Charity Robey

How to get lost on Shelter Island

 

Mashomack Preserve on a spring day. (Credit: James Colligan, courtesy)

There was a time when the phrase “get lost” was an insult. These days, it’s therapy.

When the world becomes too much for you, Shelter Island — the pearl in the prongs of the North and South forks — has thousands of acres of wooded trails, quiet country roads, and deserted beaches where you can treat your short fuse with a long walk.

Thanks to the work of local organizers and volunteers, a few extremely generous landowners and politicians who established and supported the Community Preservation Fund real estate transfer tax, more than a third of Shelter Island is now open space set aside for the quiet enjoyment of the public. The following are some of the places islanders most love to visit when it’s time to unplug and wander off.

MASHOMACK PRESERVE

With its well-developed system of trails and miles of pristine woods and creeks, Mashomack Preserve is the closest thing to wilderness on Shelter Island. Cindy Belt, an outreach coordinator at the site, loves to hike the Green Trail.

“You really feel as though you did something when you’ve finished — it has hills,” she said. “Also woods and meadows, and you get some great water views.”

An additional incentive at roughly the halfway point is the newly renovated Manor House, which features a hikers’ bathroom.

BEACHES

On Shelter Island, it’s possible to be all by yourself at the beach. When she wants to be alone, Alison Bavaro — whose hectic summers are spent running the restaurants SALT and PORT with her husband, Keith — heads for the windswept beauty of a strip of beach at the end of Bootleggers Alley.

“You can sit there in the middle of August on a Tuesday and still have it all to yourself,” she said.

A popular beach walk for those who like their solitude invigorated with some exercise can be found in the route from Hay Beach to Ram Island. Start from the Menhaden Lane parking lot (a Shelter Island Town Beach sticker is required) and then walk southeast amid 42 acres of low beach scrub on a short trail, where you’ll pass native grasses and prickly pear cacti.

If that’s enough solitude, you can turn back. Better yet, however, continue along the pebbly beach traveling southeast (the water will be on your left) until you reach a parking area and country road that leads up and over the hill of Little Ram Island and continues to the causeway between Little Ram and Big Ram Island, featuring sweeping views of Gardiners Bay and the Atlantic Ocean on the left. The road climbs again as you reach Big Ram Island and pass the Ram’s Head Inn. Following Ram Island Drive and Tuttle Drive in a loop around Ram Island adds about two miles to the round trip from Menhaden Lane and comprises a total of about eight miles.

SYLVESTER MANOR

Sylvester Manor, with its 225 acres of gardens, farm fields and wooded trails, is a 17th-century farm intimately connected to the history of the island. It’s also another favorite spot for people who just want to get away from it all.

“This is an old land; you feel it when you walk it, that sense of history … of many lives spent here and their relationship to the land that has endured,” archivist Donnamarie Barnes said.

The paths located behind the property’s Manor House lead to a burial site believed to hold the remains of more than 200 people who may have been slaves or indentured servants. Another short trail leads to farm fields and the marshy edge of Gardiners Creek. The area near the creek is thought to have been the site of Native American camps dating back many centuries, before Europeans colonized the area. It’s not unusual to encounter deer or even bald eagles on the trails in this area.

SACHEM’S WOODS

Joe Denny, an avid walker and local organizer of the Shelter Island Trails group, said his favorite place to get lost on the island is the one-mile loop in Sachem’s Woods. The 24-acre site, located in the middle of the island, is accessible on foot from North Midway Road near the intersection with Bowditch Road. Keep in mind that Sachem’s Woods doesn’t have bathrooms, garbage cans or parking and that everything taken there must also be taken out. Denny is leading an effort to establish trails this summer to connect Sachem’s Woods, Sylvester Manor and 30 acres of the Mildred Hird Preserve, creating a significant trail system through open land in the heart of the island.

COECLES HARBOR MARINE TRAIL

Getting lost involves getting away, and nothing is more satisfying than paddling away under your own steam. Like a nature walk on water, the Coecles Harbor Marine Trail is a five-mile round trip that parallels a shoreline of salt marsh, fiddler crabs and osprey nests, with a loop around Taylor’s Island, a tiny tombolo with a rustic cabin and a porch perfect for a picnic. The round trip can take up to four hours, not including your picnic. Paddle southeast from the Burns Road boat launch with the shore on your right, following the Marine Trail interpretive map that is available online.

• A map of publicly owned open space on Shelter Island, including all of the places described here, can be downloaded at siopenspace.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/openspacebrochure-final.pdf

• Mashomack Preserve, 17 South Ferry Road, Shelter Island: www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/55663.html

• A Sylvester Manor trail map can be downloaded at sylvestermanor.org

• To schedule kayak rentals at Shelter Island Kayak Tours, call (631) 749-1990

• A Coecles Harbor Marine Water Trail map can be downloaded at taylorsisland.org/documents/20060500Trail.pdf

This story was originally published in the March 2017 edition of northforker magazine

Q & A with the big man in red

Published in the north forker on November 26, 2016

Do you believe in Santa Claus? I do — and that’s why I arranged to interview him at the home of Tony and Mary Yarusso in Northville, on Long Island Sound.

