• Fire Island, New York - USA

Fire Island is a thin 32 mile long sand bar south of Long Island (separating the Great South Bay from the Atlantic Ocean) and only one hour or 50 miles east of New York City with pristine ocean shores, an ancient maritime Sunken Forest, a historic Fire Island Lighthouse, and 17 unique communities. Fire Island is considered one of the world’s most beautiful beaches with secluded wilderness areas host to diverse ecosystems of native and migrating wildlife and plants. Only 20% of Fire Island is developed with approximately 4,000 usable lots in 17 small communities, whom over proposals for a highway extending the length of Fire Island created the Fire Island Association, and moved Congress to create the Fire Island National Seashore "for the purpose of conserving and preserving for the use of future generations certain relatively unspoiled and undeveloped beaches, dunes, and other natural features… which possess high values to the Nation as examples of unspoiled areas of great natural beauty in close proximity to large concentrations of urban population." Public Law 88-587 (Sept. 11, 1964). Fire Island National Seashore includes Fire Island, 24 smaller islands and the William Floyd Estate in Long Island, a signer of the American Declaration of Independence. Below is a detailed Map of Fire Island National Seashore and Long Island’s Great South Bay, courtesy of the U.S. National Park Service. This is a big (500 KB) PDF file which can be viewed and printed with the Free Adobe Acrobat® Reader. 

Fire Island National Seashore is New York State’s only federally designated wilderness, but unlike other national parks, FINS encompasses colonies of private property, homes and businesses that have evolved into stable, permanent villages. The absence of cars and paved roads through the island has allowed each community the isolation to develop its own character - quiet family villages, flamboyant gay communities, party towns, upscale private enclaves, hidden havens for the reclusive and singles towns. There are rental properties, summer homes, and year-round homes on the island. Several hundred residents live within Fire Island during the winter months (see the Fire Island Year Round Residents Association) and that number swells to around 40,000 in the summer. Fire Island is free of all but essential vehicle travel (no private cars allowed on the island) and almost all visits are by ferry boats departing from Long Island’s Bay Shore, Sayville and Patchogue or by private boats. Though mostly populated from May through September, the dense summer populations and traffic endangers the dunes and wilderness between the villages. It is necessary to constantly protect and preserve the dunes and forests that give rise to Fire Island’s very existence. Visit Fire Island Ecology, a site dedicated to an informed discussion of the Fire Island environment.

• Gay Fire Island: Cherry Grove

Cherry Grove and Fire Island Pines, are the two predominantly gay communities on Fire Island out of the above 17. They are sister communities separated by an undeveloped stretch of the bay and beach with huge dunes and a maze of a forest alternatively known as the Carrington Tract, the Judy Garland Memorial Forest and the Meat Rack. Visitors can walk on the beach or through this enchanted forest to go to either of the towns.

Cherry Grove is considered America’s first predominately gay & lesbian resort town. Cherry Grove has about 300 colorful modest homes, a small downtown cluster of hotels, shops, bars and restaurants. This campy village by the sea boasts among its residents artists, drag queens, leather daddies, dykes, lesbian moms and a diverse working-class, which make it feel like a small town in Oz. Named for the predominance of wild cherry trees there in 1869, by the 1960s the community became known for the openly gay and bohemian lifestyle of its residents and international visitors.

A 2002 Cherry Grove Community Association Census found that 64.6% of respondents were partnered, 34% owned their houses or apartments, 50% rented and 16% were guests. Making it a safe haven for gay and lesbian couples and their families. See CGCAI.org to read the detailed Census findings:

Gender:
69% Male, 31% Female

Sexual Identification:
64.2% Gay
22.1% Lesbian
8.3% Straight
2.3% Bi-sexual
0.7% Transgender
2.4% Unknown

Age Range:
1% 18-25 years
10% 26-35 years
42% 36-50 years
26% 51-60 years
12% 61-70 years
3% over 80 years

• Fire Island Pines

Fire Island Pines, west of Water Island and east of Cherry Grove (and the forest), is the second predominantly gay (male) town on Fire Island. More than twice the size of the Grove, the Pines has more than 700 homes in large lush wooded lots, featuring some of the most luxurious homes and gardens on Fire Island. It is popular among young, affluent, fashion and body conscious residents and visitors (including some celebrities) from around the world. Read Steve Weinstein’s excellent "The Pines eases into 50" for a comprehensive history. Also visit the Fire Island Pines Property Owners Association website at FIPPOA.org to learn more about the Pines, become a member, donate and volunteer.

Though equally gay, Cherry Grove and Fire Island Pines clearly have their differences, but come together every year through vivid events like the 4th of July Fire Island Drag Queen Invasion and the annual Pines Party on the beach in Fire Island Pines. Ironically, both communities are also connected by the same bay, forest, dunes and beach that separate them. Read more about Cherry Grove and the Pines’ fascinating histories at NY Blade: Cherry Grove and NY Blade: Fire Island and GLBTQ.com

Learn more about Cherry Grove and Fire Island Pines at these excellent websites:

• CGCommunityAssociation
• ArtsProjectCherryGrove
• AsTheGroveTurns.net
• Barbara Ann Levy Gallery
• CherryGrove.com
• Cherry Grove Marina
• FireIslandQNews.com
• FIPinesPropertyOwnersAssoc
• FIPines.com
• FunMaps.com
• Island Scene Magazine
• Violet's Wild Cherry: Grove Events Guide