Hikmat Dangol
. Hikmat Dangol
close your eyes
And I kiss you
Tomorrow miss you!”
Listening this British pop Band Beatles song I was heading towards Assateague island national seashore where college friend Abigail Maya and her friend Laura Dyckman were already camping and waiting for me to warm welcome there with wind swept sandy island.
This eye- catching plain terrace of Maryland’s eastern shore is also covered with green terraces and rivers, rivulets ,lakes and a number of historic spots along with range of maize and soybean planted fields. viewing this fauna and flora my journey begun with exciting and to see some wild horses. after driving two hours i stopped in one liquor store to buy some non alcoholic beer. i brought 6 packs of non-alcoholic beer. as you know I didn’t drink alcohol at all.
After driving three hours finally , I approached Assateague island .Assateague always feels eager to welcome you with small gust of wind or gentlest of waves moves sand in a ceaseless rearrangement of island terrain. Assateague is full of fauna and flora of paradise. at the evening the moon was raising from the bottom of the Atlantic sea. which looks romantic. I took the photo of the moon. I started collecting little sea shell and bird watching. while my feiend Abigail started grilled turkey burger and Laura Dyckman was trying to help Maya . the weather started cool and windy. the black clouds are roaming over the sky seems like going to heavy rainfall. going to disappear sights soon. black cloud and cool rain abduct it. we took turkey dinner. it tasted so good.
After dinner meanwhile I started to helped Laura making her camp fixed. I saw many people are camping near by our camp with their pets dog. some dogs are disturbing the horses, nesting birds and other people. these dogs make a dirty which is not a good things. and insects can harm pet’s health too. they should be kept their dogs on short leashes. it will definitely distrub the wildlife refuge.
However ,there is one attraction in particular that draws so many people to Assateague island. the wild horses. A lot questions rise on my mind how they got here ?or what their life is like? I did research a lot about it. according to the legend explain how the horses got here. one legend says that a spanish gallen and the wrecked off the shores of the island and the horses swam to the shores. another theory is that colonists in the 17th century let the animals loose on the island to avoid livestock taxes.
I saw the horses spend their time wandering the island as they graze on natural plants and drink fresh water from the ponds. they ate marsh and sand dune grasses, rosehips of their food. Assateague state park ranger says during the cold winter the horses develop thick fur coats to keep them warm. if there is a storm ,the horses seek shelter in wooded areas. Assateague state park ranger added Every year this ponies(small horse of any several breeds, not higher)get hurted because of the crossing the road. people speed the vehicle and hit the ponies and also people get hurted when they approached near the ponies. they hit by leg and bite too. so we avoided to approach the near the ponies. they have right to roam free in their natural habitat.
It’s easy to get lost in time gazing at these intriguning creatures. one ranger says there are quite creature look tame they are still wild and should never be petted or fed. for your own protection and the protection of the horses, please keep a further distance.
As I woke up early in the morning next day .the weather is still changeable and challenging. I thought to swim in the ocean but the weather and high tide greatly affects me what I do and when. it’s almost windy since morning and the sand never settles for long and wind tossed waves hit the beach. I think wind like water is a big mover and shaper of Assateague .time here is marked by tides and animals adapt to their rhythm.
Laura dyckman started to make coffee. i drank two cups of nice coffee. it made me warm and plan to go breakfast in the ocean city and then fishing in the seashore. no roads runs the length of the island. the road on this end of the island leads to Assateague state park and Assateague island national seashore. park only in designated areas. we did not get trouble finding parking space. wild life roams freely on Assateague so Laura Dyckman was driving so carefully. she stopped suddenly when the wild horses are gazing near the road. I got off from the jeep and took some pictures of wild horses and rabbit. Abaigail Maya was warning me not to approach the horses near and do not touch .horse will bite you and kick.I took dozens photos of horses from far distance then i get inside the jeep .Laura was not speeding and taking extra care in crowed areas and near ponies.
we took delicious breakfast in the ocean city resturant. Laura paid breakfast .we both thanks to her then we drove to the visitor center. we watched the documentry about Assateague island and other beautiful fish at the aquarium and we went for the fishing at the sea shore. I don,t have fishing license so I stayed inside jeep and Abaigail Maya and Laura started fishing.
the sky was over casted .it’s going to rainfall and it’s too windy. tides are rising up and heavy surf, sea wands currents. nobody is swimming on the ocean I started to read novel inside the jeep. after an hour Abagail and Laura came back without any fish. then we drove back to the camping no104.
The thunder and lighting was continious threatens us. so we quickly decide to seek shelter inside the camp. it started raining and windy. the water continue leaking inside the bed. it felt me very cold. I checked the weather condition on my phone. it says that it will be rainy till Friday. so we decide to leave camp tomorrow morning.
whole nights were windy and rain. I felt wet on my toes. and woke up sever times of thunder .and i was just waiting for the morning to come. I didn,t realize what time I went slept .when my friend Laura woke me up in the morning there was no rain. but still windy. we started to packed everything in hurry and worried. I was worried that another storm might hit us. we loaded everything in the truck. I was excited to go home in other hand i felt melancholy to leave this island and relaxing environment with educational and recreational opportunities.
You can drink a cup of coffee with the rising the sun and feel how it tastes. but more than this you can visit Assateague state park for some rays of sunshine and wonderful nature see how they change your life.want to be close to the wildlife nature? well, sure there is Assateague state island.
( Based on a travel report of Hikmat dangol 2018 AD)
