The weather forecast for today predicted full sun and highs in the 90s: a perfect day for the beach! I decided to visit Fishers Island, which I had heard was like an exclusive retreat for wealthy business executive types. The Island sits a few miles off the Connecticut shore and is accessible by ferry service from New London:

Once I was back on dry land, I borrowed an old bicycle to ride around the quiet, tree-shaded streets of the west end. In the center of town, I parked the bike and walked around for a bit. And honest to God, I actually overheard two men sitting at a cafe discussing the prospects for starting a new hedge fund. No, I didn’t roll my eyes and grimace, because they weren’t dissing the President (got that, McChrystal?) and I was a guest on the Island. Around noon, I treated myself to a dish of vanilla-coconut ice cream from Toppers — sooo good.

Because I had my camera with me, I photographed a few public buildings. This is the post office:

The Congregational Church is near by:

St. John’s Episcopal is also near the town center:

The natural history museum is closed on Mondays:

Someone who donated to the musem must like statuary. Check out this raptor:

And this portrait in stone of a water bird:

Near the museum is a short nature trail (what a bad photo of the sign). Without a trail guide, I wasn’t sure how much I’d see, so I didn’t explore. I did saunter around the little pond near the beginning of the trail, which was covered with green scum, but at least there weren’t any freaking mosquitoes:

Eventually, I made my way to one of the beaches, where I took off my shoes and socks and waded into the water, which I found surprisingly warm. This is the south shore of the island; from here Long Island is visible across the Sound (not in the photo):

I tried capturing the texture of the rocks and the sea wrack:

It really was a lot cooler here than on the mainland, and I thoroughly enjoyed my few hours on the Island. I’ll be back.