Wild Horses, Airplanes and Things That Bite

During the summer of 2006, Bart and I took a week long vacation to Washington DC. I had been a couple times before during my early adolescent years, and dreamed of taking Bart, the historian, to our nation's capitol. We had a wonderful time in DC during the day, and we stayed at the most awesome campgrounds in Maryland. If you are ever going to DC and like to camp out, consider staying at Cherry Hill Park. It is mostly an RV park, but they do have some lots open for tents. The bonus to this park is they offer a ride in to the train stations to get into DC, so your car can stay at the campsite and you don't have to drive in the traffic. They have very clean bath houses and a great swimming pool. Plus, they have activities in the evening, more family oriented, but fun!

Okay, so back to the story!

We decided after running around for so many days that we would end our trip somewhere relaxing. Through all of my research (I made a travel binder for this trip - obsessive I know, but fun!) we found Assateague Island National Seashore in Maryland. How great does this sound? Camping on the beach. Good times. Plus, they were known for their wild horses who run free on the Island. We didn't get in until late the first night and after much walking around and shining a flashlight on all the tents, we finally found our location. We set up camp in the dark and could hear the ocean over the sand dune. We went to sleep excited about the beach the next day.

In the middle of the night, I wake up to hear wild horses near our tent. So excited about nature being that close to me, I lie there, waiting for the horses to run wild. Instead, I hear what sounds like someone turning on the faucet near my head outside of the tent. I then hear another noise, and smell the most horrendous smell ever. Yeah, you guessed it. The horses relieved themselves outside of my tent, by MY head!!! I tried to wake Bart up but he was OUT. The rest of the night, I try to sleep with that smell right in my face.

Finally, at day break, I wake up to find Bart gone. I lay there for a few moments relaxing and looking forward to the day and rub my face. As I rub my face I realize it is swollen and there are bumps all over my face. I had been eaten alive by these little bugs throughout the night. Bart returns from the beach all happy and saying annoying things like, "Isn't it beautiful here?" and "The beach is so beautiful - come see" and my favorite, "What happened to your face?". Once stepping out of the tent, we observed everyone in screen tents. Why are they all in screen tents you ask? Because, as we found out too late, if you aren't directly on the beach, you will be swarmed by little biting insects. OUCH. We took some pics on the beach, saw some horses, and then I told Bart - Let's shower and hit the road a day early. I am not doing this.

We shower in cold water in a shower on the beach where anyone could have seen my business if they walked by and looked down. We hit the road, and I am feeling worse by the minute. Bart had his heart set on seeing a hanger full of planes that used to be at the Air and Space Museum. So, we decide to stop. As we are there, I begin to get the chills, feel horrible, and basically realize a sinus infection is coming on. I tell Bart I am ready to leave. He says he just wants to see a few more planes. I sit in a row of chairs sneezing, shaking, coughing, with a fever and scaring children as they come around. We finally leave when Bart is done and here is how the rest of my trip went:

Get in car and sleep

B: Tracey, wake up. Do you want lunch?

T: Yes. (I eat sandwich and lay back down)

B: Tracey, I am stopping to go to bathroom. Do you need to go?

T: Yes. (I go to the bathroom and lay back down)

B: Tracey, we are at the hotel.

T: Ok. (walk in and go to sleep)

Next day:
Continues much the same until a couple of hours before we reached home, I finally wake up. Bart drove all 18 hours by himself. I can't believe he didn't pull over, lay me on the side of the road and drive off! It was a fun trip, but it sure ended differently than I expected. Enjoy the pics below from some of the places listed above!

The wild horses on the beach

Our Camp Site

You can see how swollen my face is if you zoom in
The planes Bart HAD to see. He had a great time!