Long Island: Mashomack

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Why You Should Visit
Mashomack contains one of the richest natural habitats in the Northeast. Here you'll find mature oak woodlands, interlacing tidal wetlands, fresh water marshes and ten miles of coastline. Covering the entire southeastern third of Shelter Island, this spectacular preserve hosts an amazing variety of flora and fauna.

Location: Shelter Island, Suffolk County

Size: 2,039 acres

How to Prepare for Your Visit
Read our guidelines for enjoying and protecting Long Island preserves.

Mashomack is open daily in July and August from 9 am to 5 p.m. (9 am to 4 p.m. October through March), and is closed on Tuesdays during the rest of the year. A suggested donation of $2.00 per adult and $1.00 per child will help us continue our mission to protect Mashomack for generations to come.

Four well-marked trails offer hikes of up to 11 miles of varying lengths and difficulty. A wheelchair-accessible trail is located close to the visitor center, which features literature, displays, and a small gift shop. Volunteers provide guidance and answer questions daily in the summer and on weekends during the rest of the year. Mashomack also offers nature programs and guided hikes throughout the year.

Contact the Mashomack Office for information and reservations.

Directions

Take your best route to Shelter Island.
When disembarking from the Greenport/North Ferry, follow Route 114 for three miles south to the preserve.
If you come by way of the North Haven/South Ferry, follow Route 114 one mile north to the Preserve. A large wooden sign on the east side of Route 114 marks the entrance.
You can park just inside the preserve entrance on Route 114 (less than a mile from the South Ferry) and walk in to the visitor center to sign the guest book and pick up trail maps.

What to See: Plants
The only natural community of its kind on Long Island, the Pine Swamp Complex is comprised of plants rooted in a floating mat of sphagnum moss. Probes have found organic accumulations ten feet thick dated to be 3,900 years old. Fringed by water willows and a diverse shrub layer including swamp azalea, highbush blueberry, white alder, winterberry and mountain holly, the swamp also includes a stand of white pines that shelter two state-protected orchids-the whorled pogonia and the pink lady slipper. The Usnea lichen grows on shrubs and trees here, attracting ruby-throated hummingbirds, which use the lichen in their nests.

What to See: Animals
Muskrats, foxes, harbor seals and diamondback terrapins live in Mashomack.

What to See: Birds
Over 80 breeding species have been recorded at Mashomack and nearly 60 species spend winters at the preserve. Visit during all of the seasons and at different times of the day. Look for towhees in the understory, scarlet tanagers and Baltimore orioles in the canopy, and owls and red-tailed hawks along the edges of the open, grassy meadows. Together with nearby Gardiners Island, Mashomack also supports one of the East Coast's largest concentrations of nesting osprey. From mid-March to late summer, view ospreys along the salt marshes and bays. Hundreds of black duck, Canada geese and other migrating waterfowl stop over at Mashomack in the fall.

Why the Conservancy Selected this Site
The Pine Swamp complex at the western edge of the preserve is designated a freshwater wetland of "unique local importance" by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Mashomack's 10 miles of natural shoreline offer undisturbed nesting habitat for birds and turtles as well as a refuge for rare beach plants. Seven tidal marshes host rare plants while help to ensure the health of the surrounding bays through their filtering and nursery capabilities.