Where's Johnny Jet? Saying Goodbye to Summer on Shelter Island

I can't believe summer is over in North America. Labor Day marked the unofficial end of my favorite season, thus making it my least favorite holiday. I guess, like Pavlov's dog, I've learned a trained response after all these years. As a kid, Labor Day meant that it was time for the beaches to close in the northeast, there would be a slight chill stinging the air, and, worst of all, it was time to go back to school and do homework. Boo! The good news is that my brother and I made the most of a hot summer weekend by taking a trip out to Shelter Island. If you're up for learning about this place on the far end of Long Island, then grab your boat shoes and come cruising with us. You'll love this place; it's got a little bit of Americana and a touch of the south of France, all rolled up in one. What's not to love?

Airfares Just Don't Make Any Sense

We left of last weekend from Erie, PA. Instead of paying the high fares ($382) to fly from Erie to New York City, I drove 90 miles to Buffalo and took jetBlue for a third of the price. Sitting at my sister's computer, I decided to price out some fares using the search engines on AirlineNumbers.com and JohnnyJet.com (they are powered by different companies). I priced out one-way tickets between ERI and LAX for three days from now and guess how much the fare was? $137 including taxes and fees! Is that crazy or what? I then priced out fares from LAX to JFK for two days later and guess how much that was? $150! That meant I could have saved over $100 and got a free ticket to L.A. instead of flying from Erie to New York's La Guardia. The bad news was that I didn't have that much time to spare so I drove to Buffalo. NOTE: I could also have traveled a few miles further to Pittsburgh or Cleveland, Erie's other alternate airport (see AlternateAirports.com for other departure/arrival cities) to save on a flight to New York.

Erie to New York City

A ticket from BUF to JFK on jetBlue currently ranges from $69 to $159 each way. The secret with them is to book early. As far as the Buffalo airport goes, it was a joy to travel through as there weren't any long lines and it has just the right amount of restaurants, shops and seats. They even have a barber. The flight to New York took just 55 minutes and couldn't have been easier; they have live satellite TV and XM radio. I barely had any time to peruse the boob tube because I flew with my dad, sister, niece and nephew. It was practically a family affair because when we landed at JFK my sister Georgette called to say she was just pulling up to the American terminal for her flight to New Zealand (via L.A.) so we rushed over there to give her a kiss goodbye. BTW: Her New Zealand stories will begin running next week.

Sfoglia

I was in New York to spend time with my brother who is undergoing prophylactic cancer treatment. As you will see from the pictures, he's taking his chemo and radiation treatments like a champ. One of our pastimes in the city is to dine at nice restaurants so one night we went to Sfoglia on Lexington and 92nd. It's a small, popular, Italian restaurant with innovative dishes. For an appetizer, I ordered the watermelon, tomato and pesto salad ($9), which was seriously the best ever. It was also the first time I'd had those ingredients all on one plate but it was delicious. For my main course, I had cold spaghetti with cantaloupe ($17 for a half order), which sounds disgusting, but man, was it good. Perfect for a hot summer night! On top of that, the bread, olives and service were all top notch. Next time you are in New York (or Nantucket) check it out for yourself. Reservations are necessary and you should book about six weeks out. Sfoglia, 1402 Lexington Avenue, (cross street is 92nd Street), New York City; tel: 212/831-1402.

NYC To Greenport, NY

For the weekend, my brother and I jumped on the Long Island Railroad to Greenport, NY. We were headed to Shelter Island and we decided take the commuter train from Penn Station (it actually leaves three blocks away from Penn but it's still referred to as Penn Station), as it was just $15.25 for a one-way ticket. Other options included driving, taking the Hampton Jitney or the Hampton Luxury Liner (both buses) but who wants to sit on the Long Island Expressway in mad traffic? Not us. The easiest option is to take U.S. Helicopter's seasonal service but it's also the most expensive. The train turned out to be relaxing and of course, much more eco-friendly. BTW: It took three hours and we had to make one change in Ronkonkoma, which was just a five-minute wait (we timed it right). TIP: Bring your own food and drink for the ride as refreshments aren't served on the train.

