Tag Archives: South Merrick

Merrick, New York, USA. May 24, 2015. Two Kayakers paddle around fishing pier at Levy Park on Memorial Day Weekend (c) 2015 Ann Parry

Memorial Day Weekend at Levy Park 2015

From LONG ISLAND – by Ann Parry (ann-parry.com)
May 28, 2015

Around 3:30 the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend, I went to Norman J Levy Park & Preserve. After parking in the crowded parking lot, I headed to the path with the sign “Shortest Way to Top” – since I hoped to get a hilltop view of the Bethpage New York Air Show in progress at nearby Jones Beach.

Merrick, New York, USA. May 24, 2015. At Norman J Levy Park & Preserve, visitor point south to contrails in the sky over Jones Beach where planes are performing in the Bethpage New York Air Show, Memorial Day Weekend.  (© 2015 Ann Parry/Ann-Parry.com)

Merrick, New York, USA. May 24, 2015. At Norman J Levy Park & Preserve, visitor point south to contrails in the sky over Jones Beach where planes are performing in the Bethpage New York Air Show, Memorial Day Weekend. (© 2015 Ann Parry/Ann-Parry.com)

Earlier that day, I heard that Jones Beach filled to capacity before the air show even started, so major roads leading there were closed. So I wasn’t surprised to see groups of people scattered throughout the hilltop and pointing south to where planes were leaving contrails in the sky. The performers, too distant from Levy Park to identify, included Thunderbirds, Golden Knights, and GEICO SkyWriters, and more.

Merrick, New York, USA. May 24, 2015. Rev. DAVID YI, of Douglaston, Queens, fishes on the pier of Levy Park & Preserve during Memorial Day Weekend.  (© 2015 Ann Parry/Ann-Parry.com) 

Merrick, New York, USA. May 24, 2015. Rev. DAVID YI, of Douglaston, Queens, fishes on the pier of Levy Park & Preserve during Memorial Day Weekend.  (© 2015 Ann Parry/Ann-Parry.com) 

When the show ended, I headed south on the winding trail leading down to the park’s fishing pier.

At the far end of the 500-foot-long wooden pier, I enjoyed the cool breeze and watched kayakers in Merrick Bay, and chatted with fellow visitors Rev. DAVID YI and his parishioners. They had planned to fish at Jones Beach, but finding Meadowbrook Parkway closed, cast their reels at South Merrick’s Levy Park instead.

Memorial Day Weekend 2015:  GALLERY 

Site:  Bethpage Air Show at Jones Beach State Park

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2012 Nigerian Dwarf Goats Walk in Norman J Levy Park & Preserve

Nigerian Dwarf Goats Walk in Norman J Levy Park & Preserve

From LONG ISLAND – by Ann Parry (ann-parry.com)
May 5, 2012

Though I first met the Nigerian Dwarf Goats that live at Norman J Levy Park & Preserve about 3 years ago, this week was the first time I saw them as they walked through the grounds with a park ranger.

May 1, 2012 - Merrick, New York, USA - Nigerian Dwarf Goats walk with Park Ranger during sunny spring day at Levy Park and Preserve, marshland on the south shore of Long Island, New York. Due to unusually warm weather, this was the first day of the year the park stayed open until 19:30 (7:30 PM), which usually doesn't happen until later in season. (Ann Parry/Ann Parry, ann-parry.com)

May 1, 2012 – Merrick, New York, USA – Nigerian Dwarf Goats walk with PARK RANGER SUE during sunny spring day at Levy Park and Preserve, marshland on the south shore of Long Island, New York. Due to unusually warm weather, this was the first day of the year the park stayed open until 19:30 (7:30 PM), which usually doesn’t happen until later in season. (© 2012 Ann Parry/Ann-Parry.com)

Entering the parking lot, I saw a sign announcing the goats were out walking, so I asked someone at the Park Station exactly where they were. He called Park Ranger Susan, who had them up by the hilltop ponds and was about to take them back on the trail near the golf course.

Merrick, NY, USA. May 1, 2012. Nigerian Dwarf Goats graze during walk at Norman J Levy Park & Preserve. (© 2012 Ann Parry/ann-parry.com)

Merrick, NY, USA. May 1, 2012. Nigerian Dwarf Goats graze during walk at Norman J Levy Park & Preserve. (© 2012 Ann Parry/Ann-Parry.com)

This delightful, working goat herd eats weeds as it walks through the park – each day, early morning and early afternoon – using a variety of routes. It’s one of many ways the park maintains itself in a green, ecologically friendly way for Long Island’s marshland environment.

  • UPDATE: The book Extraordinary Goats by Janet Hurst, 2014, includes one of my photos of Nigerian Dwarf Goats walking with Park Ranger Susan at Levy Park.

Nigerian Dwarf Goats & Birds, Levy Park & Preserve:  PHOTO GALLERY

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