One Tank Trip: The Eastern Shore
There is something about a festival that brings out the best in people. It doesnt really matter what the festival is celebrating, either.
Be it pork products, chili recipes or Greek culture, festivals give people the chance drop their workweek blues, reunite with old friends and rally around a common theme, even if it involves chitterlings.
While Richmond is home to multiple great festivals, sometimes Richmond's "small-town big-city" feel (that quality that newcomers laud and natives condemn) gets the best of us. While Richmond's Friday Cheers, Greek Festival and Highland Games are great easy-going events, you can only run into your former bosses and ex-lovers but so many times before you sign up for the Federal Witness Protection Program.
Though you may hate to miss a weekend of all-you-can-eat Hanover tomatoes or baklava at your favorite Richmond-area festival, sometimes we just need a change of scenery that doesn't involve the U.S. Marshals service.
Luckily, Virginia's Eastern Shore has a plethora of interesting and tasty festivals dashed throughout the calendar year. Many are food related and one is world famous but all are sure to please. Additionally, all are 200 miles away on the beautiful yet rural Eastern Shore so you are guaranteed a "small town out-of-town" feel, meaning you probably won't run into any exes and have to do the all too familiar hide-behind-the-portapotty routine.
For your viewing and out-of-town festival hunting pleasure, we have compiled a list of Eastern Shore festivals that includes a little bit of information on each. Here's the skinny on...
The 20th annual Chincoteague Blueberry Festival
July 20-21, 2007
Did you know that tiny delicious blueberries can improve your vision, help clear arteries, strengthen blood vessels, enhance memory, stop urinary tract infections, promote weight control and contain massive amounts of antioxidants for disease protection?And I just thought they were tasty...
Well, do yourself a favor and check out the Chincoteague Blueberry Festival in late July, which also is the opening event for the pony swim week (see below). A rain or shine event, the festival will feature dozens of local artists, crafters and decoy carvers as well as hundreds of tasty sweet blueberries served in a variety of ways.
The 2007 festival will be held at the Chincoteague Center, which is located at 6155 Community Drive in Chincoteague. Besides the always favorite Ultimate Blueberry Pie, berry delicacies at the festival will also include blueberry ice cream, blueberry shortcake, blueberry pancakes, blueberry smoothies and much more.
Ticket are $4 for adults and $1 for children under 12. For more information about this blueberry extravaganza, call (757) 824-3868 or visit www.chincoteagueblueberryfestival.com.
The Chincoteague Pony Swim, Penning and Auction
July 25, 2007
With several books, a feature length movie and annual worldwide news coverage focusing on this historic event, the Chincoteague Pony Swim is by far the most popular event on the Eastern Shore each year. Since the 1920s, herds of the infamous wild horses of Assateague Island have been herded and swum across Assateague Channel to Chincoteague Island each year as a way to maintain the herd.In 1925, the local fire company was authorized to sell off some of the ponies as a way to raise funds to buy replacement fire equipment. In 1947, Marguerite Henry wrote "Misty of Chincoteague," a children's book about an Eastern Shore family and two children who adopt and care for an Assateague Pony named Misty. In 1961, the book was turned into a movie and shortly thereafter the annual Eastern Shore event became a world-famous Eastern Shore event that draws thousands from all over to Chincoteague each July.
While the big pony swim is always held on the last Wednesday of July, the exact time of the swim varies each year due to tidal conditions, so get there early (well before 7 a.m.) or do some advance research to make sure you don't miss the action. Also, with more than 40,000 attending each year, it gets crowded so be prepared.
Besides the swim on July 25, however, there is a month's worth of fun pony-related as well as non-equestrian events surrounding the big day. Starting June 29 and lasting throughout the week of the swim and auction, Chincoteague plays host to an old style carnival every Friday and Saturday night.
Then, on the day of the swim, after crossing and taking a brief rest, the ponies are herded to the carnival grounds where visitors can take a gander at the majestic beasts. At 6:30 p.m, the live entertainment begins and continues throughout the next day when selected ponies are auctioned off. On Friday, non-auctioned ponies are led back to the channel where they swim back to Assateague where they gallop and neigh freely until the following July. For more information on the Pony Swim, Penning and Auction, please call (757)-336-6161 or visit www.chincoteaguechamber.com/events.html.
The Chincoteague Island Oyster Festival
Oct. 6, 2007
They are slimy, sometimes a little gritty and, for many people, they are oh so delicious.We're talking oysters and what better place to get your hands on the freshest around than the Eastern Shore?
Each October, the Chincoteague Chamber of Commerce hosts the Chincoteague Island Oyster Festival to mark the arrival of oyster season. But who are we kidding? With about 2,700 attending each year, it's basically a big 'ol party!
