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Feb 27, 2012

Winter trip to summer home of the rich and the famous (Hamptons, LI)

Last weekend we took a trip to Long Island. Winter is not exactly known as the season for traveling to Southampton, though we thought it was a great time to check out the sites without getting stuck in traffic or dealing with crazy summer crowds It was our first time venturing that far west on the island. We actually made it all the way to west-most point of LI, Montauk Lighthouse.


Another unique part of this trip was that for the first time in all our travels, this venture was not pre-planned. We decided to take the trip a couple of weeks before. This was quite unusual for my wife, who likes to start the research and planning months before a trip and have every stop mapped out.

While I did take a look at some of the attractions in out potential destination and we did book a stay at B&B beforehand, the rest was left up to last minute decisions or whatever we find on our phones. And that is where the idea for this type of trip actually originated and was helped with significantly. We both, finally, had smartphones.

We were able to look up wineries to visit and their location while en route. There is app for the LI Wine Country that provided most of the information. Other apps we used to plan out the day were the TripAdvisor and Yelp to find places to dine. And Google Maps to track where we are and to plan stops according so we do not drive in circles or unnecessary distance to conserve on gas.

During our trip we visited 7 wineries. It was great to see the types that are located in Long Island and sample the variety of wines. This would have been a lot tougher in the warmer months with huge crowds. There were a few folks out and about, probably as sign of the time, though the wait was minimum if at all in most places.
Laurel Lake Winery was one of my favorites. They have a great selection with both reds and whites.
Other wineries we visited were:
Wolffer's Estates - very elegant atmosphere with a sit down wine tasting
Duckwalk - large variety of wines and friendly staff
Pindar - one of the largest wineries that produces a lot of the grapes or the region
Beddell - it was an eclectic taste as well as decor

Our other stops were the Village Cheese Shop, located on Love Lane (that is a real name) in Mattituck, that has great selection of cheese and even better service with friendly and knowledgeable staff. And we also got snacks at the Tate's Bakery, some tasty chocolate chip cookies.
Overnight, we stayed at Ele's Hideaway B&B. It was a great looking house, with in-bathroom jacuzzi, beautiful and large bedroom. The host was very nice and so was the breakfast in the morning.

Other notable tid bits from the trip:
- It was the first time that I took my current car up to 100 mph
- It seemed that LI was the land of Range Rovers, at least during this season, as just about every car on the road was either a Range or Land Rover.
- We saw the house from the show "Revenge" that is shown in the arial shots (it is kind of visible in the beach pictures below)



List of usual suspects/ Gadgets we had with us:
DSLR
GPS
Canon PowerShot SX150 IS
And now iPhone

What do you think? Let us know below
gaget

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