Where: Off the narrow Virginia peninsula extending south from Maryland's Eastern Shore, about 160 miles from Washington, D.C.

Habitat: Some 14,000 acres of salt marshes, freshwater marshes, barrier islands, inlets, and bays. Also dunes and maritime forests.

Wildlife: While many visit Chincoteague to see the famous exotic ponies, contained in two fenced-in areas, the refuge is one of the top-five shorebird migratory-staging areas east of the Rockies. It has a wide variety of waterfowl and wading birds, as well as the threatened piping plover. The endangered Delmarva Peninsula fox squirrel lives here, too.

Activities: Birdwatching, hiking, saltwater fishing, shellfishing.

Contact: 757-336-6122; http://chinco.fws.gov