He answered a bunch of nosy questions with his customary good humor.

Full disclosure: At the end of our interview, he gave me a candy cane.

Q: How did you get into this?

A: I had white hair and I decided to let my beard grow, see where it went and what I would become. So it grew and grew and I said, “Hmm, let me get a red suit and see where I go with this.” Once you put on the suit, it’s a different day. You’ve got a lot of responsibilities. Children are watching you and you have to set an example for them. You are a Santa and you have responsibility to what Santa represents: kindness, goodness and helping.

Q: Santa, you’re looking pretty fit. How do you do it? And why?

A: We are getting away from the tradition of the fat Santa. I wear the hat to protect me from the sun. Santa doesn’t smoke a pipe anymore. I learned something years ago: When you’ve grown the beard and you wear the red you are a Santa 24/7. Today Santa Claus realizes that health is a big part of what he should be projecting.

Q: What do you say to the children who come to see you?

A: I thank them for those chocolate chip cookies — the ones they left for me last year — and they just beam, because it’s nice to get a thank-you from Santa. I usually ask them, “Are you helping your mommy and your daddy?” I encourage them to read books with their parents and remind them that it’s very important to eat all your veggies and fruits, and that it’s not all about milk and cookies — except for me. Ho! Ho! Ho!

Q: Sounds like your approach to being Santa means taking advantage of teachable moments.

A: I don’t teach a lesson, but I do want to convey a few things that they can take away with them. I have a big map next to the sled. When a child asks, “Where do you go first, Santa?” I tell them, starting from the North Pole, I always go to Poland first because it is very cold there and I like to get it out of the way early. Then I go around and down through South America. When I get to Alaska I know I’m almost home.

Q: Have children’s requests changed over the years?

A: These days a lot of technical stuff, but children still want dolls and trucks.

Q: Are you famous?

A: I’m not interviewed all the time, maybe once in the past year. I did go on “Good Morning America” a few times, in 2012, 2013 and 2015. It was grand.

Q: Where can kids go to see you?

A: I do a lot of volunteering at schools. I’ll be at Mercy High School in Riverhead on Thanksgiving Day. I’m also at Santa’s Christmas Tree Farm in Cutchogue.

Q: Do people ever ask you if Santa Claus really exists?

A: Practically every person that comes to see me has the question, “Are you Santa?” Know what I tell them? “That’s for you to answer, for you to make up your mind.” Then I take my hat off and ask, “What do you think?”

Spending a vacation day on Shelter Island

A Shelter Island view from the ‘Kissing Rock.’ (Credit: Charity Robey)

 

Published in the northforker on May 25, 2016

Shelter Island is more than a charming, boring version of the Hamptons, a bucolic identity that travel writers have stuck on it. The island has welcomed visitors for two centuries with a contrariness that comes with being able to roll up the gangplanks every night and let the rest of the world go to hell. There’s a lot here, especially for people willing to bike or float, and a long summer day is enough time to get a taste. 

Of course, you can drive a car onto the ferry — this is still Long Island. But if you come by bike or rent one from Piccozzi’s Bike Shop (177 North Ferry Road, 631-749-0045), you’ll be pre-adjusted to the pace of the place, summarized by the tag line “Live Slow,” which you may see on a bumper sticker or T-shirt.

Begin your day at Stars Café (17 Grand Avenue, 631-749-5345), located about a quarter-mile from the North Ferry, just up the hill from the bike rental. It’s a great place to have breakfast and plot your route.

Every small town has a place where the mood of the community can be assessed and on Shelter Island, that place is Stars. The regular morning crowd is generally sitting at café tables outside, watching the peaceful and civil coexistence of pedestrians, bicycles and cars at the intersection of Chase and New York avenues and weighing in on island events. New to the menu this year is peanut butter and jelly French toast, a breakfast that can do double-duty as lunch. Owner Pepe Martinez said they are happy to make this delicacy with their gluten-free bread, for those who prefer it.

Before you leave the Heights, a visit to Marie Eiffel Market (184 North Ferry Road, 631-749-0003) is a very good idea, even if you’ve already had breakfast. It’s a great place to buy freshly baked breads and pastries to stock a picnic lunch or eat dockside at the tables in back. Don’t leave without a hunk of her delicious baguette.

The Smith-Taylor cabin on Taylor’s Island. (Credit: Monique Singh-Roy)

The island’s most interesting public space is Taylor’s Island, featuring a turn-of the century timber cabin that’s been restored thanks to the efforts of local preservationist P.A.T. Hunt. Technically, it’s not an island, but a tombolo — an acre of rocks and sand connected to land only at low tide — in the middle of Coecles Harbor. Travel by kayak (you can rent from Shelter Island Kayak Tours, 23 North Ferry Road, 631-749-1990) via the Coecles Harbor Marine Water Trail or put in at the Town Landing on Congdon Road. Get more information and a map at taylorsisland.org/documents/20060500Trail.pdf.

