Hunter Island and Orchard Beach in Pelham Bay Park

The Kazimiroff Nature Trail loops through Hunter Island, a wooded former island at the northeast corner of Pelham Bay Park, past Norway spruces and white pines where great horned owls nest, the foundations of the old Hunter mansion and its garden, and the restored Twin Islands salt marsh. Two big glacial boulders on the shore, the Gray Mare and Mishow, were places of ceremony for the Siwanoy people who lived here before the Europeans came.

Hunter Island is joined to the mainland by Orchard Beach, which Robert Moses built in the 1930s with landfill and white sand shipped in from the Rockaways and Sandy Hook, along with a crescent promenade and a grand bathhouse. Walk the beach promenade north to the trailhead, do the loop, and come back along the shore. Out of season it is all yours. Entry is free; note that NYC Parks currently lists the Orchard Beach pavilion and the Pelham Bay Nature Center as closed, so bring water and food. City Island's seafood counters are a short ride away.