Tiny tricycles in a tiny paradise
If you tell people outside New York that you’re heading out to a magical beach town on Fire Island, it’s not unusual to be met with a response along the lines of “Fire Island? Where is that?”
Fire Island is a tiny barrier island off the southern coast of Long Island, New York. And I have been spending my summers out there with my family since 1999.
Many people have simply never heard of Fire Island, which is quite fitting given that much of the island is preserved by the National Park Service. The tiny barrier island is about 30 miles long, and composed of 17 different towns that are only accessible from the mainland by ferry.
Here are some amazing things you may not know about Fire Island:
There are no cars on Fire Island.
The ferries over to the island only transport people, not cars. There are no roads in Fire Island, just large sidewalks. Many people choose to walk around barefoot and their main mode of transportation is a bicycle. As an added bonus, for those who have had a little too much to drink at dinner, there are zero worries about drinking and driving because it simply does not exist on Fire Island.
The Sunken Forest is one of the last remaining maritime forests on the East Coast.
The Sunken Forest is part of the National Park Service and is a rare ecological community. In fact, The Sunken Forest has been ranked as being “globally rare, meaning there are few remaining occurrences of this assemblage of plants throughout the world.”
Only 400 permanent residents live on the island year round.
Many of the full-time residents are business owners on the island and need to arrange for special permission to stay past the close of the summer season. The permanent residents are allowed to drive cars, and drive along the beach to get to a bridge that connects to the mainland.
Wildlife is an important component to the Fire Island community.
Most towns have strict rules and regulations about how much open space needs to exist on your property, which really preserves the natural surroundings of the island. In fact, it’s not uncommon to find a family of deer grabbing a bite to eat on your property
There have been many celebrity spottings on Fire Island.
From Tina Fey to Hillary Swank, celebs who would typically flock to the Hamptons pop up on Fire Island from time to time. I’ve had two celeb sightings myself over the years including Chris Noth and John C. Reilly, both of whom were lovely. And with the announcement that famed chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten will be opening a Fair Harbor restaurant called Le Dock, I expect there will be many more in the future.
And if these aren’t compelling enough reasons to add Fire Island to your list of “Beach Towns To Visit In A Lifetime,” you might also want to consider the gorgeous sunsets, pristine beaches and unpretentious atmosphere.