Virginia's Eastern Shore has a prime address- the corner of the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean
One of the most frequent questions we get from people from out of the area who are responding to our ads is “Where exactly is the Eastern Shore of Virginia ? ” Mother Nature has created this remarkable little slice of the earth as a slender peninsula, bordered on the east by the Atlantic Ocean , on the west by the Chesapeake Bay, to the north bordered by southern Maryland with access to mainland Virginia via the engineering marvels of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel complex ( www.cbbt.com ) . Being at the corner of the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean is a truly primo address, clearly. But when we moved here nearly twenty five years ago, almost nobody I knew had ever heard of the Eastern Shore of Virginia, period– except people who lived here, obviously. About twenty years ago Blue Heron Realty Co. sponsored a “meet and greet” booth at the annual Homarama builder show in an effort to raise greater awareness in the Virginia Beach/Norfolk area of the real estate possibilities here on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. It was funny, in a sad sort of way— people would stop for a brochure and comment that they had never heard of the Eastern Shore, although we are less than an hour away from almost anyplace in Virginia Beach or Norfolk. That experience and a few others like it led us to write a little book in 1989 (out of print now), replete with lots of photographs, about life and real estate on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. Back then the Shore was an extremely rural area and definitely not for everyone, no shopping centers, almost no restaurants, no world class golf, just exquisite waterfront property. Having the book enabled us to lend out copies to people who were thinking of coming to look real estate so they could get a feel for the area, in advance of making a trip, see if it matched up with their needs, contemplate whether or not this was an area for them.
And now, 22 years later, the Shore has changed a lot, we have amenities galore. But even in 2011, many people still have never heard of the Eastern Shore of Virginia although they probably recognize the names of some of our little towns, Cape Charles, Onancock or Chincoteague ( the Shore’s great tourist area and home to the famous annual pony swim and auction www.virginia.org/site/features.asp?featureid=711). It’s easy to see where we are on the Eastern Seaboard from this little map graphic– about 3 & 1/2 hours from Philadelphia, about 4 & 1/2 from most of New Jersey, about 6 hours from New York City, about 4 hours from the Washington DC/Baltimore area, 1 & 1/2 hours from Williamsburg, 3 1/2 hours from Charlottesville and from Cape Charles, less than a 1/2 hour from Virginia Beach and Norfolk. Our area is really so close to a great many major metro areas– easy for friends and relatives to visit or to visit them. Better still, not only is it easy to get here but when you live here it’s so easy to access wonderful events and attractions in other areas ! The Eastern Shore of Virginia is “easy trip” paradise. Hankering for the mountains ? Zip to Charlottesville. Nordstrum’s having a big, big sale ? Zip to McArthur Center in Norfolk. Want to visit Capitol Hill, the Library of Congress, the amazing National Zoo or go to the annual National Book Festival ? Zip to Washington D.C. . Annapolis Boat Show calling ? Zip, zip. Longing to see Wicked on Broadway ? Zip, zip, zip, pass go, have dinner in Chinatown, then on to the Great White Way. Like State Fairs ? Zip to Richmond, just 2 & 1/2 hours away. You get the picture…. Virginia’s Eastern Shore has a fabulous central location, with easy access to and from some really great places.
So that’s “Where In The World” the Eastern Shore is located — right in the middle of many of the good things of life !
Tags: Cape Charles Virginia, Eastern Shore Virginia real estate, Virginia Eastern Shore, week-end trips from Eastern Shore Virginia