Did you know that herds of wild ponies roam a section of the Appalachian Trail? It's true. There are about 150 of them located in the Grayson Highlands in Southwest Virginia. The open grasslands at Grayson were not natural. Pre-1800's this was forest. Then it was logged and converted to farmland through the 1800's to 1900's. In 1965 the 4800 acre Grayson Highlands State Park was created and conserved. To keep these grassy balds open without becoming overgrown or reverting to forest, 20 wild ponies were first introduce in 1974 and have since been managed by the Wilburn Ridge Pony Association. There are now a dozen or so herds numbering a total of 150 ponies. These ponies are much smaller than regular horses, even when fully grown. Their coats are widely varied.
