Smith Point County Park — Attraction in Town of Brookhaven

The nearest beach on the ocean near me is either Robert Moses or Smith Point Park. Since I am an avid cyclist, this park is my first preference because the Robert Moses bridge is restricted to motor vehicles only. Due to past storms, bay beaches on the Island are horribly eroded and poorly remedied by filling areas in with sand dug up from God knows where. The nature of the ocean is to take away the shoreline and then fill-in again...rebuild it. The solution is far from perfect. This is one reason I prefer the Atlantic. I love the wave action, the depth of the water depending on tides. I like that there are no roped-in areas where you must stay like a child who can't swim. One of the benefits of the park are the food concessions where you can wait in line behind a hundred teenagers to order food. Well at least you eventually get there. There are his and her restrooms, a first aid station, and a place to launch your yacht/boat, jet ski? I am not sure about the jet ski. Okay. I'm cheating here a bit, looking at their website. This Suffolk County Park boasts the following amenities: Beaches, Bird Watching, Camping, Fishing, Food (remember the lines...oh, you won't forget if you go on Memorial or Labor Day, believe me), Off-Road Outer Beach Access, a Playground, Scuba Diving, Showers, and Seasonal Special Events. Okay, there is no mention of intentionally launching watercraft here. Someone may wish to research that. When I was eighteen and got my license to drive, girl-watching was my pastime here. Just saying. What teenage guy doesn't? Oh okay, there are exceptions. Got it. There is a memorial here for those who died in the tragic crash of TWA Flight 800, July 17, 1996 en route to Rome from JFK Airport and shortly after take-off. Let us remember the 230 people on board who lost their lives in the explosion.

I am sorry to end this review on a sour note. Just keep in mind that this place is where so many found their final resting place. This is sacred ground. This paragraph is devoted to so many whom I met, loved ones at Staller Center, witnesses, the filmmaker, and theater-going public at Stony Brook University for the viewing of the film which depicted this horrible event. Watch the documentary "TWA Flight 800" (2013) to get a feel for what they suffered and suffer still. There...

Beautiful and clean beach park. Free drop off pick up area without having to pay the parking fee. $ 18 parking fee for out of town, $9 parking fee for green key holders (residents of the Town of Brookhaven), free live bands every night from about 6 until 9 PM from Memorial Day weekend through Columbus Day in November, big seating area in front of band and beach hut with table service. Nice bar selections from about $10 on, hot food, burgers, french fries, calamari, pasta, ice cream, shakes and smoothies, Monday nights are country music with line dancing (bring your cowboy hat, boots and cowboy outfits), enjoy music from the 60's, 70's, 80's, jazz, super hits, and more! Police precinct ON SITE, First aid office on site, lifeguards from 10-6, many times water is rough as this is an open ocean beach, free parking after 5PM, plenty of police officers around, security staff at beach hut, beautiful and peaceful Flight 800 Memorial site with pretty flowers and landscaping, camping grounds with beach side and bay side, bring your own water sports, fishing dock with gorgeous Fire Island sunsets, draw bridge, Fire Island National Seashore (F.I.N.S.) welcome center with free parking, park rangers on site, small boardwalk west of welcome center, 4x4 area with tire air service station where you can drive right up to the water for miles, small beach bites at campgrounds, playground at campgrounds and playground in front of beach, 4 BBQ grills with picnic tables next to playground, basketball courts and paddle ball available, beach volleyball area, and party pavillion. Sand castle contest in August, two stage music festival in September, bring mosquito repellent just in case (sometimes you will need it and bring extra clothing with long sleeves and long pants to protect from mosquitoes) and bring a sweater as it gets very windy and cold at night. You may enjoy the sight of deers, bring your camera to capture the beauty of Fire Island, outside of park there is plenty of restaurants, bait and tackle, a motel, a boat ramp...and...

This park has a very big parking lot. As soon as you enter the parking lot, you have a bunch of deer welcoming you in the anticipation of fruits. These white-tailed deer in this park are the most friendly that I have seen in the Long Island. They eat directly from people's hand and follow you like pet animals. They are not afraid, and they circle around your car for food. I have seen them eating carrots, baby tomatoes, and apples from the visitors. There are signs in the park indicating not to feed deer, and people are totally opposite. Bathrooms are not open during the offseason. I also saw off-roading outer beach access, but I didn't take a chance to drive to the beach. One tow truck waits by the entrance of the Burma road in case someone gets stuck on the beach. On the Burma road if you decide to drive to the beach with the permit then sign indicates tire pressure(10 to 20 PSI) recommended for the off-roading and when you come back, you can inflate your tire pressure back to recommended pressure. I would say this park needs a little bit of TLC to draw more satisfying visitors, and that can help the local community during the off-season and peak season. I wish beach access is available for AWD drive vehicles as well since not everyone has a 4x4 vehicle.

Note: Please don't leave food for deers in styrofoam cup. Today, one deer ended up with a styrofoam cup stuck on the face. Many people tried to help the deer but couldn't lured deer closer to take out cup from face. Deer was afraid and panicked and stopped trusting any human around her. I hope deer somehow managed to free from cup.

This park is the home of TWA Flight 800 Memorial to honor those who were aboard the plane - 230 people from 14 countries - all of them were killed. The families of TWA Flight 800 Association raised the funds for...