Our first trip out to Montauk was so beautiful that I couldn’t wait to go back. We drove out to Montauk on Sunday for an overnight stay.
Our first stop was Iodine Beach on the eastern shore of Napeague Harbor in Hither Hills State Park. It’s quiet here. It’s not a tourist spot, so there are fewer people, aside from the windsurfers and the occasional hikers on the Walking Dunes Trail. We parked the car and headed out along the shore to see what kind of wildlife we’d find this time. I was really hoping to see more horseshoe crabs, but this time we only found a few that had sadly died.
There were plenty of shorebirds to watch: great egrets, willets, piping plovers, and countless gulls. I love walking along the beach searching through rocks, shells, and whatever has been washed ashore by the sea. We were there at low tide, and there were so many interesting things to discover. I found several whelk shells, along with a whelk egg casing, also known as a mermaid’s necklace, that had washed up on the shore.
We walked about two miles to an area roped off to protect nesting piping plovers and least terns. Salt-spray roses were blooming there in shades of pink and white. Out on the water, I noticed what I think were oyster cages covered with shorebirds, mostly terns, perched on top while catching and eating small fish. We didn’t see another person during the entire walk, and the breeze coming off the harbor kept us cool.
After our walk, we stopped for something to eat at a roadside restaurant along Montauk Highway in Amagansett called Clam Bar at Napeague. I had a lobster roll that was packed with lobster and very delicious. We then headed to our hotel, Daunt’s Albatross, to rest for a bit, but first we stopped for coffee and dessert at its restaurant across the street, Bird on the Roof.
It was a new moon, and I was really hoping to catch a glimpse of the breeding horseshoe crabs that come close to shore during high tide at Iodine Beach. Before heading there, we drove out to Montauk Point to visit the lighthouse after dark. I figured that since it was Sunday evening, we could enjoy it without the hordes of people who are usually there on weekends. We stayed only a short time because the park officially closes after sunset before making our way back to Iodine Beach.
When we arrived, it was pitch dark, and high tide had covered the entire beach. I don’t know what I was expecting, but we couldn’t even walk. The beach was gone. The ocean is such a mystery to me, and it was mind-boggling to see an entire beach disappear beneath the water. Needless to say, we decided not to go searching for horseshoe crabs without knowing more about what we were doing. Besides, we had a cozy hotel waiting for us and another day to look forward to in the morning.
The following day, Monday, we drove back to Montauk Point State Park. We hiked the Montauk Point Loop Trail in a counterclockwise direction. I wanted to stay close to the water, so we headed toward the beach, where I saw people with campers set up along the shore. We followed the rocky coastline, where there were plenty of interesting things to discover, including a huge fish bone that had washed ashore.
I also spotted bank swallows and the tunnels they had carved into the seaside cliffs. Out on the ocean I saw half a dozen double-crested cormorants on a large rock. The farther we walked beyond the campers, the wilder the coastline felt. Eventually, we found a place to climb back up onto the trail and realized we were on the Seal Haul Out Trail. During the winter and spring, different species of seals can often be seen lounging on the rocks below. From there, we hiked back through a section of mostly hardwood forest until we reached the parking lot.
After the hike, it was still early. We had just enough time for breakfast at Bird on the Roof and a shower before heading back to the city.
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