At first glance, Sylvester Manor Educational Farm (21 Manwaring Road) looks like a farm stand with especially great-looking vegetables. But hang out and talk to the folks tending the stand and you’ll quickly discover that this is the business end of a 250-acre educational farm with pigs, chickens, fainting goats and a manor house that was built in 1737 on land that has been farmed since the 17th century. Of course, you can buy some tomatoes, but also consider a walk to see the goats or maybe a tour of the house and grounds.

Then, on to lunch.

The bright yellow walls and tiny lunch counter at Maria’s Kitchen (55 North Ferry Road, 631-749-5450) are cute, but it’s the chalkboard menu neatly listing her signature enchiladas, empanadas, salads and smoothies, which takes up most of a wall, that demonstrates the mission here. Maria is running a serious Mexican eatery and she’s not going to let you leave without tasting something so good that the memory of it will draw you back very soon. Her culinary style reflects her roots in Puebla, Mexico, tempered by a heavy reliance on fresh local produce, a genius for soup-making and a light hand with the hot peppers.

Jim Hull pouring up some of his Forbidden Fruit apple ale.
(Credit: Monique Singh-Roy)

Just next door you’ll find Shelter Island Craft Brewery.

If the idea of a microbrewery is to make small batches of local beer with local ingredients, then the Shelter Island Craft Brewery (55 North Ferry Road, 631-749-5977) is the most micro of all. Owner and brew master Jim Hull forages island gardens and beaches for flavors to incorporate into adventurous island brews. Lemon verbena and local honey contribute to the citrusy charms of Liquid Sunshine Wheat Ale, a favorite that’s almost always on hand.

For evening entertainment, the Perlman Music Program, (73 Shore Road, 212-877-5045) is Toby and Itzhak Perlman’s camp for gifted 8-  to 12-year- olds, who play their stringed instruments like accompaniment for flights of angels. The program holds free concerts every Friday and Saturday night throughout the summer on its tree-studded beachside campus, with Itzhak Perlman conducting — and sometimes performing.

SALT. (Credit: Jo Ann Kirkland)

To cap off your day with a great dinner, consider some of the following options.

• The Islander is a great diner built by, run by and frequented by local people. So if you want to see some, go there. Also go if you want a superior burger. 63 North Ferry Road, 631-749-1998.

• Vine Street Café offers fine dining with a country feel and inspired use of local ingredients. 41 South Ferry Road, 631-749-3210.

• SALT’s lively bar and dining room have lovely views of boatyard and creek and a menu that includes their very popular linguini with local littleneck clams steamed in white wine. 63 S. Menantic Road, Island Boatyard, 631-749-5535.

• Red Maple, a stylish restaurant in the newly renovated inn, The Chequit, features New American food. With my right hand on “Mastering the Art of French Cooking,” I swear to you the kale and butternut squash salad with shrimp is fantastic. Tender. The Chequit, 23 Grand Ave., 631-749-0018.

Barn doors for people who were not raised in one

Charity Robey

This story was originally published in the 2016 edition of northforker Home and Garden

Here on the East End, a barn door is not merely a decorative note. Its also a nod to the past and homage to the farming tradition that has dominated this area since Europeans first settled here.

So when Jane Kosovsky imagined the home she wanted to build on her Southold property in 2003, she was thinking farm.

“I’m animal-oriented, and I wanted to blur the lines between the inside of the house and the outside, as far from a suburban family house as possible,” said Kosovsky, who installed two sets of barn doors inside her house. “The builder thought I was nuts, but he’s since brought people over to see them.”

She uses the doors for visual separation of indoor space, as well as for privacy. One pair sits between the large entry room and the living room, the other between the entry and the den creating a multi-use space for guests or just peace and quiet.

Builders say barn doors work for interiors because they are a versatile way to divide space and provide privacy. They also point out that rolling door hardware works better than hinges for very large doors because the stress of a bigger door will cause hinges to fall. Barn doors will also fit in spaces that don’t allow the forward clearance needed for the swing of a large door. When considering a site, it’s important to consider that barn doors are not airtight, since they must clear the floor and that the wall space adjacent to the opening must be equal to the width of the door.

April Hardwick’s Shelter Island home, built in the 1950s, is a genuine farmhouse. When she began to renovate it in 2013, she was determined to keep the look of the house, “local, and not too rustic — like a Scandinavian farmhouse.”

The barn door, she said, turned out to be a feature of the house that grabs everyone who walks in.

The door, which separates the living room and an adjacent alcove, was not part of the plan until their builder, Eugene Burger, suggested it. Actually, he insisted on it.

“We did not consider it in the beginning, but I love it now,” said Hardwick. “It’s a showpiece.”

This barn door hangs in the Mattituck home of Times Review Media Group advertising sales associate Michelina Da Fonte. (Credit: Barbaraellen Koch)

Burger’s company, Burger Construction in Cutchogue, builds three or four new homes a year. In the past five years, most of them have featured interior barn doors. He’s done so many — at least 15 by his estimate — that creating and installing custom barn doors, often using antique barn wood from demolished structures, has become a specialty for him.

“People like to use barn doors in interiors because the doors have character,” Burger said. “Finding the doors is not so easy.”

Burger constructed Hardwick’s door from reclaimed barn wood and hung it on a metal track. At first, Hardwick planned to paint the door, but she found she liked the natural look of the wood, especially since the dining room table, which is visible from the living room, is made of a large slab of barn wood from 1865.

Beautiful and practical, the door creates a space that will evolve with the family’s needs. Hardwick, whose third daughter is six months old, said she sees a possible future for the alcove as a guest room or additional bedroom. For now, it seems right that a barn door defines a playroom for her two older girls and their dog.

“People have an affinity for places that are real,” said Ed Dart of Dart’s Tree Farm in Southold. And he should know.

He’s the third generation of his family to farm on Main Bayview Road, and his beautiful 1753 barn is an example of why the rural barn has become a design ideal for modern homeowners. This historic structure features two sets of huge doors on the north and the south sides.

“They were built to allow a horse and wagon to drive in,” Dart said. “You could drive right through the building.”

Nowadays the barn is retail space for the Dart family’s Christmas tree and trimmings business and an event space for cocktail receptions, art exhibits and weddings the rest of the year.

Ed Dart shows off a barn door at his Southold farm. (Credit: Barbaraellen Koch)

“It is a space that looks authentic because it is,” he said. “And it has a smell that can’t be equaled.”

Peter Stoutenburgh of the building company Environment East said city dwellers living in lofts and former industrial spaces, where walls are few and space is at a premium, fuel the trend toward the large, sliding doors. Their East End homes incorporate the industrial aesthetic of a large door that offers privacy where you need it, with the bling of rail hardware, sometimes sleek and European, sometimes antique and reclaimed, from which the doors hang.

Stoutenburgh said he’s working now on a renovation that mixes the old and new, with sliding barn-like doors in a farm-style kitchen with a deep sink and a large top-of-the-line stove.

He pointed out that in late 19th-century Victorian-style homes in this area, sliding doors to the parlor were often an important part of the interior. These doors often featured etched glass and displayed the skill of the craftsman.

“Sometimes we’ll find a pocket door still stowed in the wall of one of these Victorian homes that was just painted over and forgotten,” Stoutenburgh said.

And there’s one more feature some homeowners look for in barn doors, according to Stoutenburgh, that lends that farm authenticity: “It needs to have some chicken feathers on it.”

This story was originally published in the 2016 edition of northforker Home and Garden

Where to cut your own Christmas tree on the North Fork

Ed Dart with his Firs; a Douglas on the left and a Fraser on the right. (Credit: Charity Robey)

Published in the Suffolk Times/ Northforker holiday supplement on November 25, 2015

Does it make sense to drive to a rural area, cut down a seven-foot tree and put it in your living room for several weeks? No, it does not. But Christmas was never about being sensible. Even for people who think nothing of apple- or strawberry-picking, the experience of going out in a field to bring back a freshly cut tree is a peculiar delight.

And speaking of rational acts, who in their right mind would tie up acres of valuable Long Island real estate growing a crop that requires fertilization, pest control, pruning and eight to 10 years of growing before it can be harvested?

On the North Fork of Long Island, there are still a handful of farms, all family-owned, where generations of tree buyers and tree growers have participated in this illogical, magical Christmas tradition and made it an annual part of their holiday.

Riverhead resident Tony Yarusso, who is blessed with a beard as white as snow, has spent the past seven holiday seasons as Santa Claus, including the last three at Santa’s Christmas Tree Farm on Main Road in Cutchogue. He is a close observer of what a visit to a cut-your-own tree farm means to a family with small children.

“These places are truly working farms,” he said. “The experience of cutting your own tree is to learn how the trees grow. The trees are not leaning against a house with a row of lights on them. These are real ones in the ground.”

There are many easier and less expensive ways to get a Christmas tree than to cut one down. The Home Depot typically sells natural trees at prices that can be half the price of a field tree. But Joe Shipman, owner of Shamrock Christmas Tree Farm in Mattituck, said the people who come to the 20 acres he’s been farming since 1989 to pick out one of his beautiful Douglas firs are not just looking for a tree transaction.

“They want to take time at Christmas for a family experience,” he said.

Shipman plants trees in blocks, opening one block every year for cutting. He described this year’s designated block as unusually good, with many “perfect” trees.

“Everybody’s theory of the perfect tree is so different,” he said, “Color, shape, branching and symmetry, those are what I think make the perfect tree.”

Santa’s Christmas Tree Farm has been in the Edson family since the 1960s and has sold Christmas trees since 1988. At 30 acres, it’s one of the larger North Fork Christmas tree farms. Started by Lewis Edson, who passed away in 2013, the farm is now managed by his children, Lisa and Evans Edson. Open year round, Santa’s offers the largest variety of trees of any North Fork farm; concolor firs and blue spruce are planted along with Douglas fir.

Zuhoski’s on Oregon Road in Cutchogue has been a family farm for three generations, but it wasn’t until 1996 that Steven and David Zuhoski began to convert the farm from growing potatoes to Christmas trees. They have established a strong following over the years.

“We get a lot of repeat customers, especially from Massapequa,” Steven Zuhoski said. Like Shipman at Shamrock, the Zuhoskis plant mostly Douglas fir.

The oldest of the North Fork Christmas tree farms is Dart’s, owned and operated by Ed Dart. Dart is the grandson of George Fletcher Downs and the third generation of his family to farm on Main Bayview Road in Southold.

With only about eight acres of Christmas trees, Dart manages his crop differently from the other North Fork farms. Instead of planting trees of the same age in blocks of land, he interplants, putting seedlings in the spaces left by trees that have been cut.

“It takes a long time. A tree seed doesn’t grow like a corn seed,” he said. “So there are trees of different sizes.”

Unlike other farms that grow mainly Douglas fir, Dart grows primarily Fraser firs, which are tricky to grow, but are preferred by many people because they are easier to decorate. He sells all trees on a first come, first served basis, with no pre-tagging allowed.

“If there is a way to do something, the Dart family finds the most expensive, time-consuming and labor intensive way to do it,” said Dart. “But I think people appreciate that.”

Christmas tree buyers often arrive with their own handsaws, but oftentimes, they are not completely successful, so all of the tree farms have staff on hand to help.

If Mattituck were the North Pole, Joe Shipman would have to call the guys who assist customers at Shamrock Christmas Tree Farm elves. Shipman retains this vital staff by providing breakfast, lunch and an after-work “get-together” in the barn for the guys who cut, shake and bale the trees and tie them onto the customers’ cars — essentially the same crew for most of the 19 years he has sold trees.

“They won’t leave,” he said.

Those who come to a farm for a field tree year after year have already decided to get a natural tree with a shape that is not necessarily perfectly conical. For those with that aesthetic, artificial trees were invented.

“Often, the Christmas trees families like the best are the craziest looking ones in the field,” said Dart. “You’ll always remember that Christmas when the tree was too big for the living room, or the one that was all flat on the back.”

Here where to cut your own on the North Fork:

Dart’s Christmas Tree Farm
2355 Main Bayview Road, Southold, NY
631-765-4148.
Open daily after Thanksgiving, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. All field-cut trees are $99.

Santa’s Christmas Tree Farm
30105 Main Road, Cutchogue, NY
631-734-8641
Open daily 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Field-cut trees are $75 up to 6 feet, plus $10 for each additional foot.

Shamrock Christmas Tree Farm
20685 Main Road, Mattituck, NY
631-298-4619
Open daily after Thanksgiving, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. All field-cut trees are $75.

Verderber’s Landscape Nursery & Garden Center
459 Main Road, Mattituck, NY
631-722-4388
Open Tuesday through Saturday,  8 a.m. through 5 p.m., Sundays, 8 a.m. through 4 a.m.

Zuhoski Farms
11825 Oregon Road, Cutchogue, NY
631-734-5036
Open Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. until dark. All field-cut trees are $65.

You'll Never Regret a Swim in Shelter Island Waters

Shelter Island beaches range from rocky to coarse sand with pebbles. Unless you can arrange to parachute in, plan to wear water shoes. (Credit: Charity Robey)

The thrill-seeking pleasures of boogie boarding and wave-riding generally aren’t associated with Shelter Island, a place where the unofficial motto is “Live Slow.” But for recreational swimmers, the island’s bay beaches, protected from direct wave action, couldn’t be better.

A character in one of Mary Gordon’s stories said you never regret the birth of a child, or a swim in the ocean. The beaches and landings described here offer a rich array of possibilities — beautiful stretches of water where a strong swimmer can exercise without lifeguards, lane ropes, or regrets.

Open-water swimming on Shelter Island is not for the timid. Sometimes the water is cold and swimmers have to be alert for warnings about unsafe conditions and water quality. Jellyfish are common, especially in late summer, and it’s always a good idea to swim with a buddy.

Parking a car at most Shelter Island beaches — namely Crescent, Wades, Hay, Shell, and Fresh Pond — requires a town parking permit or visitor parking permit from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Getting one of these requires a trip to the town clerk’s office during business hours (Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays, mid-June through August, from 9 a.m. to noon.) Up to 10 day permits are available daily for Wades and Shell beaches for $20 each.

Happauge native, Jessica Sheehan breaststrokes to shore after swimming the length of Crescent Beach.

Sunset, Crescent, or Louis’ Beach

When people refer to Sunset, Crescent, or Louis’ Beach, they are talking about the same place, the best-known stretch of sand on the island. A half-mile long, it spreads out like Ipanema along Rocky Shore Road with lifeguards, bathrooms and places to buy food and drink. What you call it says more about you than the beach. If you are old enough to have met the legendary Jack Wroble, who taught at least three generations of island children to swim here, you call it Louis’ Beach. Younger islanders call it Crescent.

On a Sunday in July, Jessica Sheehan was slicing through the clear water with such vitality it appeared possible that she had just swum in from near her home in Hauppauge, although she said her companion, watching her from shore, was an even better swimmer. She proclaimed the beach to be “beautiful!” but also planned to check out Hay Beach during her visit.

Hay Beach

Hay Beach, which many consider the most beautiful beach on Shelter Island, lies at the end of Menhaden Lane, a spot that for much of the island’s history was an industrial fish-processing area. Where the bracing smell of small, oily fish cooking once dominated there is now the sweet tang of sea air.

On a day in late July, Shelter Island swimmer Carol Tiernan emerged from the gentle tide of Hay Beach wearing a pretty multicolored rash guard and “Fivefingers” water shoes to protect her from the pebbly bottom. She noted that in 2015, like last year, local waters have been remarkably free of jellyfish, the nemesis of ocean swimmers. Ms. Tiernan said she prefers to swim parallel to the beach, and not too far out, to avoid the worst predations of the jellies.

“Louis’ Beach is the warmest, Hay Beach is the coldest,” said Ms. Tiernan, bearing out measurements made with a digital meat thermometer showing that on a day when the water at Hay Beach was 76 degrees, it was 78 degrees at Louis’.

Ms. Tiernan pointed out that parking at Hay Beach is not easy, especially since several parking spots were recently eliminated.

The Hiberry Lane Town Landing

About a mile north of Hay Beach, at the end of Hiberry Lane, is a town landing with a split rail fence framing a small tidal creek that feeds a marshy area that was once the hay field that gave Hay Beach its name. You can tell by the direction of the stream whether the tide is going in or out, good information to have in order to swim with the current. Swim left and you’re swimming toward Greenport Harbor, swim right and you’re swimming toward Orient Harbor, Gardiners Bay, and the Atlantic Ocean. As lovely as the beach is, it’s usually not busy. The water was 78 degrees on a recent July day. There was some seaweed, no jellyfish and a half-sandy, half-pebbly bottom.

Wades Beach

Wades Beach is located on a bend at 110 South Midway Road, on the far side of one of the island’s largest parking lots. An official town beach, it has two uncommon and useful features: a bathroom and a lifeguard. A large roped-off area of water with a sandy bottom turns the bay into a giant saltwater pool, a great place for swimmers to get some open-water experience. The water there earlier this summer was 79 degrees.

Shell Beach

At the end of Oak Tree Lane in Silver Beach, a spectacular spit of sand extends for almost a mile into Shelter Island Sound. It’s called Shell Beach but is actually two very different beaches in the same place. To the north is West Neck Harbor, where the water is calm and the boats and sunbathers are plentiful. The south side is more exposed and the water is a little rougher, but the swimming is great. The water temperature was 79 degrees earlier this summer and the bottom was very pebbly. Shell Beach is a town landing and not an official “bathing beach,” meaning it has no facilities.

Be sure to stay clear of whatever the piping plovers drop near their beachfront nesting areas — for their sake and yours.

The waters of Fresh Pond are the warmest on the Island, and the bottom is soft and sandy.

Fresh Pond

Fresh Pond is a small, natural freshwater lake in the center of the island that can be accessed by a town landing at the end of Fresh Pond Road. Lovely to look at, its history as a swimming hole is as old as the local debate about whether the water is clean. When the jellyfish are plentiful in the bays, Fresh Pond is a welcome jellyfish-free zone. And at 85 degrees in late July, it was the warmest water by far of any other Shelter Island swimming spot. The sandy bottom means you can wade right in without shoes.

This story originally appeared in the 2015 edition of northforker Wellness

Shelter Island's History by Bike

A cycle tour is one of the best ways to take in the Rock's rich heritage.

Published in the August 2015 edition of Northforker Outdoors

The North Ferry landing and Ferry House around 1890 doesn’t look so different today. Courtesy of the Shelter Island Historical Society

 The only way to get to Shelter Island is by boat, and on the North Ferry from Greenport your voyage is ten glorious minutes of salty air, sailboats, seabirds, and charming Victorian cottages as you approach the docks. With that kind of introduction, it’s easy to imagine that the ferry is taking you back to an earlier time.

 Roll off the ferry on a bike, instead of a car, and you transform your visit to this beautiful and sometimes quirky place into a real tour-not a drive-by. The pace of Shelter Island is slow, and has been since the Manhanset Indians spent their summers living off the land and bays of Shelter Island over a thousand years ago.

 The excellent (and free) map of Shelter Island available at the North Ferry office shows all 8000 acres of this seven-mile wide island, about a third of which is the Mashomack nature preserve. Consider this 10-mile bike route a starting point for further exploration.

 Follow Rt. 114 off the ferry, up the hill and into the heart of “The Heights” a Victorian-era resort community of gingerbread cottages, a beach club and chapel conceived as a Methodist retreat. You’ll pass The Chequit, which was the restaurant for the Methodist camp, and is now a hotel.

 Continue on Rt. 114, turning left to cross the first of the Island’s two tiny bridges into the shops of Bridge Street, which still looks a lot like it looked in the 19^th century, except for the rustic archway and unpaved road

Bridge Street in the 1920s looks a lot like Bridge Street almost 100 years later. Courtesy of the Shelter Island Historical Society

 If you have not already made provision for lunch, this would be a good time to stop at Marie Eiffel Market across from the gas station for a sandwich or salad to go, or to eat on the outdoor tables. Her baguettes are home-baked with a wonderful crust and pleasant chew.

 Back on Route 114, climb up the hill from Bridge Street and continue about a mile to the white stone gates, on the left of Sylvester Manor where sugar merchant Nathaniel Sylvester established a plantation in 1651.

 Continue straight onto Manwaring Road and look for the Windmill, on your left, built in 1810 to replace an even older one that burned down.

 Take the first left at the traffic circle onto Ram Island Road, formerly known as Factory Road because it led toan industrial site that sustained the economic health of Shelter Island in the 19^th century, the Menhaden Fish Factories. Menhaden is a tiny, oily fish that was cooked down in large cauldrons and used for fuel, fertilizer and for tarring nets.

 Ram Island Road becomes Gardiner’s Bay Road, and a right turn on Menhaden Lane leads to Hay Beach, one of the loveliest beaches on the Island. The only oily things cooking on the sands these days are the sunbathers.

Menhaden were cooked in kettles like this one in Dering Harbor. The kettles are still a common sight all over the Island.

 Ride back up Menhaden Lane and left on Gardiner’s Bay Road. A left turn on Ram Island Drive leads you to Little and Big Ram Islands, which were linked by causeway to the rest of Shelter Island in the early 20^th century. Many of the telephone poles on the causeway out to Little Ram Island are topped with osprey nests, and if you keep a respectful distance you may observe these large birds catching fish well above the size limit, feeding young ospreys the size of turkeys, and otherwise going about their business.

 At about 5 miles from the ferry, you’ll reach the halfway point, Ram’s Head Inn on the right, a beautiful inn and restaurant perched on a hill above Coecles Harbor. The expansive hammock and chair-strewn lawn is a great place for a drink.

 Turn left out of the Ram’s Head to return on Ram Island Drive, the views on your right are of Gardiners Bay, with the lighthouse known as Bug Light to the North, looking like an insect perched on the water off the shore of Orient.

 Turn left on Ram Island Road and then right on Cobbetts Lane which curves up and flattens out into an line of old oaks and maples starting with the white oak on the right just past Overlook Place, which is thought to be about 150 years old. These trees are reminder of the importance of Island timber to the barrel construction that was central to transporting goods by ship, said to be the reason Nathaniel Sylvester bought Shelter Island in the first place.

 Turn right on Manhanset Road and ride through a flat area of dense woods, shady and cool. Where the woods end, an enormous Beech Hedge, planted 75 years ago by LaVerne Hench, and one of only two on the eastern end of Long Island, welcomes you to the hamlet of Dering Harbor.

This quarter-mile long Beech hedge lets you know you have arrived in Dering Harbor.

 Follow Manhanset onto Locust Point Road and turn right on Yoco and left on Shore Road past a row of impressive mansions looking out on Dering Harbor.

 Follow Shore Road as it turns into Winthrop and over a second bridge (known by the straightforward local people as” Second Bridge”) where you can pause, look to your left, and see a lovely inlet, (or “creek” as it is known by the enigmatic local people.)

 This is the ancient heart of Shelter Island, where native Manhanset tribes established a village over a thousand years ago on the point, and just beyond that is the spot Nathaniel Sylvester chose to build a Manor House in 1651. On your right is Dering Harbor with views North to Greenport.

 Continue on Winthrop to North Ferry Road, aka Rt. 114, where a right turn takes you back through Bridge Street to the North Ferry.

 A boat is the only way to get to this Island, and a boat is the only way off, so time your departure for sundown, head for the West side of the ferry and enjoy the show.

Dering Harbor seen from First Bridge near the end of a great bike ride.

Shelter Island 10K- Eat to Run

 

  

Farro, raisin, and almond salad from Marie Eiffel Market

 

Black truffle fusilli from Marie Eiffel Market

 

  

Whole Wheat Shrimp Salad Wrap from Maria’s Kitchen

Published in the Shelter Island Reporter 10K Journal, June 11, 2015

For years, prevailing pre-race nutrition advice was to eat a high carbohydrate meal at dinner the night before. It was called carbo-loading, and often involved eating a gigantic serving of pasta. For me, those were the glory days of running.

 Sadly, the practice of eating a large amount of high carbohydrate food the day before a race is out of favor, particularly before athletic events that last less than an hour. Current practice is a diet of moderate carbohydrate rich meals in the weeks leading up to a race, and easily digested carbohydrates and low fiber fruits, like bananas, peeled apples and juices on race day.

 There is one real runner in my family, my husband, so I asked him for his best pre-race nutrition advice. Still haunted by his experience in the D.C. Cherry Blossom 10-mile Run in 2001, he said, “Do not eat at a Chinese restaurant the night before a big race.”

 Fortunately for the Shelter Island 10K runners, that won’t be a problem, since there is not currently a Chinese restaurant on Shelter Island. But there are plenty of good alternatives.

 Most races happen first thing in the morning; but our 10K starts at 5:30 p.m. That means pre-race eating includes breakfast and lunch.

 “Poor runners, to have to run so late in the afternoon!” said Marie Eiffel, whose café  (Marie Eiffel Market, 184 N. Ferry Rd. (631-749-0003) has beautiful and nutritious offerings for breakfast and lunch. Her farro, raisin, almond, and goat cheese salad tastes even better paired with a hunk of her signature baguette and the water-view from the picnic tables outback.

 “We also do a lot of vegetables roasted or grilled for the runners, Marie said, “and of course fresh juices.” For something more substantial, pre-race pasta doesn’t get any better than Marie’s Pasta with pancetta, onions and black truffles. She also offers excellent homemade soups every day, including vegan, gluten-free mushroom, and a carrot ginger soup. Either would be a nutritious and easy-to-digest lunch for a runner.

 Maria’s Kitchen, 55 North Ferry Road (631) 749-5450 is open 8am to 8pm for pre or post-race nutrition needs. Maria’s cooking is Mexican, but not spicy unless you ask for it. Her menu highlights fresh fruits and vegetables, and she makes juice from just about anything with a leaf or a stem. Her wraps are made with whole wheat; including one with grilled vegetables, greens, avocado and pesto, or the Shrimp Salad Wrap with fresh carrots, avocado, lettuce, corn, and lightly cooked shrimp that have a wonderful snap as you bite into them.

 A good meal is important for recovery, and after 6.2 miles, a sit-down restaurant might be welcome. 18 Bay  Ali Bevilacqua and Keith Bavaro run two such establishments, and they dish out some of the best food and welcoming ambiance on the Island.

 Shelter Island House, 11 Stearns Point Rd. (631) 749-5659 has an upscale, pub feel. Keith suggested runners looking to re-up their carbs, and eat for recovery might go with the Chiocciole Pasta with Ricotta Salata, or the Chia Crusted Salmon.

 Keith and Ali also run Salt, (631) 749-5535, at a lovely, waterfront location adjacent to the Island Boatyard Marina. The Linguini with steamed, local Little Neck clams is a mainstay of their innovative menu. They also make a great veggie burger, packed with protein and low fat carbohydrates, farro, oats, chickpeas, spinach, black beans and avocado.

 Salt serves lunch and dinner and Shelter Island House will be open for dinner, and Sunday brunch for those still needing post-race replenishment. The 10K post-race party happens under the stars at Salt, with drinks and a band. Once you’ve had a good meal, you can dance all night.

Where to ski, skate and sled on the North Fork - Page 2 of 3

When Shelter Island got over two feet of snow on Tuesday, The Northforker picked up my piece on snow sports Shelter Island-style, which originally appeared in the Suffolk-Times Holiday supplement. Read it here.

The Rock is Ripe for a Snow Trek. Here's where to cross-country ski and sled on Shelter Island

 

 Published in Northforker Holiday 2014 Supplement

Although I am a grown woman, snow in the forecast makes me very happy. I have cross-country skis.

 It only takes two or three inches of white stuff to ski on Shelter Island. Last winter, that was no problem from Christmas right through March. The 2014/2015 Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts another winter of above-normal snowfall for our area.

 “Out here, people often hunker down in a snowstorm,” said Holly Cronin, a Shelter Island resident who has skied all over the Northeast “When you ski, you get the joy of being outdoors in the snow, and even on a cold day, you will sweat.”

 The only officially-designated cross-country trails on Shelter Island are at Mashomack Preserve. Bring your own skis or snowshoes, and don’t expect groomed trails, snowmaking or much company.

 “It’s whatever Nature provides,” Cindy Belt, Education Coordinator at Mashomack said, “On the weekends, there might be half a dozen people in a day.”

 Shelter Island resident Kim Reilly agreed.

 “The difference skiing at Mashomack, that I haven’t experienced elsewhere, is the sense of being completely alone and surrounded by nature.”

 In the summer, dense foliage hides Miss Annie’s Creek, one of the most charming bodies of water on the Island, but in winter, glimpses of the creek show through bare trees. “You really appreciate the ups and downs, the hills and valleys,” Belt said.

 A six-mile cross-country loop consists of parts of the Mashomack trail system connected by a section open only during the winter. For a 10-mile loop, add the longer (and bumpier) “Blue” trail. Mashomack is open 9am to 4pm October through February and closed Tuesdays. In January, the Visitor Center is open only on the weekends.

 When the first flakes fly, and school is out, the entire able-bodied population of Shelter Island heads for Goat Hill, also known as The Shelter Island Country Club. A nine-hole public golf course, it boasts the highest point of land on the Island, with spectacular views.

 The last time I “Skied the Goat” it was crawling with sledders, including my sons. I kept to the middle of the fairways making a long loop around the course. Swooshing past the bottom of the hill, I avoided human missiles on unsteerable contraptions like giant salad bowls. I loved every minute.

 Sylvester Manor Educational Farm is a 243-acre property laced with footpaths and trails that wind through farmland and woods with views of Gardiner’s Creek. Executive Director Cara Loriz said that although they have not yet established cross-country ski trails, they welcome wintertime visitors, provided they call first.

 A fireplace is an important amenity after a day of skiing. Two Shelter Island inns with fireplaces are open in the winter: The Ram’s Head Inn, with fireplaces in the lobby, bar area and restaurant, and the House on Chase Creek with a fireplace-equipped suite.

 If you go:

Mashomack Preserve, 47 South Ferry Rd., 631-749-1001

Shelter Island Country Club, 26 Sunnyside Ave.

Sylvester Manor Educational Farm, 80 North Ferry Rd., 631-749-0626