Cruises

While most visitors head for the beach on Assateague, don't overlook the broad bays and creeks that surround Chincoteague. A good way to get out on them is with Captain Barry's Back Bay Cruises (tel. 757/336-6508; www.captainbarry.bigstep.com). Barry Frishman moved from upstate New York to Chincoteague and set about learning everything he could about the water and what's in it. Now he shares his knowledge by taking guests out on his pontoon boat for 1 1/2-hour early-morning bird-watching expeditions ($20 per person); 4-hour morning or afternoon "Back Bay expeditions" in search of crabs, fish, shells, and clams ($40 per person); champagne sunset cruises ($30); moonlight excursions ($10); and romantic dinner cruises ($225 per couple). Call for Barry's schedule and reservations, which are required.

A Cruise to Tangier Island

The genteel town of Onancock, 30 minutes south of Chincoteague off U.S. 13, is the departure point for cruises to Tangier Island and its 530 souls out in the Chesapeake Bay. Barely above sea level and short on dry land (many deceased are buried in their loved ones' front yards), Tangier was discovered by Capt. John Smith in 1608 and permanently settled in 1686. In fact, the local accent hearkens back to the Elizabethan English of those first ancestors. Do not come out here expecting to find a Nantucket or a Martha's Vineyard, however, for Tangier's charm is in visiting a remote and authentic fishing village -- the "Soft Shell Capital of the World," as evidenced by the many crab pens lining the channel into the harbor.

Local citizens await your arrival to take you on a 10-minute island tour by oversize golf cart; the tour is worth the $4 fare to get an overview of the island. You can bring your own bike or rent one at the wharf, although you can walk to almost every place worth seeing within 20 minutes.

The ferry staff will encourage you to join the other day-trippers at Hilda Crockett's Chesapeake House (tel. 757/891-2331), where $19 will buy an all-you-can-eat lunch -- but I suggest you to go to Fisherman's Corner (tel. 757/891-2900) for fresh flounder.

You can stay overnight at Hilda Crockett's, although I personally prefer the Sunset Inn Bed & Breakfast (tel. 757/891-2535), on the island's western side, which offers rooms in the main house plus modern, motel-like "cottages" (the latter have private bathrooms). A path leads to the island's only sand beach. Also on the western side is Shirley's Bay View Inn (tel. 757/891-2396; www.tangierisland.net). All three charge between $110 and $125 for a double, and they accept MasterCard and Visa.

Weather permitting, Tangier-Onancock Cruises (tel. 804/453-4434; www.tangierislandcruises.com) leave Onancock May 15 to October 15 daily at 10am. The voyage takes 90 minutes. The return trip leaves Tangier at 2pm. Round-trip fare is $24 for adults, $12 for children 6 to 11, free for children 5 and younger, and $5 for bicycles. Reservations are not accepted. You can also get here from Reedville on the Northern Neck.

Plan to look around Onancock (www.onancock.com) as well. The cruise boat docks behind Hopkins & Bro. General Store, built in 1842 on the Town Dock and now home to Mallards at the Wharf (tel. 757/787-8558), a very good restaurant. It closes for lunch just as the Tangier cruise returns at 3:30pm, however, but you can retire to the outdoor bar. Look in the store side of the building for walking tour brochures and other information about Onancock.

The best place to stay overnight is the Charlotte Hotel & Restaurant, 7 North St. (tel. 757/787-7400; www.thecharlottehotel.com), which has eight rooms upstairs over the town's best restaurant.