The 92nd Annual Chincoteague Pony Swim is July 26.
The swim itself only lasts about 15 minutes, but all the fun leading up to, and after, the swim makes the town of Chincoteague the place to be for the entire week.
During the week of the pony penning, over 30,000 people visit Chincoteague. Denise Bowden, volunteer with Chincoteague Island’s Fire Company has only missed one pony swim since she was born.
“It’s one of the greatest things you will ever see in your life cause when I’m standing out there on that dock and the ponies hit the water and these people start cheering and everything, I get goosebumps because I know what is happening then is there are thousands of people whose dreams have come true from seeing this pony swim,” Denise says.
The Chincoteague Pony Swim was introduced to the rest of the world by Marguerite Henry in her book, “Misty of Chincoteague.”
The week prior to the pony swim, the Saltwater Cowboys will begin to round up about 150 adult wild ponies that live on Assateague Island, along with the 60-70 foals that were born in the spring. In the following days before the Wednesday morning swim, the ponies are checked out by a vet and allowed to rest. This is also an opportunity for the public to see the ponies before the big day.
People come from all over the world and they wait in the marsh or out on boats hours before the event. The swim happens at slack tide which is a period of about 30 minutes between the tides when there is no current. This year’s slack tide is expected to fall between 6 am-8 am.
The first foal to come ashore will be named King or Queen Neptune and will be given away at the carnival grounds later in the day.
Following the swim, the ponies rest for about 45 minutes and then the Saltwater Cowboys help parade the ponies down the street to the carnival grounds where they will be auctioned off the next day.
“Our citizens don’t pay a fire tax so this is one way how we raise money to buy half a million dollar fire trucks, and 200-thousand dollar ambulances and everything that goes in them,” Denise says. “And our vet bills with the ponies can run anywhere from 25-30 thousand dollars a year, so all that money goes right back into our general fund to help take care of the residents and visitors that come to Chincoteague.”
Visitors can visit the Chincoteague Carnival in the evenings the week of the pony swim. Once the carnival wraps up and everyone starts heading home, Denise says it’s time to start thinking about the 93rd Annual Chincoteague Pony Swim.
