Where is assateague state park

Camping At Assateague. Things to Do. Weather and Tides. Find Your Way on Assateague with a Map! Accessibility for Park Visitors. Safety: Protect Yourself in Your Park!

Last updated: April 16, Stay Connected. Basic Information Start your visit here! One app, every park at your fingertips. Camping At Assateague Make some memories camping at the beach. Things to Do Kayaking is just one of the ways to explore Assateague. Park maps, trail maps, campground maps and more. Accessibility for Park Visitors Assateague Island National Seashore visitor centers, most nature trails, bathhouses and wayside exhibits are accessible. They wander the marshes, beaches and roads, so please enjoy them, but do not touch or feed them.

Huge fines are levied and significant injuries have occurred from kicking and biting ponies. They are wild — so please help keep it that way. The state park allows pets in the boat ramp area, so you can take your furry friends out on the boats with you, and they are allowed in the day use areas off-season.

Pets are allowed in the front-country campgrounds, but they must be leashed at all times and are not permitted into any area where there is sensitive habitat or wildlife.

If you are unsure what areas these are, ask a ranger. Clean up after pets and make sure all dog wastes is disposed of in the special trashcans within the park boundaries. The National Seashore allows pets on a leash less than 6 feet only.

They are not allowed on the guarded beaches, on the nature trails, or at any of the back-country camping locations. You are not allowed to have a pet with you North of the state park or in any of the Virginia section of the park — accessible through Chincoteague.

You may not even have a pet in your car in Virginia park area. There are campsites in the state park, each with a fire ring and picnic table.

You can tent camp or bring your camper. There are electric hook-ups on one loop. Youth group camping permits and areas are also available. You must be in a self-contained camper to use these areas as no tent camping is allowed where bathroom facilities are not available. Camping is also available in the National Seashore where there are many camping options.

All campsites include access to cold-water showers, chemical toilets, and drinking water. You can get more information by calling the office at An overview of the different types of camping follow:.

Visit our camping page for more information. In , a development was slated for a 15 mile stretch of Assateague Island on the Maryland side and a road, Baltimore Boulevard, was constructed to access the newly created lots. In , a storm destroyed most of the existing buildings in the development and damaged most of the road or left it buried in sand.

By this time, Maryland supported the idea of creating a national seashore and introduced new legislation to protect the island and prevent the redevelopment, which was passed in and created the Assateague Island National Seashore. Coastal Living magazine has voted Assateague as one of the Top 10 National Seashores and Lakeshores and the State Park at the northernmost end of the island was designated by National Geographic in as one of the 10 best state parks in the nation.

Department of the Interior designated it a National Natural Landmark. No road runs North to South along the entire expanse of the 37 mile island so you have to access the parks either through the Verrazzano Bridge at the north end or through Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge entrance on the south end.

Bird watchers and lovers enter an avian paradise when visiting Assateague Island. Great blue heron, egrets, cattle egrets, bobwhites, glossy ibis, mute swans, and a variety of terns and gulls surround the waters and sedge grasses of the island. Avid birders are able to nick-off up to different birds that frequent the island. Both resident and transient species of birds are sighted around Assateague, and during the migrations it is possible to see flocks of sea birds up to 10, strong.

Bring a powerful pair of optics and settle in for a great day of bird watching on Assateague. While the ponies are the main draw, there are a variety of other terrestrial animals found throughout the Assateague region. Sika elk are the second largest animal on the island and are readily seen throughout the wetlands and marsh grasses on the edges of the island.

Sika elk are slightly smaller than the larger white-tail deer so common to much of the eastern United States. One of the more unique and protected species on the island is the Delmarva Fox Squirrel.

This rodent is a slightly larger and whiter sub-species of the common grey squirrel, and is seen only on Assateague and surrounding islands. Keep the camera handy as sightings of this squirrel are rare and special. Keep an especially keen eye out for these critters along the Wildlife Loop.

Raccoons, the masked bandits, are also residents of Assateague. While they are always fun and entertaining to see, they are notorious pests and scavengers. Because of this, there are very strict rules on Assateague regarding food and camping. While the raccoons are cute and will beg, never feed them as this makes them used to human contact and turns them into pests around the camping areas.

A winter resident only, the snowy owl is a rare but spectacular sighting. If you like hiking away from crowds in the dunes and paths of the more remote areas on Assateague Island, you may be lucky enough to see this beautiful predator. Please do not approach a seal and report any sightings to a ranger. Whales are far rarer sightings, but dolphins can be seen almost daily during the summer season.

A park naturalist leads trips along the Assateague trails, giving interpretation on the flora, fauna and ecosystems of the island. If you want to venture out on your own, free maps of the trails on the island are available at the visitor center. Check in with the ranger desk to find out about any current closures or recommendations.

Be sure to bring a hat, gloves, sunscreen and extra water and food when heading out into some of the more remote trails of the island. There are several independent guiding companies that run horseback tours of the island.

Imagine taking the time to mount up with horse guides, and riding through the island wilderness. These tours are booked in Ocean City, and make a wonderful way of seeing the island. Half-day, day and multi-day horse camping trips are available. You can also bring your own horse for day riding. This is allowed during the cooler months when the threats of insect borne equine diseases is very low.

Surf fishing is allowed all year, but you must fish outside the guarded beach areas in season. You can also fish from the boat launch facility on the mainland side of the bridge. Fishing and clamming are allowed in the bays.

A license may be required for some of your fishing activities. Please refer to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fishing Guide for state regulations on size of fish you can keep. Info Alerts Maps Calendar Reserve. Alerts In Effect Dismiss. Dismiss View all alerts.

Life on the Edge Want to live on the edge? Current Conditions. Camping at Assateague. Things to Do. Safety: Protect Yourself in Your Park!

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