Exploring and Enjoying NYC

Wolfe's Pond to Tottenville Station

Sat, Aug 29 · 10:00 AM EDT

Charging Bull, Broadway & Morris Street, New York, NY, US

Getting There
We meet up at the corner of Broadway & Morris Street in Lower Manhattan, just a short walk from the Staten Island Ferry terminal. It's a quiet Sunday morning in the financial district, so the area is calm and easy to navigate. If you arrive early you can grab coffee. At 10:14 AM, we board the SIM1C express bus.

The SIM1C runs from Manhattan across the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge to Staten Island, taking about 40 minutes depending on traffic. The ride gives us a nice view of the harbor and the bridge as we cross over to the island. In my experience traffic has been reasonable at this time.

• The 12 mile Hike (which might be cut to 10 miles).

Once we get off the SIM1C, we transfer to the S78, a local bus that heads south along Hylan Boulevard through neighborhoods like Great Kills and Bay Terrace before reaching Cornelius Avenue stop. We get off near the entrance to Wolf's Head Park and walk a short distance through the grounds — a mix of open meadow, marshland, and trees.

Overview
This route traces Staten Island's southern shoreline from Wolfe's Pond Park in Prince's Bay to the Tottenville station — the southernmost railway station in New York State — weaving through roughly 300 years of history, glacial geology, and bayfront scenery along the way.

1. Starting Out at Wolfe's Pond Park
We step off the S78 at Cornelia Ave and walk to Wolfe's Pond Park off Hylan Boulevard. The park is one of Staten Island's largest, encompassing a beach on Raritan Bay, a wildlife preserve, and recreation areas. Several blazed hiking trails wind through the park's wooded hills, offering distances for all skill levels with views from ridge and ravine alike.
Start on the White Trail, which begins from the main parking lot — a wide, relatively flat path that leads a short distance into shady woods to a scenic overlook of Wolfe's Pond itself. The pond is fed by freshwater flowing from Acme Pond via a creek through a wooded ravine visible from the ridge.

The woods here are some of the most impressive in New York City, particularly north of Hylan Boulevard around Acme Pond, where the Blue Trail loops over two miles through mature forest. Take a moment on the ridge to look down at the ravine and creek before looping back toward Hylan Boulevard.

2. South to the Manee-Seguine Homestead
Exiting Wolfe's Pond Park, head south and west along Hylan Boulevard, then turn onto Seguine Avenue toward the waterfront. In the Prince's Bay neighborhood, at 509 Seguine Avenue near Purdy Place and adjacent to Lemon Creek, stands the Manee-Seguine Homestead — a three-part Colonial Dutch dwelling and one of the six oldest surviving houses in New York City.
The oldest section is a one-room rubblestone structure built around 1670 by Paulus Regrenier, a French Huguenot fleeing religious persecution in Europe. The Seguine family purchased the homestead in the 1780s and added a wooden wing in the early 19th century. It was later operated as a tavern and inn known as Purdy's Hotel (or the Homestead Hotel) — a stop for visitors arriving by train at Prince's Bay Station who came to enjoy the oyster trade's summer resort culture. The building was designated a New York City landmark on September 11, 1984.
The house sits close to the water, as was typical of Staten Island's shorefront colonial patents. Though it has suffered from neglect — a court ordered repairs as recently as 2016 — its rubblestone walls still evoke the Dutch colonial era.

3. The Seguine-Burke Mansion
Continue a short distance along Seguine Avenue into Lemon Creek Park. Here, at 440 Seguine Avenue, sits the Seguine-Burke Mansion (also known simply as the Seguine Mansion) — an eighteen-room Greek Revival house built in 1838 by Joseph H. Seguine.
Seguine was a prosperous businessman who made his fortune through the family's oyster harvesting business — oysters from Prince's Bay were once exported to London as a delicacy. He also founded the Staten Island Railroad Company and the Staten Island Oil and Candlemaking Company. The land was purchased by his grandfather James Seguine between 1780 and 1786.
The Landmarks Preservation Commission noted that the two-and-a-half-story structure "has retained its original grandeur and, in the character and setting, is reminiscent of antebellum mansions of the Deep South." It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is a member of the Historic House Trust. Once on the verge of demolition, the mansion was saved by George Burke, who restored the property and made it his home. The grounds occasionally open to the public for events.
The mansion enjoys a panoramic view of Prince's Bay, and Lemon Creek Park's waterfront area around it provides spawning grounds for fish and shellfish, with salt marshes that absorb pollutants and reduce erosion.

4. Cunningham Pond and the Mount Loretto Unique Area
From Lemon Creek Park, head south and west into the Mount Loretto Unique Area — the largest state-owned open space on Staten Island, once the grounds of a Catholic orphanage. The property contains a set of freshwater ponds, and the air here is salty from nearby Raritan Bay.
Cunningham Pond sits along Cunningham Road, which runs across the property from thick forest to seashore atop an embankment that separates Cunningham Pond from Mount Loretto Pond. The pond formed naturally in a depressed area of the meadow. To the west are tract homes built in the 1950s on the former Butler Manor estate, whose namesake family has roots on Staten Island dating to the 1750s.
The landscape here is striking — grasslands, a freshwater pond, and red bluffs overlooking a beach on Raritan Bay. The bluffs are part of the terminal moraine formed by the Wisconsin Glacier, which receded about 10,000 years ago.

