Gardiners Island

Little has been known or seen on Gardiner's Island for years. The view of this island is restricted only to by-passengers. As it has been for centuries, this island is in private ownership. The Lion Gardiner bought an island from Indian Chief Wyandance, Montauk Sachem for "a big dark hound, a weapon, some dust and gunfire, a gallon full of rhum and three quilts from the Netherlands".

" Gardiner's of New York own, run and tour this wonderful island. Gardiner's Island is 6 mile long and 3 mile broad and there are no shops, bars, shops, restaurants or accommodation on the island. This island is in private ownership and does not allow any visitor. The entire power on the island is generated by the island's gigantic power packs.

Gardiner's Island's only visitors are those who have been welcomed by the Gardiner's Island staff or by their families. We have been asked for a personal island cruise in August 2001. On our island cruise we saw how valuable the island is for the east of Long Island.

A step on the island is like a step into the past and makes you think about what the remainder of the eastern end might have been many, many years ago. It is a stunning landscape. We' re being taken around the island in four-wheel vehicles.

There are two stripes of debris all over the island. Because of the appearance of the streets, the ambience of the island is enhanced. This street can be found all over the island from Cherry Hill Point to Eastern Plain Point. While visiting, we learnt that Mr. Gardiner himself asked that the streets stay like this and that the keepers planted weed between the stripes of debris to keep the appearance uniform throughout the island.

Also the caretaker's cottage and the Gardiner's Mansion we have seen from afar. Our first stop was the kitchen building and the sheds. Situated in the heart of the island, the building was fenced in with stones and had a great panoramic views of the island's countryside and the tower.

It was like going back in history in that shed. An old kennel was located just outside the sheds, where the hunter left their hounds behind while they hunted on the island. We stoped along the track near a trough where we were informed that Captain Kidd had hidden his fortune almost 200 years before.

We left Captain Kidd and headed westwards to an area known as Cherry Hill Point. We had one of the most amazing vistas of the island from here. We had a great look at "The Ruins" and Bostwick Bay in the uptown. Coming from Cherry Hill Point we travelled eastwards to an area known as Crow Head.

The view of the sweans reminds us all how particular this island was to us and the fauna that inhabited this area. The viewpoint also allowed us to see several ospreys' caverns that can be found all over the island. At Gardiner's Island you will find osprey's eagle's lair on the floor near the sands.

Fish eagles can have their home on the floor, as there are no wild carnivores for the fish eagle on Gardiner's Island. It is one of the few places in the whole wide globe that has fish-eagle habitats on the bottom. We travelled east from Crow Head to Eastern Plain Point.

Here stands an old watchtower from the Second Woridewar. The watchtower was dressed as a beacon and was maned by my troops in search of hostile warships. We have a great look at the cliffs on the east side of the island from this one.

A lot of sailors can see this lighthouse from Block Island Sound as they cross the island. The last stop on our trip was the island's runway. This runway is used by curtains for small aircraft for take-off and landings. It is a long mown grassland runway situated at the south tip of the island with views of Nappeague Bay and Cherry Harbor.

After a long and beautiful outing we were taken back to our boats from the runway. The journey to Gardiner's Island was simply a spectacle. All the Ostaders, I think, should feel such a sense of cleanliness and splendour, but then the splendour and cleanliness of this island was maintained by making this holy island safe and free of people.