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Tag: gateway national recreation area

Shelling at Great Kills Park, Staten Island

Since I’ll be soon leaving the New York City area, I’m going to share some secrets. The beach at Great Kills Park is the best place to go shelling in New York City. Always plentiful with iridescent mussels and still-united bivalve shells of all kinds, as well as the occasional Read more…


Voodoo Bunker on Bunker Beach
Gateway National Recreation Area {Pictorial}


Where My Fairies At? 🧚

Fairy tops are a new favorite craft. They’re so much lighter and faster than a mermaid top… a different kind of collage. And because of the fairy tops, I’ve been using this ridiculous filter. I was excited to try it ou on my first fairy shoot. But first, the couch. Read more…


The Beaches of Gateway National Recreation Area
Gunnison Beach & Great Kills Beach

Oh how I love Gateway National Recreation Area! After some tasks at both the Sandy Hook and Staten Island units, it was a must to stand next to the sea and let calm my innards. First at the Sandy Hook unit–Gunnison Beach, we discovered, is a nude beach. I saw Read more…


Shelling at Great Kills Park 🐚
Gateway Recreation Area

After seeing the seashelled shores of Staten Island’s Great Kills Park during my mermaid shoot I knew I’d have to get back soon. With my supplies running low and the weather perfect, I spent the afternoon picking up a great selection of goodies. Some seclusion was just what I wanted.. Read more…


πŸ§œπŸ»β€β™€οΈπŸŒŠmermaid season ’22
The First Mermaid Shoot
Great Kills Beach, Staten Island

It’s that time of year again! Time to recruit models for my new tops. To start, a reliable mermaid who has sat for several shoots last year. She scouted this location–Great Kills Beach on Staten Island, part of the Gateway National Recreation Area, and we set a sunset date. The Read more…


Abandoned Fort Tilden
Rockaways, Queens

Dropping off yet another rental car, I took advantage of being so close to JFK’s rental hub by checking in on my favorite abandoned structure at Fort Tilden, part of the Gateway Recreation Area in the Rockaways, Queens. The enormous structure served as a train garage but hasn’t been in Read more…


The Sun Goes Down On Summer

An astroshoot in New York City? Sure, let’s do it. There were a few stars and a very bright Jupiter and Mars, though the billions of other celestial bodies were shy of the bright lights in the big city. Still very worth the while… The 9/11 Tribute lights were on. Read more…


Shelling at Breezy Point 🐚
Gateway Recreation Area

Don’t tell anyone, please, but Breezy Point has the most beautiful beach in New York City. As you gaze upon the waters, the most gorgeous of hue of aquamarine, it’s almost baffling. So clear and clean. And don’t let the gate fool you, the insular community contains another part of Read more…


Walking On, Walking On Broken Glass
Dead Horse Bay Beach, Brooklyn

Ah, the shores around old landfills! It’s like going to the beach and going antiquing simultaneously. And like going to the beach & exploring an abandoned hospital, or going to abandoned hangars or military forts (here and here), it’s Gateway Recreation Area–a guaranteed wonderful afternoon on so many levels. Today, Read more…


Abandoned Fort Tilden, 80’s Style New York

As the United States entered World War I, New York City needed several harbor defenses. Fort Tilden on the Rockaway Peninsula was established within the military installations used in the War of 1812. But like other New York City forts, the end of The Cold War meant the tremendous concrete Read more…


Let’s Get Lost
Abandoned Rockaway, Queens

The first of many urbex missions I’m going to embark on as we’re cautioned to partake in solitary activities, this stop occurred before even gatherings of two were too much. I am happy to report I am listening to Cuomo now. The movie will begin in five momentsThe mindless voice Read more…


Abandoned Brooklyn, Abandoned Queens

One of the the things I like about Queens and Brooklyn is that there is still places where you can feel like an explorer, still places that every square inch is not branded with an advertisement or a means to generate profit. With a weekend within the corners of my Read more…


πŸ§œβ€β™€οΈ Mermaid Season Continues: Staying Inspired {2019}

That which is not fed… dies. So keep feeding what you wish to grow. 🌱 A simple truth I have to remind myself of on occasion as I can sometimes feed the wrong things with all my nourishing goodies. But I have a symbiotic relationship with Inspiration ( “her” ) Read more…


Abandoned Sandy Hook, Gateway National Recreation Area

How have I never been to this place before?! Sandy Hook is part of Gateway, a National Recreation area that spans New York and New Jersey. I’ve explored the New York portions, Staten Island’s Fort Wadsworth, Jamaica Bay’s Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge and Dead Horse Beach in Queens, but I Read more…


Off-season at the Jersey Shore

The Jersey Shore has lots of goodies and they’re better to see (and eat) when everyone and their mother is not clogging up the Garden State Parkway. Spending a beautiful Spring-like Winter day at Sandy Hook, part of Gateway National Recreation Area, would bring some beautiful sites to share. But Read more…


A One Day Vacation in Broad Channel, Queens

For budgetary reasons, I haven’t traveled much at all this summer. So it was a delight to find so many means of escape right here in New York City. The Greek‘s place in Broad Channel, Queens on the Rockaway Peninsula offers a retreat from all of the city’s bustle while Read more…


5 Boroughs in 5 Days: Queens

QueensΒ has plenty of beautiful things to see, though I don’t spend much time there.Β  More often it’s the chunk of traffic between me and my family or some errand on Long Island.Β  But today, a deep dive in. My first stop would require binoculars, my camera, and a hefty dose Read more…


5 Boroughs in 5 Days: Staten Island

I can count the number of times I’ve been to Staten Island on one hand–exactly!Β  But hey, how often would you want to visit what was once the world’s largest garbage dump?Β  The tremendous Fresh Kills landfill was only closed in 2001, not that long ago.Β  Now add to that Read more…


NYC Exploration: Dead Horse Bay Beach

Despite the rampant loss of character New York City has been undergoing for decades now, there are still lightly treaded, special places in the corners and underneath the rocks–or in this case, underneath a layer of broken glass. Dead Horse Beach–part of Floyd Bennett Field, a park in the broader Read more…