North Fork County Park

Location: Northville, NY

Size: 307 acres

Date of hike: July 13, 2019

North Fork County Park, also known as North Fork Preserve and called Suffolk County's "last great park," is a woodland with freshwater wetlands popular for hiking, hunting and birdwatching.  Believe it or not, I'd yet to hike on Long Island's North Fork, and I decided this summer was the time to make that happen.  I intended to hike Hallock State Park Preserve, but that doesn't open until 10 a.m., and since I got an early start I had to pick another park.  That's when I zeroed in on North Fork County Park, which is a mile or two west of Hallock.
 
Before exploring, I did some research on the history and habitats of North Fork County Park.  The land was acquired by the county for over $17 million in 2011, with the Town of Riverhead contributing more than $500,000, according to the website RiverheadLOCAL.  The preserve's northern section was purchased for passive uses such as hiking and birdwatching, while the southern section was purchased for uses including camping or horseback riding.  The latter acres will ultimately contain about 75 RV sites equipped with electrical service, three areas for tent camping, and 18 cabins for use by county residents and bow hunting.  Other plans include a picnic area, playing fields and basketball courts, and a structure for kayak rentals, according to a Patch article in 2011.  "North Fork Preserve has been called Suffolk County's last great park, and I agree with that description," Legis. Al Krupski (D-Cutchogue) said in a press release in 2014.  "The park, with fishing, hiking, camping and more, will be a highlight of Suffolk's entire parks system."  The county also said it could be at least a decade before the parcel is developed into a park due to budget issues.  Lastly, leashed dogs are allowed.

The park's entrance is located on the north side of Sound Avenue just east of Church Lane, with a long road leading to the heart of the park.  The parking area fits dozens of cars and is adjacent to a clubhouse, part of which was turned into an apartment for the park's caretaker who resides there year round to tend to maintenance like lawn mowing and brush clearing, according to Patch.  The trails consist of mowed paths that meander through the woods alongside scattered ponds and marshes.  The further north I walked was when I noticed bulldozed sections that I'd read about in an online newsletter of the Eastern Long Island Audubon Society, which accused the county of "destroying many pristine natural areas."  Apparently, some residents complained of stormwater runoff onto their beach properties along the Long Island Sound, so the county created several sumps in the park's northern section along Sound Shore Road.  The project cost $200,000 and was completed in 2018.

The trails were pretty, but wide and overgrown in spots.  In fact, the high grass prevented me from exploring every trail, since I was nervous about the abundance of ticks that one woman recounted on the website TripAdvisor.  "The ticks were horrendous," she wrote in May 2018.  "It got to where I had to stop every 100 feet and pick ticks off my pants."  As for the wildlife, there were turkeys, a groundhog and eastern cottontails, and I also came across a platform presumably used for deer hunting.  The preserve is also known as a great birdwatching spot that features species including catbirds, wood thrushes and American redstarts.  In addition, the land has the state's largest population of a rare aquatic freshwater plant called featherfoil, as well as a rare forest community of swamp white oaks, according to the society's website. 

My music was mixture of the progressive metal band Tool, which is releasing its first new album next month in over 13 years.  In preparation, I've been revisiting their older albums – specifically 1996's Ænima and 2001's Lateralus, which are my two favorites by the band.  When I had enough headbanging, I drove around the park's perimeter to look for a secret entrance that would let me access its deeper regions without walking through high grass.  There weren't any other entrances, but I did see some trails that seemed to run parallel to the park's northern border along Sound Shore Road.  Too bad I couldn't reach them though.

Overall, I'd say the park is a nice spot for birdwatchers and hunters, but the hiking left a little to be desired due to the bulldozed areas and high grass.  Still, it's important to note the park hasn't yet been developed and could look entirely different in the years to come.  But for now, I was happy to hike it before the future facelift that'll turn it into the county's "last great park."

Map: North Fork County Park (Google Maps image)
Parking: 40°58'40.2"N 72°37'19.8"W

Video: North Fork County Park (360-degree view)

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