Billy's Boat

Shelter Island is located between the North and South Forks of Long Island. Three sides of Shelter Island are surrounded by the Shelter Island Sound. The fourth side (on the east) is across from Gardiners Bay, which is where most visitors catch a ferry that runs every 10 to 15 minutes. It's so frequent because it's a short trip (10 to 15 minutes). Instead of taking the mellow ferry, Frank's good friend Billy was kind (or evil) enough to pick us up in his little dinghy. This thing would be ideal for three 100-lbs teenagers but for three 200-lbs adults … not so much. Needless to say, I sat in the gunner seat and got hammered by the waves; my tailbone still hurts. Fortunately, the ride was short and it took us to Billy's much nicer and bigger yacht. Score! Now this multi-million dollar thing was built for good times and has three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a hidden mechanical compartment designed to store the dinghy, bikes and beach chairs.

Selter Island

What makes Shelter Island so special is that it makes you feel like you're so far away even though you're not. A third of the 27-square-mile island is nature conservancy and many of the houses built in Shelter Island Heights are in classic American styles. The town is listed on both the United States Register and the New York State Register of Historic Places. According to the 2000 census, the year-round population is 2,228 but obviously that swells quite a bit during the summer months, as most people come here to escape the heat of the city. It became a popular summer resort back in 1871 and these days, it's hopping on weekends.

Sunset Beach

No place is in full swing more than Crescent Beach, which is where we moored the boat. My brother had told me that the beach has the look and feel of the south of France and boy was he right! One difference? Topless optional was not in effect here. The most popular (and expensive) spot to spend the night, have dinner and dance is the glamorous Sunset Beach (Sunset Beach, 35 Shore Road, tel. 631/749-2001). It's only open May through September and room rates begin at $245 (off peak, weekday). They even have Petanque, France's version of Italy's Bocce and England's lawn bowling. Of course, we grabbed one of their patio tables and had a tasty meal as the sun went down and then danced into the wee hours of the morning; they close at 2am.

Breakfast

Although Billy's boat sleeps six very comfortably, it was so nice out that I decided to sleep upstairs and under the stars. The water was incredibly calm and it was so peaceful until about an hour after the sun rose. Then all the fisherman and water skiers stirred things up. For breakfast, we jumped back on the dinghy and added a fourth buddy to go into town (it's about a two-mile walk from Crescent Beach or a 15-minute boat ride). We ended up at the Shelter Island Pharmacy (19 Grand Avenue, tel. 631/749-0445) where they have a small diner that serves incredibly inexpensive dishes. I had ham, egg and cheese on a sesame bagel for $4. The lifeguard sitting next to me said this place was famous for its cheeseburgers ($4.50) but I will need to save that for another time. Afterwards, I topped everything off with a sumptuous cupcake ($3) from Reddings Fine Foods (184 North Ferry Road, tel. 631/504-6080).

Shelter Islant to Connecticut

On the bumpy ride back to the mother ship, we could see storm clouds forming and Billy said that if we left immediately, we could beat ‘em. Sure enough, the captain was right and we made it back to my hometown of Norwalk, Connecticut barely escaping the lighting bolts and rough surf in two hours. It was a short trip to Shelter Island but I was sure happy I was able to experience a small part of it.

Jellyfish

The major bummer was that we couldn't swim because there were so many red jellyfish. These critters aren't just in Shelter Island either. They can be found in all of Long Island Sound and even the Mediterranean is full of them. Why so many? The reason is over-fishing. The jellyfish don't have to face their typical predators, which usually regulate population growth. You can read the full story here in The Guardian.

Johnny Jet has been featured over 1,000 times in major publications, including USA Today, Time, Fortune and The New York Times, and has appeared on ABC, CBS, CNBC, MSNBC, NBC, FOX News Channel, and PBS. JohnnyJet.com has been named "one of the top best money-saving web sites for travel" by Budget Travel Magazine, while the L.A. Times calls it "one of the top 10 essential travel resources on the internet." In the May 2007 issue of Outside Magazine, Johnny Jet was touted for having one of the world's best "dream jobs". Every week Johnny hosts a "travel website of the week" for several radio stations around the country, he writes weekly for Frommers.com and he has written for USAToday, The Boston Herald and Coast Magazine. Sign up today for Johnny Jet's free weekly travel newsletter at www.johnnyjet.com.