Paumanok Path

Paumanok Path
Big Reed nature trail, Montauk
Location	NY 25A., Rocky Point, New York
Coordinates	40°56′40″N 72°56′55″W

The Paumanok Path is a 125-mile (201 km) hiking trail in New York on Long Island that goes from Rocky Point to Montauk Point State Park.^[1][2] It travels through four towns in Suffolk County: Brookhaven, Riverhead, Southampton and East Hampton. It is marked by white trail blazes.^[3]

Description

The trail derives its name from the Native American name for Long Island.^[4] The trail was inspired by Stephen Talkhouse, a 19th-century Montaukett Indian famed for his 25-30 mile roundtrip walks from Montauk to East Hampton, New York and Sag Harbor, New York. Landmarks on the trail are said to be resting places for him.^{[citation needed]} Talkhouse is buried off the trail in Theodore Roosevelt County Park near Montauk.^{[citation needed]}

The trail is almost completely off-road, but there are a few short sections which are paved. There are gaps that total 20-odd miles that due to private ownership presented a challenge to overall completion until 2016.^[1]

Montauk County Park in Indian Fields, Montauk, NY

Activities

In October 2000, Byron Lane, an ultramarathon runner from Stony Brook, New York, who has Montaukett Indians in his family tree, ran the entire Paumanok Path as a fundraiser and awareness raiser for the trail. The path was altered since then and in 2016 hiker Joe Denny became the first to walk the 125-mile path.^[1] In 2021, Justin Kousky recorded a new fastest known time of 25 hours, 42 minutes.^[5]

The Paumonok path is a hiking trail with prohibitions for ATV's (Quads) and dirt bikes, however, a portion from East Hampton to Sag Harbor has been designated a bike trail, where mountain bikes are allowed. This section runs from Town Line road to the Sag Harbor turnpike (State road 114) where it lies opposite the trailhead for the Northwest Woods Trails.^[6]

References

1. "125 miles, 6 days: Shelter Island hiker completes Paumanok Path". 5 August 2016.
2. Ostertag, Rhonda and George; Ostertag, George (2009-05-19). Hiking New York: A Guide To The State's Best Hiking Adventures. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 283–285. ISBN 978-1-4617-4575-4.
3. Rather, John (19 March 2000). "A Hiker's Dream, and Sobering Realities". The New York Times.
4. "Early Indian Life on Long Island". Richmond Hill Historical Society website. Richmond Hill Historical Society. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
5. Snider-McGrath, Ben (2021-01-26). "Connecticut ultrarunner sets FKT on 200K Long Island trail". Retrieved 2022-12-20.
6. "Paumanok Path: East Hampton to Northwest Path Mountain Bike Trail, Sag Harbor, New York".

Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass "starting from Paumanok"

External links