WHERE: The Rockaway Peninsula, Queens
START: Beach 67 Street subway station (A train), fully accessible
FINISH: Rockaway Park - Beach 116 Street subway station (S train), fully accessible
DISTANCE: 2.75 miles (4.4 kilometers)
Photographs by Michael Cairl. Map courtesy footpathmap.com.
Map of this walk, reading from right to left.
The Rockaway Peninsula is a narrow spit of land, a barrier between the Atlantic Ocean and Jamaica Bay. If you’ve looked out the window of an aircraft arriving at or departing from JFK Airport, you’ve seen it. The different communities on the peninsula are known collectively as the Rockaways.
A part of New York City, the Rockaways have tidy, suburban-style houses, beach bungalows, apartment blocks facing the beach, public housing projects, and apartments built since Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Generations have lived in the Rockaways and called it home.
The Long Island Rail Road built a branch across Jamaica Bay to the Rockaways in the late 19th century. New York City took over this line after the LIRR abandoned it in 1950, rebuilt it, and converted it to subway service. It is not uncommon to see someone with a surf board on a train out to the Rockaways. It’s a long subway ride from the Rockaways to Manhattan, but people make that trip every day.
This walk began at the elevated Beach 67 Street - Arverne subway station, recently refurbished and made fully accessible. The accessibility project was unexpectedly difficult but overall it’s a good job. At street level, there is a surf shop.
From the late 19th century until World War II, Arverne was a community of beach bungalows. It was largely abandoned in the 1950s and 1960s. Various redevelopment schemes came to nothing, but starting in the early 2000s new housing took root. The Rockaways were hard hit by Superstorm Sandy but the area has been rebuilt, including the boardwalk that was most of this walk. It would be more appropriate to call it a promenade, as Sandy destroyed the old wooden boardwalk, long segments of which were so deteriorated as to be unusable.
Starting at the subway station, we made the short walk to the boardwalk, past someone renting surf boards from a van. The new boardwalk is a delight for riding a bike, as I discovered after it opened in 2016, but I did this walk with a runner who said the concrete surface isn’t good for running.
At Beach 91 Street there is a memorial to a local lifeguard, teacher, surfer, and fire fighter, Richie Allen (1970 - 2001).
The plaque on the wooden post to the left of the lamppost reads:
Firefighter Richie Allen
SON, BROTHER, UNCLE, FRIEND, HERO, ANGEL
The beach was Richie’s heaven on earth. He was a lifeguard and a talented surfer who loved the rush of catching a wave. In an amateur surfing film written by Richie, he states “Beach 91st Street is the best surfing spot in NYC. By some local surfers, it’s known as the arena where reputations are built and destroyed. Swells that have crashed on this beach have made this place legendary.”
On September 11, 2001, Richie heroically gave his life as a NYC firefighter.
In his memory, enjoy this beach, surf its water and live life to the fullest as that was and always will be … Richie Allen’s Way.
A Hui Huo Ohana
On these walks I’ve met many people. Richie seems one of those people I wish I had met. For more about him go to https://voicescenter.org/living-memorial/victim/richard-dennis-allen-richie.
From there we went to lunch at Happy Jack’s Burger Bar across from The Rockaway Hotel. This is a delightful place for locals. I’ll be back.
The rest of the walk was unremarkable except for this place whose name was so odd we had to cross the street to have a look. Sure enough, it’s a pour-your-own-beer joint. One could do that at home.
