Dining and Searching – Chincoteague Virginia

Yes, we could have bought some groceries and made our own breakfast at the cottage, but we were on a family trip, and cooking and cleaning up just doesn’t fit into our version of relaxation...aka a break from our normal behavior.  Bonnie did a bit of research and she discovered a local spot that seemed quite popular…

This is Mr. Baldy’s, a diner style establishment that is not located on Chincoteague’s ‘main street’ and which is definitely off the path taken by most tourists who don’t ask about local restaurants or who don’t explore.

I took the first photo of Bill, Bonnie and Laurie at our table in Mr. Baldy’s dining room.  From its appearance, Mr. Baldy’s falls somewhere between a diner and a dive but that colorful mural brightens up the place.

This is the cover for Mr. Baldy’s menu.  This restaurant is open daily…7 days a week…for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  The breakfast menu features 5 breakfast sandwiches, egg plates with the option of adding meat to your breakfast, omelets, hotcakes, French toast, sausage gravy and corned beef hash.  Meat choices are bacon, sausage, ham, Taylor Pork Roll and scrapple.  Turkey bacon or sausage is available.

These were the breakfasts ordered by our little family group.  Pretty basic but then again, this was breakfast.  Hotcakes and bacon and an omelet with toast and home fries were Bonnie and Bill’s morning faire.  I went for a basic breakfast with a couple eggs over medium, potatoes, toast and a slice of a Taylor Pork Roll.  Laurie went with something rarely seen on any menu, creamed chipped beef on toast…with a side of home fries. 

Everyone was happy with their breakfast.  Laurie really liked the change from ‘the usual’ to start her day.  I wasn’t overly impressed with the slice of Taylor Pork Roll as it lacked any real flavor punch.

So what is a Taylor Pork Roll?  Pork roll is a processed meat that is regionally popular in New Jersey and neighboring states.  It was developed in 1856 by John Taylor of Trenton New Jersey.  It was sold as “Taylor’s Prepared Ham” until food labeling regulations began requiring the “pork roll” label.  There are a couple different companies making pork rolls but the recipes for both are still trade secrets.  We do know that the Taylor Pork Roll contains lightly smoked pork, salt, preservatives and spices.

After breakfast, we headed back out to the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge in an effort to spot some of the wild horses, aka 'ponies' that have made the area famous…

No horses in this view of the refuge with its marshes, trees and grassy fields.  But...if you look carefully, you can see a lighthouse poking above the horizon of trees and undergrowth…

Just a little bit later we decided to take the short trail through the woods to the historic lighthouse.  Bonnie and Bill led the way. 

FYI…Assateague Island in a barrier island that is about 37 miles long, two-thirds of it along the coast of Maryland with the southern third being off the coast of Virginia.  This southern section contains the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge with a mile-long stretch serving as a recreational beach and other facilities managed by the National Park Service.

This is Assateague Light, a 142-foot tall light house that is located near the southern end of Assateague Island.  It is owned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and is operated by the U.S. Coast Guard.  The lighthouse was completed in 1867 but it is still in use.  The light has been automated since 1933.  It was built on the site of an earlier lighthouse that was built in 1833 but was only 45-feet tall.

Originally built on the southern tip of Assateague Island, the island has ‘grown’ since construction was completed and the lighthouse is now about 5 miles from the end of the island.  The keeper’s quarters at the base of the lighthouse are used as seasonal housing for temporary employees, volunteers and interns.  On Saturdays in the summer, the structure is open for the public to climb to the top.  The lighthouse was part of the design for the 2003 – 2004 Federal Duck Stamp.

Note: Based on our experience, ensure that you have mosquito spray before you venture along the path through the woods to the lighthouse!

Another view of Assateague Islands marshy fields just looking for the Chincoteague wild ponies.  No luck for the third time…

But we did see lots of birds…mostly shorebirds or water birds.  In this case, it was a trio of egrets in a marshy waterway near the road to the beach. 

The 14,000 acre Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1943, its primary mission was and is to protect migratory birds along the Atlantic Flyway.  With over 1,500,000 visitors each year, this is one of the most visited National Refuges in the U.S.A.

We were starting to think that we weren’t going to see any of the Chincoteague Island wild ponies…but we still had a little time left and we still had hope.  To fill in our day, we headed off to explore other parts of this little sliver of Virginia.  More to come!

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave