Peel through the controversy surrounding the Sandy Hook area of Gateway National Recreation Area and you'll find a seaside setting perfect for fleeing Gotham's high summer heat and humidity.

Sandy Hook has five luxuriously wide beaches plus six miles of biking trails, fishing, wind surfing and a maritime forest with more American holly than anywhere else on the East Coast. The oldest lighthouse in America still in use is in Sandy Hook, with tours available on weekend afternoons. Birders love Sandy Hook, particularly during the spring and fall migrations.

That's just a snippet from the story my colleague, Terese Loeb Kreuzer, wrote after taking the ferry from New York City to Sandy Hook. For the rest of the story, surf over to this site.