Community :: Heckscher State Park

Well, today will be a beach day and we are heading to the great south shore of Long Island. But there are so many other great places to visit close to home. I just found this park right around the corner. I am thinking this is a spot to hit this summer for a nice day trip with my little man.

Adding this location to our list of Summer Fun!

I found this book that could help me find some more fun ideas. Product Description (by Amazon) Organised by town and then subdivided into the various villages and hamlets, this popular guide provides informative entries for each locale. Going beyond the scope of a typical travel guide, this book includes directions from the Long Island Expressway to places of special interest: federal, state and county parks and preserves; archaeological sites; museums; and, nature conservancies.

Happy Sunday everyone!


 Keep turning those pages....
 Happy Reading,
 Jennifer



#Heckscher State Park (From Wikipedia)


Heckscher State Park is a park on the shore of the Great South Bay at East Islip in Suffolk County, New York, USA. The park was 1,469 acres (5.94 km2) that was once the 19th century estates of George C. Taylor and J. Neal Plum. Islip's founder, William Nicoll, originally built his estate on this property. The park was purchased by the State of New York using a donation by the affluent August Heckscher with strong opposition from wealthy local residents.

Heckscher offers a beach, picnic tables with pavilions, a playground and playing fields, recreation programs, hiking and biking, fishing, a campground with tent and trailer sites, cross-country skiing, a boat launch, an olympic sized swimming pool, and a food concession.



Heckscher State Park is known as the "Home of the White-tailed Deer." In fact, deer are fairly populous throughout the park. Additionally, about 280 bird species can be observed in the park.[1]

The park falls within the district protected by the Great River Fire Department. The park is accessible by the Heckscher State Parkway.

Beginning in 1972 and continuing until 2008, the New York Philharmonic played at Heckscher State Park as part of its free "Concerts in the Parks" series. The annual event was held on summer evenings in an open field near the campground and was open to the public. In 2009, the New York Philharmonic chose to cancel the event for the summer of that year due to financial constraints. After consideration to keep the tradition, the Long Island Philharmonic volunteered to perform. Ultimately, the Long Island Philharmonic was forced to cancel their plans as well, as a deadlock in the state senate prevented funds from being allocated to the event. The following year, the New York Philharmonic again chose not to perform. This time, however, the Long Island Philharmonic was able to put on a successful performance. The new generation of concerts commenced with a theme of American composers, including George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, John Phillip Sousa, John Williams, and Billy Joel.

Turkey, Rabbit and Wild Boar OH MY!!

I have never read a book like this before Georgia Pellegrini took my on a wild adventure with a 270-caliber rifle and a 20-guage shotgun. Who would have thought that I would be turning pages on a girl and her adventure on the hunts!  Each chapter introduced a new hunt, from Texas to England, and new recipes, from Javelina Chili to Jugged Hare.

Ms. Pellegrini described each hunt in full detail of landscape, chase, hunt and menu. And not to mention the cocktails, I want to try “Slogasms, sloe gin mixed with champagne” Sometime I got the feeling that it was more of a whisky hunt with a shot of game. I admire her courage and skills during her time in Wyoming. You have to read about that hunter! Let’s just say I was like OMG could be serial killer.

Although, I can’t really see myself venturing onto any ranch soon I do commend Ms. Pellegrini for an awesome detailed account on the hunt to table. I recommend this book to a true chef that identifies with their meals. A chef that triumphs in the creation of their meals from farm to kitchen to table.

Pick it up – read it if you try a recipe LET ME KNOW. I love how she ended the book :: “Whatever the journey, wherever you find it, may it be a wild one.”

WATCH ::  

READ ::

Girl Hunter: Revolutionizing the Way We Eat, One Hunt at a Time By Georgia Pellegrini

Book Description (From Amazon)

What happens when a classically-trained New York chef and fearless omnivore heads out of the city and into the wild to track down the ingredients for her meals? After abandoning Wall Street to embrace her lifelong love of cooking, Georgia Pellegrini comes face to face with her first kill. From honoring that first turkey to realizing that the only way we truly know where our meat comes from is if we hunt it ourselves, Pellegrini embarks on a wild ride into the real world of local, organic, and sustainable food.

Teaming up with veteran hunters, she trav­els over field and stream in search of the main course—from quail to venison and wild boar, from elk to javelina and squirrel. Pellegrini’s road trip careens from the back of an ATV chasing wild hogs along the banks of the Mississippi to a dove hunt with beer and barbeque, to the birthplace of the Delta Blues. Along the way, she meets an array of unexpected characters—from the Commish, a venerated lifelong hunter, to the lawyer-by day, duck-hunting-Bayou-philosopher at dawn—who offer surprising lessons about food and life. Pellegrini also discovers the dangerous underbelly of hunting when an outing turns illegal—and dangerous.

More than a food-laden hunting narrative, Girl Hunteralso teaches you how to be a self-sufficient eater. Each chapter offers recipes for finger-licking dishes like:

• wild turkey and oyster stew
• stuffed quail
• pheasant tagine
• venison sausage
• fundamental stocks, brines, sauces, and rubs
• suggestions for interchanging proteins within each recipe

Each dish, like each story, is an adventure from begin­ning to end.

An inspiring, illuminating, and often funny jour­ney into unexplored territories of haute cuisine, Girl Hunter captures the joy of rolling up your sleeves and getting to the heart of where the food you eat comes from.