Sunrise at Moriches Inlet, Long Island N.Y.
Smith Point County Park is located at the end of William
Floyd Parkway, on the South Shore of Long Island, New York.
You can fish on the open beach, or in the sheltered area's of Moriches Bay. Taking the
"Burma Road" access trail, you can ride all the way to Moriches Inlet.
Excellent runs of Striped Bass and
Bluefish
occur in the spring and
fall from the beaches and the inlet area. In the bay, winter
flounder, fluke and
blackfish
(tautog) are sought after by boaters, and can
occasionally be caught from shore by surfcasters. Just to the west of the County Park is Fire Island National Seashore, a.k.a.
FINS. This area gives you access to an additional six miles of beach. A separate
Federal permit is required for 4X4 access there. Beach
access at Smith point and FINS is limited during some periods throughout the season due to erosion
problems, and in the spring and summer during the nesting of the endangered Piping
Plovers.
The park is home to a diverse array of wildlife. On any given day you may see white tail deer, red fox, rabbits,
opossum and raccoons roaming across the dunes, seeking food and fresh water. Ospreys that nest nearby on the Carmans River, may be seen diving for fish in the bay. On the ocean side, you may
occasionally see gannets diving for fish. Loons, cormorants, black skimmers, oystercatchers and various species of ducks and geese are a common sight. In the spring, huge clouds of swallows swoop across the
dunes, all in unison, as if they were one. At low tide great blue herons and egrets can be seen feeding in the shallows of the bay.
Smith
Point Info
Cupsogue Info
Shinnecock
East Info
Fire Island
Wilderness Center
2001
population Study of Atlantic Striped Bass .pdf
2001
Atlantic Striped bass Report to Congress.pdf
These last two links are in .pdf format
