The Chincoteague Ponies Swim as Tradition Continues

Along the wind-swept sand dunes of Virginia’s barrier island of Assateague in the Atlantic Ocean, the wild ponies roam as they have for hundreds of years. Today, however, they have been herded up by saltwater cowboys for a 91-year tradition — the annual pony swim across the channel to Chincoteague.

It all began in 1925 when the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Department, looking for ways to raise badly needed funds for fire equipment, decided to round up the ponies and auction some of them to help raise money. At the same time, the roundup would help control the size of the herd and its impact on the fragile barrier island environment.

The round-up and channel swim, in conjunction with the fireman’s carnival, was so successful that it became an annual event, regularly drawing 40,000 spectators to watch more than 150 ponies plunge into the ocean waters for the five-minute swim across Assateague Channel.

Today the tradition will continue sometime between 9:00 and 11:00am when the “slack” tide will make it easiest for young foals born in the spring to ford the channel. The first colt to make it to shore after the swim will be given away to a lucky winner at the carnival.

Thursday’s auction will see dozens of ponies finding new homes, and Friday’s swim back to Assateague followed by the fireman’s carnival and other events will cap the week-long festivities.

The event gained international attention in 1947 when local resident Marguerite Henry wrote the famous children’s novel, “Misty of Chincoteague,” a true story of a young brother and sister who grew up on Chincoteague and raised money by selling clams so they could purchase “Misty,” a young colt with markings on her side resembling a map of the United States.

Millions of visitors have since visited the area to see the wild ponies and the islands. The movie, “Misty,” brought even more attention to the pony swim, an event that continues to be popular with tourists and residents of the island, and receives national television coverage. The tradition continues….

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