Thursday, September 16, 2010
Kiptopeke State Park, Cape Charles, VA - June 4-6
After writing to VA state parks complaining about the additional pet charges, they decided to waive the pet fees for our indoor-only cats, so we changed our plans & stayed at this lovely state park. Then we had to try to convince Amber that she didn't want to go out! There are a lot of birding activities here, but they are all in the fall during various migrations. There are several short trails to the beach along the Chesapeake Bay, as well as one longer hiking trail. The beach is pretty & well-situated for watching sunsets. We saw our first Eastern Wood-pewee here.Getting here we had to cross the bay on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, which is 23 miles long. The toll was $24 for our truck/trailer combo. It was an interesting drive for both us & the cats. First you're on a long bridge, then you go into a tunnel, then back out, in again, out again & finally you're across.
We visited the Eastern Shore of Va Natl Wildlife Refuge, hiked on all their trails & were able to get a far-away glimpse of the Cape Charles lighthouse. Nothing to write home about, but at least we saw it! We also saw our first Glossy Ibis. We drove through most of the small towns of the lower half of the Eastern Shore. The entire area is fairly depressed-looking compared to the small coastal towns in NC. We visited the Cape Charles Sustainable Technologies Industrial Park to hike on their boardwalk trails. It was obvious that this was an idea that had not taken off yet. However, they had built many nice boardwalks, so it was pleasant to hike around & look at the birds. There is an abundance of tourist info that seems to promise more than is actually available.
# posted by Doug and Willie @ 9:06 PM 
