This trip took us to Cedar Point County Park in East Hampton, NY. After a short drive from the village filled with hills and what would be considered decent woods for the Hamptons, we arrived at the entrance to the park with a quaint log cabin. Despite being located in a region famous for its mansions and private estates, this public park and campground's 607 acres offered a great deal of solitude.
Hidden on the bay side of the town, its hiking and biking trails were peaceful, even with 190 individual campsites and 5 group areas nearby. In addition to the trails, a stretch of beach leading to the Cedar Island Lighthouse proved to be a beautiful, however hot, 2 mile hike (both ways). Once divided by water to make the area around the lighthouse an island, this beach was connected by the hurricane of 1938 and was filled with tasty wild beach plums with a view of Northwest Harbor and Gardiners Bay. The hot sand warmed our feet as the salty air provided just enough of a breeze to keep us going.
When we reached the lighthouse, which was built in 1839 to assist ship traffic in and out of Northwest and Sag Harbors, the view of sailboats in the summer sun was picturesque. In addition to the view, the channel running between the beach and Shelter Island was host to great fishing opportunities. Many visitors have caught bluefish, striped bass and snappers, to name a few. Depending on the season and the presence of endangered or threatened shorebirds, a County Beach Driving Permit can be obtained, available to both residents and non-residents, which make fishing trips to the channel a breeze (pun intended).
I would recommend Cedar Point County Park to families and fishermen because of the following reasons:
- The park has different camping options to suit your needs.
- A camp store is a short walk from the campground, which shows family movies on Sunday nights during the summer season.
- The park offers Youth Group Camping.
- Visitors can rent row boats from the cabin, life preservers and oars included.
- Fishing can be done in the pond, in the channel, and just about anywhere off the shore.
- Both campers and day visitors can use clean restrooms and showers, grassy picnic areas with a view of the bay, bird watching trails, a playground, and a ball field.
- Park police and security are present, especially at night, to keep the park safe.
