, Dixon came in on Saturday to take a new intern on a tour of the refuge. “There were some blue skies and the sun came out out and all looked somewhat right in the world,” said Dixon.

“But upon further discovery, when you go out to the beach and you see firsthand the three to four feet of sand which is covering the parking lots, one gets a true sense of what happened. I drove up the service road and went out and looked at the dunes that are on the north end and you could see where they had been carved out by the sea and the storm surge,” he said.

“The elevation of the dunes on the north end are much higher than the ones you see on the south end. So when you saw the erosion of the sand, there was a cliff-like drop off from the dunes being eroded away. The other dramatic change that occurred on the southern part of the island was the major over wash that cut through the Hook, creating another island”, said Dixon.

In the two and a half years he has been at the refuge this was the worst storm he experienced. “What surprised me most was seeing that from Beach Road to the Wildlife Loop was all covered with water,”

 “The wind gage at the National Park Service visitor center near the beach was destroyed at 70 knots,” Dixon said. Also, he said, out to the end of Swans Cove, hundreds of conch shells, not usually found there, were laying all around by the hundred.

Monday, November 21, was the first day the full staff reported to work. It began with a staff meeting conducted by Lou Hinds, refuge manager. “I was fielding calls from the Associated Press and other reporters who were calling in seeking information,” Dixon said. “The refuge manager and biologists were still assessing damage by going up in the helicopters, obtaining aerial photographs, coordinating with the National Park Service and other partners to really get a full sense of what was going on.”

Dixon said part of his job, along with other staff members, was to gather information so the refuge manager could make appropriate decisions about trail closures or public access. “It’s a challenge to keep pace with what’s happening on the ground and what people want to know,” said Dixon.

Dixon said he was struck at the resiliency of wildlife to adapt. “The birds, including snow geese which come at Thanksgiving, obviously were impacted. With salt water from the ocean covering their food supply, they relocated further north on the refuge.

“The other thing that amazed me was the willingness of people to help with the recovery effort. By that Monday, when we officially returned to work, the tree that fell over in front of the visitors’ center was gone, the boardwalk was repaired. The employees and volunteers immediately went to work. Dixon, who lives in Salisbury, said, “I felt bad being so far away and not being able to contribute to the effort; but at the same time, I felt relieved knowing that the community would come together for the sake of wildlife and this wonderful destination.”