Where the pavement ends and the wilderness begins — the over-sand route south to fourteen miles of roadless island. Our turnaround.
Right about here, near the south end, is the trailhead for the last of the island's little nature walks — the Life of the Dunes: a short sandy loop up over the great dunes themselves, the sand ramparts that stand between the ocean and everything behind them. Soft footing and no shade, so wear shoes and carry water if you take it.
This is the end of the line for paved road — the south circle, where the asphalt gives up and the island runs on wild. Past this point it's over-sand only: another fourteen miles of Assateague with no road at all, just beach and dune stretching down to the Virginia line, where a fence splits the island and a whole other herd of ponies lives. That's country you walk or drive on sand with a permit — the truly untamed end.
For us, this is the turnaround; point it back north the way you came. As you go, keep watching those shoulders for one last look at the horses, and let the whole island settle in your mind — the moving sand, the marsh and the forest, the ghost of a city that never was, and the wild herd that outlasted every plan anyone ever had for this place.
That's our tour of Assateague Island. Thank you for riding along with Boone and me — it's been a real pleasure sharing this wild shore with you. If you enjoyed it, we'd be grateful if you left a review; it helps other travelers find these tours and helps us keep making them. This has been Ranger Quinn and Ranger Boone Merrick. Drive safe, keep your distance from those horses, and come back and see the island again — it'll be a little different next time. It always is.
Photo: Susanne Bledsoe, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers · Public domain
