Community Corner
No. 85: Hike the Greenbelt Trail
This trail takes you north and south from shore to shore along the county border.
In our weekly countdown we are trekking the 20-mile Nassau-Suffolk trail.
If you were ever wondering what the signage is just east of Stop & Shop on Jericho Turnpike, it's one of the many points of entry to the Long Island Greenbelt Trail Conference, a non-profit grassroots organization that has blazed more than 200 miles of hiking paths throughout Long Island.
Park your car in the designated lot and enter by the Trail View State Park entrance. Head north following the symbols for hikers and eventually you will come upon , then the Franklin Pond Preserve. The hike can get challenging towards the end but when you come upon Cold Spring Harbor it will all be worth it.
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Crossing Jericho Turnpike and heading south you will end up by Massapequa Preserve watershed, but before you reach the end you will walk along Bethpage State Park and Manetto Hills.
Bring binoculars, a map, comfortable shoes or boots with good support, lots of water, insect repellent (during the summer), and keep an eye out for all the wildlife. You may get to spot a fox but you will certainly see lots of interesting birds as well as beautiful flowers throughout the spring and summer.
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Follow the clearly marked white blazes on trees and posts and take note of the double blazes for sharp turns. Be careful, you may come upon poison ivy (use this mnemonic rhyme while on foot to avoid this plant: leaves of three, let it be). Make sure to stay on the pedestrian trail because the Trail View, which runs somewhat parallel to the Greenbelt, is for cyclists.
The trails are open to the public free of charge year round, but if you become one of the more than 3,000 members of the LIGTC, you will receive a quarterly newsletter, advance notice of all guided hikes, and maps of all trail networks. You may also donate your time to help with trail maintenance.
If you get hooked on hiking, check out their other trails: the Walt Whitman trail, the Pine Barrens trails, the Paumanok Path, and since 1978, the original Long Island Greenbelt trail.
