how aggressive are the assateague horses. I’m imagining them being like bears in yosemite, really used to humans and they know we have food
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They arent really aggressive but let’s just say they know how to open coolers like a pro.
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We were there last September, and they aren’t aggressive, but they also don’t care about you, and will wander right through the middle of your camp. The park recommends you store any food in your vehicle because they will go after it .
I’ve never experienced aggressiveness from the horses on Oceanside, but I did encounter one on the Bayside. This one would come right at you and try to take whatever it could. Cooking in the open wasn’t even an option. And we were forced to hide in the car to eat. It would then linger if it didn’t find anything, waiting for us to exit the car. At one point, it tried to force it’s way into my friend’s car. We had to leave camp a couple of times. It made our stay very uncomfortable. We took the usual precautions of hiding food as soon as the horses were in sight, locking it all up when not in use, and cleaning camp well after we ate. But, they were relentless and would show back up as soon as they smelled anything. The other horses weren’t like this, but I would strongly recommend staying Oceanside where you’ll have a breeze blowing any smells away.
I haven’t actually been to the area but when I was researching it about a month ago I found this review. It sounds like although the horses are not aggressive, they do like food and you are supposed to put all food away if you are around the horses to avoid any problems. So if you end up here, just watch out for horses at your campsite because they could cause you to have a very late dinner!
The horses dont seem to be aggressive, but they are not afraid of humans. Keep in mind you are a guest in THEIR house. I have seen them walk up to a picnic table while a family was eating and reach over a man’s shoulder and pick up his Subway sandwich and walk away with it!
The horses can be defensively aggressive, if you try to approach them.
The rangers recommend carrying a water bottle half filled with pebbles and use as a rattle. The horses dont like the sound and will stay away.