Summer 2011 NEWSLETTER OF LONG ISLAND PADDLERS lipaddlers.org Cecile Bax, Mary and John Heymach, Judy Cooper, Janet Stone, Chiara Nuzzo and Janet Hann Long Island Paddlers enjoying on trip tothe Middle sun at Ground lunch on Lighthouse Bellport Beach Sept 18, 2010 1 Letter from the President By Ken Fink Summer has finally arrived and it’s our high from The Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and season. Our trip leaders have already run some Audubon Center will discuss birds we may see pretty nice trips on both land and water, some of around our waters, and will make available water which you can read about in this issue of the resistant field guides for a nominal fee. On newsletter. But there’s a lot more to come. August 16th, club members Peter and Kathy Particularly important are the skills days Stoehr will share their experiences of their recent scheduled for 7/16 at Stony Brook Harbor and visit to the World Heritage sites of Galapagos 8/27 at Sunken Meadow State Park. Between the Islands and Machu Picchu. And on September 27 forks of Long Island you can visit Robins Island we have a special guest, Marcus Demuth, who on July 16th, Cutchogue Harbor and Little Peconic has world class status as an expedition kayaker. Bay on 7/23, Hallock Bay to Gardiner's Bay on Marcus was the first kayaker to circumnavigate 8/20, full moon paddles on Peconic and Flanders the Falkland Islands, a trip of over 680 miles in Bay on 8/9 and 9/11, day paddles on Flanders 22 days, (averaging almost 31 miles a day). In Bay on 7/17 and 8/7, and you can come celebrate 2007 Marcus circumnavigated Ireland as a a second annual 70th birthday bash with Jim fundraiser for the Royal National Lifeboat Dreeben by paddling the lower Peconic River into Association. Other expeditions took him to Tierra Little Flanders Bay on 8/25. On the Great South Del Fuego (2010), Iceland (2008), the South and Bay, our annual Pizza Paddle happens on 7/28, West Coast of Australia (2007), Patagonia/Chile Birch Creek to Indian Island on 8/17, visits to the (2006), and Canada (2005). He has been written Connetquot River on 7/24, 8/14, and 8/21, and about in Outside Magazine, the New York Times, multiple trips to Bellport Beach on 7/31, 8/28, Sea Kayaker Magazine, Canoe & Kayak Magazine, and 9/10. For those who want to help out with Adventure Kayak Magazine, the Explorer's Club swim support there’s the Maggie Fischer Memorial Journal, Ocean Paddler Magazine (UK), Paddler Great South Cross Bay trip on 8/5 and Swim Magazine (UK), and See Kayaker Magazine Across America on 8/13. If you want to socialize (Germany). Because Marcus has just off water we have trips planned to attend the LI recently moved to Wales, where he has Philharmonic on 7/16, the Statue of Liberty on opened a B & B, he will not be in town on 8/28 and the Grucci fireworks show after the September 20th so we have moved the Long Island Ducks game on 9/10. September General Meeting to the fourth For all these trips to happen I am deeply indebted Tuesday of the month, the 27th. to this year’s trip leaders and assistants: Steven I think you will enjoy his ability to tell a great Berner, Kristin Costa, Alan Mindlin, Barbara story as he discusses some of his recent Fontana, Chiara Nuzzo, Fran Cassidy, Paul adventures. Aledort, Fred Hosage, Helen Horton, Don Gorycki, Ray Clarkson, Barry Goldblatt, Ken Doxsey, John Have a great, and safe, summer! Guiffre, Frank Durante, Liz Marcellus, Jim Dreeben, Dennis Wolf, George Bartunek, Steven Pollock, Louis A. Rivera and Mike Chachkes. Without the dedication of these fellow club members we could not have the trip diversity we are fortunate to enjoy. Planned summer meetings have been scheduled by Steve Berner, our program coordinator, and should prove interesting. On July 19th, members 2 Lets paddle! To learn and see more of what the Long Island Paddlers are about see our website: lipaddlers.org Meetings Newsletter Members and nonmembers are always Long Island Paddlers Publication Dates welcome at our monthly meetings. We meet April 15 July 15 October 15 December 15 (usually) the third Tuesday of each month. For the latest updates, or for driving Deadlines for submission are one month directions, please see our website. prior to publication date. Members are encouraged to submit articles, pictures, Tentative meeting dates for the remainder of letters to the editor, newsworthy notes, 2011 are: recipes, trip reports or future trip July 19 August 16 September 27* information etc. to the editor. October 18 November 15 Editor reserves the right to editorial We meet from 7 to 9 PM at privileges. Unless otherwise stated, the views expressed are those of the