"It's our largest fundraiser and we do it to celebrate the oyster season and to celebrate seafood in general as a livelihood here on Chincoteague," said Suzanne Taylor , Chincoteague Chamber's executive director of marketing and tourism. "But it's a lot of fun and it's really just like a big tailgate."
One look at the all-you-can-eat menu, however, and you better have packed your stretchy pants for this epicurean festival of the sea.
"We have oysters served just about any way you can think of (fritter-style, steamed, raw or fried just to name a few) and we have steamed crabs and clam chowder and clam fritters and we even have hotdogs for people that don't like seafood," Taylor said.
As for the featured item, the grand oyster, the event features Chincoteague Seaside Oysters, a variety Taylor said is a big draw for oyster lovers.
"They are very salty and I think that is one of the main reasons people come," she said. "They are so accustomed to getting them from Louisiana and other places so it is a little different. Most oyster lovers tend to say that Chincoteague oysters are the best."
There is also plenty of homemade cole slaw, potato salad and hush puppies to go around. Beer will be served at the event but festival goers can bring their own brew as long as no glass bottles are packed.
If you can move without assistance after the feeding, feel free to bust a move as The Island Boys will be providing live entertainment throughout the afternoon.
The $35 per person event begins at noon and lasts until 4 p.m.
"We get a lot of people from Pennsylvania and New Jersey but we would love to have some people from Richmond," Taylor said. To buy tickets for the Chincoteague Island Oyster Festival, please call (757) 336-6161 or visit www.chincoteaguechamber.com/oyster-festival.
Eastern Shore of Virginia Harvest Festival
Oct. 3, 2007
Also on the epicurean calendar in October, a little south of the Chincoteague oyster fest down in quaint Cape Charles, you may also want to check out The Harvest Festival, a local celebration of food, fun and "Shore" hospitality.Though the menu varies every year, guests can typically look forward to clam chowder, chili, pork barbecue, ham biscuits, crab cakes, corn on the cob, sweet potato pie and crab sandwiches. Admission is $37 per person and includes the aforementioned good eats as well as local arts and live entertainment. For more information, contact the Eastern Shore of Virginia Chamber of Commerce at (757) 787-2460.
The Birding and Wildlife Festival in Cape Charles
Oct. 5-7, 2007
If you are of the orthinology crowd or have a "Winged Migration" DVD on constant repeat at your house, this first weekend in October in Cape Charles on the Eastern Shore may be just for you.The Birding and Wildlife Festival falls during the fall migration of the Neotropical songbirds and raptors that travel on an aerial freeway that leads directly over the Eastern Shore. Due to the sheer number of birds traveling though the area at this time of the year, the Eastern Shore provides one of the best locations and times for birders of all experience levels to catch a glimpse of their favorite fluttering friends. Information for this year's festival is still being compiled but contact the Eastern Shore of Virginia Chamber of Commerce for updated even information. Please call (757) 787-2460 or e-mail info@esvachamber.org. The Eastern Shore File
History:
If the eight-decade-old pony swim isn't enough history for you, check out the Eastern Shore Railway Museum , (757) 665-7245, in Parksley . The museum hosts a number of retired railcars and artifacts from the numerous railroads that have operated on the Eastern Shore since the 1800s. If trains aren't your thing, check out the 142-foot tall Assateague Lighthouse , (757) 336-6122, on the Virginia side of Assateague Island .
| The Eastern Shore Driving distance: 200 miles Estimated gas cost (at 27.5 miles per gallon*): $18.68 each way** Directions: Take I-64 East into Norfolk, turn north on US-13, go across the Chesapeake Bay/Bridge-Tunnel until you reach the Eastern Shore. Everything on the peninsula is a short drive off US-13, which is the main road. Population: 51,000 For more information, visit: The Eastern Shore Tourism Commission at info@esvatourism.org or check out www.esvatourism.org/. Chincoteague Chamber of Commerce at www.chincoteaguechamber.com *New federal minimum mpg average **Calculated at $2.58 per gallon (latest AAA Mid-Atlantic average) |
Besides the pony swim, the peninsula has many outdoor opportunities including fishing, birding, shelling as well as hiking and water sports. Kiptopeke State Park , (757) 331-1040, near Cape Charles is home to the Eastern Shore Birding Festival in October. For weekend fishermen, check with the local marina in any of the bayside or seaside towns for available fishing charters. For kayaking or canoeing enthusiasts, Eastern Shore Canoe & Kayak , (757) 302-1344, in Onley offers rentals as well as a number of ecotours. Have you traveled here before? Have a favorite restaurant? A daytrip you want to recommend? Drop us a line here! Check out last year's look at Eastern Shore. Each week we'll take an in-depth look at one of our "One Tank Trip" locations. Here is the schedule: April 17: Outer Banks - new location for '07 April 24: Williamsburg May 1: (Near) Northern Neck May 8: Tappahannock May 15: Virginia Beach - new location for '07 May 22: Charlottesville May 29: Eastern Shore
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