Tangier Island

An island in the middle of the Chesapeake, twelve miles offshore, reachable only by boat. About four hundred people live on a few square miles of marsh and ridge, crabbing for a living, driving golf carts because there is barely a road, and speaking an English so distinctive that linguists have been arguing about its origins for a century.

The island is also disappearing. It has lost most of its land mass since the 1850s to erosion and rising water, and current projections give the community decades rather than centuries. Visiting is a genuinely singular experience and an uncomfortable one.

Passenger ferries run seasonally from Onancock and Reedville, roughly ninety minutes each way, which makes this a full day rather than a stop. Plan it as a separate day, not a detour.