Wytheville VA Tourism presents WE’RE OUTTA HERE

Sound View Greenport

58775 COUNTY ROAD 48, GREENPORT, NY 11944

631-477-1910 • SOUNDVIEWGREENPORT COM

It has been a long time since We’re Outta Here! has visited Long Island. It’s not that there aren’t plenty of nice roads out to the east of the Mets, but during the warmer months, it gets a bit on the crowded side.

Still, even today, the 30-mile-long peninsula, known as the North Fork, has been able to retain a good deal of its old-time feel and charm. We’d say it is the last vestige of rural Long Island and has one of the greatest wine cultures in the northeast.

The region has been designated as an American Viticultural Area for its rich lands suitable for growing wine grapes. The proximity to the Long Island Sound, the Peconic Bay, and the Atlantic Ocean helps moderate temperature uctuations, making the growing season stretch late into the year.

Merlot, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Franc are the three main wines produced in this region. Route 25, the main road stretching out to Orient Point, is lined with vineyards and wineries, and wine tasting is the main attraction for tourists in the area.

The main town on the north side of Long Island is Greenport.

As you would think this region, with a straight shot to Europe to the east, has a deep and robust history. Barnabas Horton led a small band of adventurers who crossed the Atlantic from England in 1640 and set foot in Southold, the township that now includes the Village of Greenport. Before the Revolutionary War, the village was referred to as Winter Harbor, and later Stirling, after George Washington’s General, Lord Sterling.

A Weekend Destinationkeeping You On The Backroads

The name of the village was changed again to Greenhill and nally renamed Greenport when the village was incorporated as part of Southold Town in 1838.

Between 1795 and 1859 Greenport, because of its deep and protected harbor, became a major whaling port with twenty four whaling ships making a total of 103 voyages.

Beginning in the mid-1800s, the shing industry had a strong impact on one hundred years of Greenport history. A few Greenporters still remember the shy odor that lingered over the village in those days and the shprocessing plant where a type of herring called menhaden was converted into fertilizer and oil.

During the rst half of the 20th century, oystering was a lucrative industry in Greenport and is currently enjoying a resurgence.

Shipbuilding was strong economic power years back and from the early 19th century through World War II, over 550 ships were built and launched in Greenport. During World War I the Greenport Basin and Construction Company built vessels for the Russian Navy, and the US Navy, and in the Second World War, the same shipyard built mine sweepers and landing craft as well as tug boats. From 1887 to 1918 the Beebe McLellan Lifesaving Surf Boat was designed and built in Greenport. A craft that would save hundreds of lives – most notably during World War I, when German U-Boats would strike off the US shore without warning. Today Greenport is a busy modern town, that has been fortunate enough to avoid America cation and to retain its historical and nautical feel and avor.

The Long Island Railroad Museum and the Maritime Museum are well worth a visit if you are spending some time here in Greenport. We have grown to love Carousels and have been seeking them out. Greenport has a wonderful one at Mitchell Park, right on the harbor. Built by the Herschell-Spillman Company back in the year 1920, the Antique Carousel features wooden, hand-carved horses, as well as wooden chariots, donated by Northrup Grumman – the real-life equivalent of Stark Industries.

Just like the village, the Sound View Greenport is a historic destination, but went untouched since the 1970s and was in dire need of a makeover. We had visited this place a few years back and even dated it was a very neat place. Especially when a storm came in and rocked the restaurant and hotel rooms.

The Sound View Greenport has recently undergone renovations that have brought this place back to life, and what was ne back then is excellent now.

They have 55 rooms and suites, and each room at the Sound View looks out onto the Long Island Sound. As we mentioned the rooms have a fresh new look and bedding and each one comes with a complimentary San Pellegrino and chocolate chip cookies.

We never turn down chocolate chip cookies.

Once parked for the day, there is no reason to get back on the bikes as the Sound View’s restaurant - The Halyard offers some of the best meals on the island.

The origins of the carousel have been shrouded in mystery even before it overlooked Greenport Harbor. A 1995 New York Times story noted Northrup Grumman, the carousel’s prior owner, had “cloaked its carousel in a mantle of mystery be tting a military secret.” When Northrup Grumman closed a plant in 1995 the carousel was offered up in a contest. Greenport won with a letter from a student to Mr. Gruman.

An afternoon with the bike parked and strolling around Front and Main Streets can easily eat up a few hours and there are plenty of restaurants to be found along the harbor.

The Halyard has a spacious dining hall that has views of the Long Island Sound everywhere you look.

Giving you a taste of Long Island, The Halyard’s menu includes a classic fried oyster plate, lobster sliders & rolls, and sh & chips.

From the comfortable waterfront rooms to their accessible private beach, the Sound View Greenport has everything you’d want for a quick motorcycle getaway! To make it a more enjoyable ride, you may want to take the ferry from Connecticut to eliminate the drudge across the peninsula to get to this picturesque destination. ,