Butterfly Park Location: Melville, NY
Size: 38 acres
Date of hike: Oct. 5, 2018
Butterfly Park, also known as Farmington Lane Park, is a small and hilly hiking spot in the middle of a neighborhood in Melville. I came across it last month while searching for some patches of green by my job on Google Maps. For starters, I should note the park didn't seem to be bursting with butterflies, so I'm not sure why it was named after the winged insect. It might be because it is vaguely shaped like a butterfly on the map. But, butterflies or not, these hills are sure worth a hike.
Before exploring, I familiarized myself with the history and habitats of Butterfly Park, which is under the jurisdiction of the Town of Huntington. The parcel sits just west of Bagatelle Road, with entrances along a residential street called Farmington Lane just east of where it meets Chiswell Drive. While the land is often used for nature walks, its "most pertinent feature" is its geological history, according to the town's trail guide. "The park's land is located on the mid-island Manhasset plateau of the Ronkonkoma Moraine and is an ideal example of the effects of melting glaciers," the guide stated. "Glacial deposits, along with stream-caused erosion, helped to shape the park's hilly terrain." The town apparently acquired the site as the result of several subdivisions from 1966 to 1973 and the town's board dedicated it as a park-preserve in 1980. It also contains a segment of the original Vanderbilt Motor Parkway.
The park has two entry trails on Farmington Lane, which is where I parked on the roadside. To my surprise, there wasn't a "Butterfly Park" sign at either entrance, but I did see a green "Town of Huntington parkland" sign posted on one of the trees. For hikers, the town's guide said that the property has an 0.8-mile loop with paths that have very distinct characteristics. "While its eastern trail is sandy and well-drained, the park's western trail has great amounts of silt and organic matter," the guide said. Unfortunately, the park's apparent lack of blazes caused me to hike beyond its boundaries on one of the western trails, but I turned around when my geocaching app showed I was approaching Usdan Summer Camp for the Arts.
Upon re-entering the park, I went east parallel to the backyards of homes on Walker Place, Kallenberger Drive and Springs Drive until I reached a pond enclosed by a chain-link fence. From there, I hiked north and east over a paved access road to the park's eastern section, which is where there's a segment of the old Vanderbillt Motor Parkway. If you're looking to specifically visit the parkway site, it might be easier to park at the intersection of Bagatelle Road and Sorrel Hill Court and follow the power lines a short distance west into the woods.
Regarding wildlife, the park's birds range from northern cardinals to gray catbirds to downy woodpeckers, while its tree species span from flowering dogwoods to poplars to sassafras. You may also encounter eastern chipmunks, eastern cottontails and eastern gray squirrels. As for music, I decided to go iPod-less this time and just enjoy the sweet sounds of nature.
Overall, I'd say that Butterfly Park is a cool spot to visit if you live in the area and are craving an escape into nature. While I'm not usually a fan of trails that border backyards, this park had enough isolated areas to make it worthwhile for me. Even without a butterfly sighting!
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