title	Phil and the Fair Harbor Fire Engine, Fire Island, New York State, US - 30th April 2006
intro	At the end of the first day in New Jersey, and still Nosher's first day on the east coast after a couple of months in California, we pack up the car and head over to Lolly's beach house on the idyllic Fire Island - a sandbar 32 miles long and about half a mile across, just off Long Island in New York State. The weather is amazing, the sea freezing and the island quiet and gorgeous - there's almost no traffic, and the only practical way to get over is by ferry, although one tip can be reached by causeway. Phil also happens to be in the volunteer Fire Island Fire Service, so we get to poke around at the fire station too.
imgp9377	Empire State from the New Jersey Turnpike
imgp9383	Near the junction of I-95 and I-80
imgp9386	Box houses near the interstate
imgp9393	The George Washington bridge
imgp9394	Somewhere in Queens
imgp9397	A bridge over the East River
imgp9402	Queueing for tea at Nicky's Clam Bar
imgp9409	On the Fire island ferry
imgp9412	Kai is somewhere under a heap of coats
imgp9418	Kai peers out from his coat coccoon
imgp9422	Phil gets his fire-department-issue bike out
imgp9425	Down at the Fair Harbor fire station
imgp9430	A heap of shells on a table
imgp9436	Phil's weather station and a shingled wall
imgp9437	Lolly has some breakfast
imgp9438	Phil on the "Fire Department Rapid-Response Bike"
imgp9439	Down at Fair Harbour
imgp9443	An old fire engine
imgp9444	The fire crew have been supplied with new jackets
imgp9446	Firemen's jackets
imgp9449	Phil stands next to a fire truck
imgp9450	Phil on the back of a fire engine
imgp9451	The biggest, shiniest truck in the building
imgp9454	Phil in the staff canteen
imgp9457	Phil does an introduction to basic hose use
imgp9468	Phil in his gear
imgp9473	A door of pictures, including Richard Nixon
imgp9476	The Fair Harbour real estate agent
imgp9477	The Pioneer General Store
imgp9478	Fishing boats on the pier
imgp9480	Phil on the pier
imgp9481	Fair Harbor
imgp9483	We grab the bikes to cycle back to the beach house
imgp9484	Fair Harbour's doctors' surgery
imgp9485	Back on the boardwalks
imgp9488	Lolly's cool beach house
imgp9489	On the sea front
imgp9499	The only way to drive along the island
imgp9509	Phil fires up the barbeque
imgp9523	Wide open spaces
imgp9525	Intrepid ladies on the beach in deck-chairs
imgp9527	One of the "streets" on the island
imgp9528	A Fire Island fire hydrant
imgp9529	There's a weird yellow statue in the grass
imgp9530	A dead branch
imgp9533	Phil checks the steaks
imgp9534	Eating lunch outside the house
imgp9536	We all head off on bikes
imgp9539	Lolly, Phil and Kai on the main street
imgp9540	Fire Island's lighthouse
imgp9542	We park the bikes and check the information board
imgp9544	Climbing up the steps to the lighthouse
imgp9545	A view from the lighthouse looking south
imgp9547	A boardwalk snakes away across the dunes
imgp9548	Looking north towards Fair Harbor
imgp9555	Looking down on the rooftops below
imgp9559	The lighthouse lantern
imgp9567	An old telephone
imgp9568	Phil looks up from down below
imgp9572	On the spiral staircase in the lighthouse
imgp9575	A cast-iron spiral staircase
imgp9577	Phil exits the lighthouse
imgp9582	We sit on the steps and eat a snack
imgp9593	On the beach
imgp9598	Suffolk police drive by
imgp9603	Kai on the Fire Department bike
imgp9604	Fire Island National Seashore
imgp9605	The quaintly-named Kismet fire department
imgp9606	We pause, as it's hard going on the sand
imgp9607	Phil saddles up again
imgp9609	Phil and Kai do the baseball thing
imgp9621	More baseball pitching action
imgp9623	Footprints in the sand
imgp9632	Back at Fair Harbor Fire
imgp9636	Half the town turns out for the last ferry back
imgp9642	Back at Ocean Beach ferry terminal