authors Brightwaters Public Library and do not represent official position statements of Long Island Paddlers Club. 1 South Country Road Please submit all newsletter articles, Brightwaters, NY 11718 pictures, letters and advertising by deadline, to the editor at: [email protected] * 4th Tuesday 3 Green-wood Cemetery Tour April 16, 2011 Text and photos By Paul Caparatta This photo courtesy of Fran Cassidy Brooklyn’s historic Green-wood Cemetery was the George Washington suffered a defeat at what is site of a guided tiptoe through the tombstones, now called the Battle of Long Island and which is organized by Fran Cassidy and Paul Aledort, our also the highest point in Brooklyn, offering resident social masters of the off-water. Fran and commanding views of the Manhattan skyline. Paul have a flair for ferreting out overlooked gems of things to do and in this instance, they’ve No one can buy their way out of their stumbled upon buried treasure. appointment with the grim reaper. However, the rich, famous, infamous, and shameless can often Old cemeteries provide us with a rare opportunity afford to go out in style: you may be buried in to travel back in time. Thirty of us brave souls your automobile or your ashes rocketed into defied ominous, raw weather to step into the space or even loaded into shotshells and fired off time machine that is Green-wood Cemetery. in your favorite shotgun. If you had serious Steve Estroff, our guide, is an elementary school money, you could build a mausoleum large teacher with an intimate knowledge of history enough to host a banquet or pimp out your final and how the residents at Green-wood resting place with elaborate statuary, even import dovetailed into it. His enthusiasm for the subject was readily apparent despite weather typical of early March. Green-wood is a big place and we toured but a small fraction of the cemetery in the time we had available. Green-wood consists of 478 park-like acres and was founded in 1838. It indeed served as a park long before Central and Prospect Parks were established. Within its borders is Battle Hill, site of a Revolutionary War battle where Rex: One of two dogs buried with 4 their masters at Green-wood. The goddess Minerva and Lady Liberty, seemingly waving to each other. Carrera marble and artisan/immigrants from Italy to create original works of funerary art. I think the Medici family of Florence, patrons of Michelangelo, would have been very content to rest at Green-wood. Best of all, you may view this Greek, Roman and Venetian inspired statuary without first being violated by ham-handed TSA molesters at the airport, unless you enjoy that sort of thing. And, Green-wood Cemetery has more than its fair share of people who left their mark in history and Drummer boy: one of many Civil War era memorials whose eccentricities are plainly evident in the sublime and occasionally elaborate shrines they performing at Ford’s Theatre when Lincoln was erected to commemorate themselves. The 19th assassinated and who is said to have cradled the century nouveau-riche, not only enjoyed an dying president’s head in her lap. The infamous opulent lifestyle but also sought to remind future include Joey Gallo and Albert Anastasia, mobsters generations that they are walking past the grave dead of lead poisoning, courtesy of rival of somebody who was indeed somebody. mobsters. Consequently, Green-wood Cemetery evolved into a sort of 19th century Dune Road for the departed. One could easily imagine Green-wood’s residents in the afterlife, perhaps after a round of celestial golf, reminding each other as to who has the nicest and largest place of rest. Even in the afterlife, size apparently matters. Some of Green-wood’s residents include Peter Cooper, Leonard Bernstein, Charles Ebbets (Ebbets Field) Dewitt Clinton, Teddy Roosevelt’s first wife and parents, and Laura Keene, the actress Our guide - Steve Estroff 5 Green-wood was the preferred final destination for most 19th century, New York City notables, high society, intelligencia, tycoons, celebrities, luminaries, political hacks, power brokers and villains such as Boss Tweed, as well as miscellaneous bluebloods not included in the aforementioned categories. Many streets throughout the city are named for people whose graves may be found at Green-wood and who considered themselves 19th century aristocracy. There are also Civil War dead and about 5000 Civil War veterans interred at Green-wood. Numerous generals of that war are in residence, as well as Brooklyn’s very first Civil War casualty, a twelve-year-old drummer boy. The This tombstone has been taken over by the tree. cemetery is a must stop for Civil War buffs.