Here’s a great story from esvatourism.org about The Route Less Travelled: Boating Virginia’s Eastern Shore. If you haven’t been to Onancock (pictured above), Cape Charles, Saxis Island, Wachapreague and Chincoteague, you’ve been missing something:
Boaters who typically head down along the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay or end their Intracoastal Waterway trip in North Carolina are missing out on charming harbor towns and two pristine coastlines on Virginia’s Eastern Shore.
Harbor towns like Cape Charles, Onancock, Saxis, Chincoteague and Wachapreague on the 70-mile Virginia Chesapeake Bay coastline, have growing numbers of restaurants, shops and hotels just steps from the town harbors.
Virginia’s Eastern Shore is only three hours by car from Washington, D.C., but it’s a world apart. Settled in the early 1600s, the region was isolated from mainland America for 400 years, until the convenience of rail, then cars, made it a bit more accessible. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel connected the southern tip to mainland Virginia in the mid-’60s.
Things have changed slowly on the Eastern Shore of Virginia over the centuries. Today the culture is a rich mix of families with roots that are hundreds of years old and an influx of escapees from the big cities to the north.
In some ways, modern America has barely touched down on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. Most of the hotels, B&Bs, restaurants and shops are locally owned. In other ways, the future of America is here. NASA has been launching missiles at Wallops Island since 1945, and watermen are using cutting-edge science in their aqua farming outfits.
ONANCOCK
Just southeast of Tangier Island, Onancock is approached along the five-mile Onancock Creek lined with majestic homes. Once you dock, stop in the at the harbor office and pick up information about the town, including a walking-tour guide. Go no further than a few steps to Mallards on the Wharf for a meal overlooking the water, or walk up the hill to the town center and you’re at one of the Virginia Eastern shore’s culinary crossroads. Choose from an upscale bistro, an Italian kitchen, an Irish pub, a casual cafe open for breakfast and lunch, and two dinner-only boutique inns: The Inn and Garden Cafe, and the Charlotte Inn and Restaurant. In the morning, stop in at the Corner Bakery for their signature donuts. Read more:
