The Long Island Blog

Even though it’s Labor Day I’m not going to say that summer is over. However, when I start seeing temperature inversions on the Great South Bay I know shorter days and cooler weather are on the way.

Check out this picture of the Ocean Beach water tower on Fire Island. See how the entire island seems to be floating above the bay?

This illusion is caused by something called a temperature inversion. It sounds technical, but the concept is simple: The air is much colder near the bay than above it.

Normally the opposite is true and everything looks fine, but when cold air settles in overnight and then warm air comes in to replace it, a thin layer of cold air is trapped just above the water’s surface. That cold air bends light in such a way as to make things look higher or taller than they really are.

So now you know…

Oh, and one more thing. As far as I’m concerned, here on Long Island the De facto end of summer should be Columbus day not Labor Day.

I took a trip to Atlantique on Fire Island last Friday. Atlantique is one of my favorite spots for a Fire Island day trip because it has public restrooms, hot showers, and a nice little snack bar. It’s also very close to Ocean Beach which is where I like to go for dinner after a day on the beach.

The plan is simple: I take the Fire Island Ferry from Bay Shore to Atlantique. Spend the day swimming in the ocean then take a hot shower and change into some decent clothes. Hail the Fire Island Water Taxi for a short, but exhilarating ride to Ocean Beach. When the night is over I take the ferry back to Bay Shore.

But getting back to my trip to Atlantique. Long Island’s beaches are usually great for beachcombing, but every now and then you’ll come across an accumulation of shells and polished stones that’s just unbelievable.

On a very small section of beach the waves and currents were just right to pile up this mass of goodies. No one could help but bend over here and pick things up. One guy even found a shark’s tooth.

Hope everyone had a safe 4th of July… (Although I did read about a 6 year old girl who was burned when someone thew fireworks into a bonfire. What a @#%$ moron!)

Here are a couple of shots taken right in front of my house. Not my fireworks though. Someone on the next block was launching very large and very loud fireworks from his backyard.

Of course the camera, especially without a tripod, doesn’t do justice to the beauty of the display.

I don’t mean to dwell on this subject, but lightning is a significant part of summer on Long Island and we’ve had a lot lately…

Last night I was blown out of bed by tremendous blast of thunder and lightning. The kind where you see the flash and hear the boom (BOOM!) at the same time.

I checked the house to make sure it wasn’t hit, then went back to bed. This morning I woke to find my cable, phone, and internet service nonfunctional, and a tree in the backyard blown to bits.

And that’s exactly what happens when lightning hits a tree, the water inside it boils and the tree explodes sending giant wooden spears everywhere. That’s very dangerous and a good reason to stay away from trees during thunderstorms.

This oak tree is split from top to bottom and will have to be cut down.

There are thunderstorms in the forecast for the next 4 days. Hopefully I won’t have anymore pictures to post here…

We had some serious lightning on Long Island’s south shore the other night. My daughter, through sheer will and determination, snapped this picture with her cell phone as we were heading east on Sunrise Highway in Oakdale.

It’s not a great shot, but it does convey the power of a lightning bolt. The odd looking thing on the left is the windshield wiper. In the lower left corner of the picture you can see ripples of rainwater running down the window.

Had we the time we would have watched this storm from the beach (staying in the car of course), which can be quite spectacular.

The late springtime weather on Long Island can blow in some unusual looking clouds. I don’t know what kind of clouds these are, but I thought they were cool enough to take pictures of.

I had been admiring these while in my car on the way to work. When I finally parked the car they were almost gone, but you can still see the odd undulations that initially caught my eye. The clouds appear to be pushed down by some force above them and kind of look like what I imagine the surface of the sea looks like from below.

These I snapped over the Suffolk Community College campus in Brentwood during my lunch break a couple of weeks ago. The camera simply does not do justice to this majestic sight. The clouds were bright, puffy and I could see them expanding over the horizon like popcorn in slow motion.

I love the early morning hours. The streets are quiet, the air is still, and I have the world to myself.

This morning I saw beautiful white clouds ringed in gold from the early morning sun– a far cry from the stormy weather we had yesterday. By the time I found my camera and drove to the park the sun had risen and the golden color was gone. But there were other things to see on Long Island this fine Sunday morning.

The sun behind clouds, reeds, and a dead calm Great South Bay

Waterfall and geese at Brookwood Hall

The geese take flight

Yesterday’s stormy weather brought us blue skies and pretty clouds

As I was on my belly taking this picture, I heard a voice asking me if I was looking for rats. “No, I’m just taking a picture of this torn glove.” In response to the giant question mark on the guy’s face, I explained that with the crates and crab trap in the background it might turn out to be a nice shot. You know, one of those artistic ones you see for sale in the little shops in Greenport or The Nautical Mile.

As it turns out the guy asking the questions was John Buczak, one of the few Long Island baymen still earning a living at this ancient, vanishing craft, and it was his dog that bit the thumb off of the glove.

We shot the breeze for a while, covering all the important topics like high fuel prices, decreasing fish populations, increasing regulations, and all the seafood imported from who knows where. We wondered what the future holds for Long Island’s baymen and fisheries, and if it would someday be impossible to eat locally caught fish.

Hmmm…

Read more about John and other noted baymen in this New York Times article.

We had some pretty rough weather last weekend and while visiting the beach I saw some striking bands of red and black sand tossed up by the waves.

Whitecaps and waves on the Great South Bay

This is a common sight and you’ve probably noticed these colors in long strips running lengthwise down the beach. The colored sand is composed of garnet and magnetite in roughly a 52/45% proportion with the remaining 3% composed of other minerals. The soft white sand that makes up the majority of Long Island’s beaches is quartz.

A lot of garnet and magnetite on a beach at the East Islip marina

As a kid I always wondered why and how the red and black sand grains gathered together. It wasn’t until my junior high school science teacher, Mr. Lewis explained it to me that the mystery was solved. The garnet and magnetite are much denser than the quartz, so wind and wave action affect those grains differently. That tends to sort them out from everything else.

If you want to look like a geek next time you go to the beach, bring a magnet and magnifying glass (like I do). Drag the magnet through the sand and then look at it with the magnifying glass. You’ll see that it picks up black grains of the aptly named magnetite, which is composed mostly of iron.

Well, that’s not what it was called when I was a kid. At that time I don’t think it even had a name. It was just a plot of land where people kept boats and guys like Captain Eddy, Pops, and Catfish Max rented small outboard powered boats to weekend fisherman hoping to catch some flounder in the bay.

These days, it’s a park with cute little restaurant next door, and one of the places I like to visit when I need some time on the water. So, yesterday I picked up some burgers from All American, which is just a few blocks away, and went to the dock. It was a perfect lunch hour.

Plenty of benches in the park.

And a very nice garden in the center.

After lunch I stopped in at the appropriately named Parkside Café. I’ve never eaten here, but it seems promising. Kaitlyn, the Friday night bartender, told me that the food is excellent and because of its small size, reservations are definitely recommended. Look for a full review from me when the weather gets nice enough to enjoy the waterside seating. (More about Long Island restaurants.)

With only about 8 tables this is one of the smallest Long Island restaurants I’ve ever seen.

Seaford dock is located at the end of Sand’s Lane off Seamen’s Neck Road. Now as rustic as it may appear, you don’t want to drive on Sand’s Lane. It’s a very narrow, private road that’s not maintained very well. You’ll sink into potholes and roadside shrubs will scratch your car. It’s also a one-way street leading out of the park, not in.

The hedges will do a number on your paint job and you’ll bottom out in the potholes.

The only way to get to Seaford Dock is Seamen’s Neck Road to Atlantic View to Archer to Alder.