Summer, a time for enjoying outdoor street festivals, rooftop bars, and movies in the park…a time for eating gelato, sipping iced coffee, beach bumming, walking around in shorts and flip flops, and mini getaways. Speaking of mini getaways, the hubby and I took a lovely trip to Fire Island with some friends over the long weekend. Fire Island offers a very accessible beach escape at just about an hour’s drive from the city. Compared to the more uppity Hamptons, Fire Island has a decidedly more relaxed and casual vibe. What’s more, this 31-mile barrier island has wide sandy beaches (not rocky), and most of them are accessible to the public. There are several different communities within the island and you can get around with bikes, water taxis, or by foot. We spent our time at Ocean Beach, Sailor’s Haven, and Cherry Grove, and each one offered a different experience!

• Ocean Beach was great for getting some beach time in and for having access to lots of restaurants and bars (Tip: Visit Rachel’s Bake Shop for a mouth-watering selection of sweets and savory delights!)
• Sailor Haven’s was worth a visit for the Sunken Forest. This maritime forest contains a rare assembly of plants and trees, considered unique for their ability to grow on sand and so close to seawater. The walking trail through Sunken Forest was pretty neat but we were unprepared for the bug bites. So if you do ever go, take some insect repellant!
• Cherry Grove is known for its flamboyant gay community and its parties. Sure enough, we found ourselves at a standup comedy routine-cum-dance performance by a very sassy drag queen. (Clearly, never a dull moment at Cherry Grove!)

I hope that everyone had the chance to give their summer one last hurrah, whether it was taking a trip somewhere or just getting some much needed R&R at home.