We started this leg of the journey late in the afternoon by stopping on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel for dinner.  At the southern most tunnel entrance there is an island called “Sea Gull Island” which has a restaurant on it.  This is not “dining” but food was reasonably priced and really not bad at all. 

The first major sort of place on the Delmarva after leaving the bridge/tunnel is Cape Charles, Virginia.  I knew from research done before leaving home that there were several B&Bs in Cape Charles so we used our GPS to locate a phone number.  A room was available and the price was right so we headed over to the Sea Gate B&B for the night.  Sea Gate and Cape Charles turned out to be a real gem of a find for us.  The innkeeper, Chris Bannon, was very cordial and a pleasure to talk with. 

Cape Charles has a rather nice beach and fishing pier and we were there early enough to get set up for some sunset pictures. 

The next morning we decided to work our way to Chincoteague, Virginia for the night.  We knew that Chincoteague is probably less than two hours away so we came prepared with information on a number of geocaches to complete.  One truly great thing about geocaching is the way it gets you to places off the beaten track that would have been missed. 

One of the geocaches we did in the Cape Charles area, for example, took us to a small private airport where the owner flew in to refill his crop duster.

Eventually we arrived in Chincoteague.  We had visited the area 4-5 years ago and had a very enjoyable stay at the Channel Bass Inn which is operated by David and Barbara Wiedenheft.  Our visit was during the week just before the Memorial Day holiday so we were the only guests staying the night.  This was great because we got to spend some time at breakfast with David and Barbara and heard the story of how they came to be innkeepers.  Barbara is originally from England so hearing how they met was an interesting story unto itself. 

While in the area we took a drive over to the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge in the hope of catching a glimpse of the “ponies”.  We saw some way off in the distance and could see them well enough to know they are “horses”.  Much bigger than expected.  While in the park we hiked to the lighthouse, looked around on the beach, and saw some of the waterfowl. 

We did several geocaches in the area.  One of particular interest was at the site of Franklin City which doesn’t exist anymore.  At one time Franklin City was the landing point for ferry boats that used to travel between the mainland and Chincoteague before the causeway and bridge were built.  All that remains is an interesting all shell beach with an awesome view. 

Our next stop was Lewes, Delaware.  It had been twenty years since our last visit to Lewes at which time it was a sleepy quiet sort of place.  Back then we were staying in Rehoboth with the kids and escaped to Lewes to get away from Rehoboth’s crowds, boardwalk, and surf.  BOY has Lewes changed!!  The whole place has been transformed and has an upscale air about it.  Shops, restaurants, condos, etc.  Our GPS only listed one B&B, The John Penrose Virden House B&B. 

We decided to spend the night at The John Penrose Virden House and our hosts were Ruth & Jim Edwards.  Ruth took us on the “cooks tour” of the home and explained the history behind the home and some of the antiques.  Rooms were large, had high ceilings, and were impeccably arranged with interesting pieces.

We arrived in town early enough to go for a stroll in search of a place for dinner.  Our interest was in finding a place to “eat” rather than “dine” so in the end we headed to Route 1 which has also changed extensively.  It wasn’t even the holiday weekend yet and the traffic was unbelievable! 

After dinner we drove through Cape Henlopen State Park to get in position for some sunset images.  We settled on the fishing pier, set up our equipment, and took some images.  In addition to the state park, the Cape May-Lewes Ferry terminal is nearby.