5. Past the Prince's Bay Lighthouse
On the eastern edge of the Mount Loretto property, atop an 85-foot bluff — the highest point along Staten Island's southern shoreline — stands the Prince's Bay Lighthouse (officially the John Cardinal O'Connor Light).
Congress first appropriated funds for the lighthouse on May 18, 1826. The original wooden tower, built in 1828, was replaced in 1864 by the current brick structure, which stands about 40 feet tall. The complex also includes a two-and-a-half-story brownstone keeper's house (built 1868) and a carriage house. Historically known as the Red Bank Lighthouse, it was landmarked in 2016.
On a clear day from the lighthouse grounds, you can see the New York skyline to the north and Sandy Hook, New Jersey, to the south. The lighthouse sits about 2,500 feet east of Cunningham Pond, making it a natural waypoint as you traverse the Mount Loretto bluffs.

6. Robinson's Beach
Continuing south and west along the shoreline toward Tottenville, you reach Robinson's Beach — a serene, sandy stretch near the Tottenville neighborhood, offering calm waters and picturesque views of Raritan Bay. It sits near breakwaters and is adjacent to the Conference House Park area.
This is a quieter stretch of shoreline — a good place to pause, feel the bay breeze, and watch for migratory birds before the final push into Tottenville.

7. Conference House Park
The route now enters Conference House Park, located in Tottenville at the southernmost point of New York State. The park stretches along the Arthur Kill coast where the kill opens into Raritan Bay, and contains clay bluffs — part of the same terminal moraine left by the Wisconsin Glacier. Ward's Point, within the park, is the southernmost tip of New York state.
The park's Blue Trail extends from Shore Road and Satterlee Street south to Brighton Street and Surf Avenue, passing historic buildings and offering waterfront views. The park houses four historic buildings spanning three centuries: the Conference House (site of the unsuccessful 1776 peace negotiations to end the Revolutionary War), the Biddle House, the Ward House, and the Rutan-Beckett House.
Take the trail past the Conference House itself — a stone manor built by Christopher Billop — and along the waterfront, where you can look out across Raritan Bay toward New Jersey. The walking trails near the visitors center run right along the water's edge.

8. Journey's End: Tottenville Station
From Conference House Park, it's a short walk north to the Tottenville station, located near Main Street and Arthur Kill Road. This is the southern terminus of the Staten Island Railway's main line — and the southernmost railway station in both New York City and New York State.
It's a grade-level station with two tracks, an island platform, and three storage tracks to the east, all ending at bumper blocks. The station color is orange. Service runs 24 hours a day between St. George and Tottenville, with the full ride taking about 45 minutes — a leisurely way to reverse your journey through the length of Staten Island.
Tap on with OMNY, find a seat, and watch the South Shore's woods and waterfront slide past the window as the train carries you north — a fitting end to a hike that has covered three centuries of history, from 1670s rubblestone to 1860s railway, all along the glacial bluffs of Staten Island's southern edge.

Practical Notes:

• Insect repellent is prudent for hikes. Be wary of ticks.
• Packing sunblock for use if necessary might be a good idea.
• Wear comfortable walking shoes for the park trails
• Bring water — the grounds are fairly exposed to sun in August
• Pack a snack
• There are about four rest rooms along the route.
• Return is via the Staten Island Rail from Tottenville.

Brooklyn to Southampton UK via the QM-2

Sat, Jan 2, 2027 · 7:00 PM EST

Brooklyn Terminal: Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, Bowne St & Imlay St., Pier 12, Brooklyn, NY, US

If you love the sea and yearn for the old world experience of walking onto a ship then nine nights later walking off with minimal fuss over passport control, then this voyage may be for you.

• I am booked. To get the best price you'll need to share a cabin, so make friends quickly.
• You'll need to book directly with Cunard or call 800-728-6273, and to arrange your own flight back.
• Note: The UK requires an Electronic Travel Authorization. It's valid for two years, or until your passport expires.

The last time I took this trip it was only 8 nights but I think it's longer now due to higher fuel prices.

Southampton UK has flights to southern Spain and the nearby city of Portsmouth offers ferries to Spain and France. Rail from Southampton to London is a one hour twenty minute ride costing about $60. I believe Cunard can also make arrangements for the return trip.

The M702 is an 9-night eastbound Transatlantic Crossing aboard RMS Queen Mary 2

• Departure: Brooklyn
• Arrival: Southampton UK
• Starting price: Approximately $899 per person for a double occupancy stateroom (as of current listings)

This cruise offers a superior buffet often above typical cruise standards.

Passport Control Procedures are very convenient, conducted at leisure en route. Check-in requires e-ticket, passport, and credit card. A webcam photo is taken for security, followed by UK immigration clearance before boarding.

Embark in Brooklyn
The ship usually docks at Brooklyn Cruise Terminal. Processing is comparable to airport security — formal but generally efficient.

On-Ship Entertainment
Entertainment options include daily theatrical performances, cinema screenings, and a program of lectures covering topics like history, navigation, and culture. Additional offerings span live music venues, ballroom dancing, a casino, and the G32 nightclub for late-night activities.