Coney Island - August 22, 2016 - A Sunny Monday In Brooklyn

Greetings Everyone!

I took my son for a 1/2 day of fun and sun at Coney Island for our annual trek down there.

Weather was picture perfect. Sunny, a little breeze, and a few hours to enjoy.

We took the Long Island Rail Road to Atlantic Terminal and transferred to a south bound subway. Just like tens of thousands do every weekend. Camps are over in our area and I thought it wouldn't be too crowded. At the Coney Island Station and throughout the day, there was a police presence. There was also a needed bathroom stop in the station. Man o man, this facility has reached a new low. There was a homeless guy changing his clothes in there and there was no soap in the bathroom. It's like they gave up. No dispensers, no hope of anything sanitary. A petri dish from hell. (Perhaps a new attraction.)

We got to the beach and just enjoyed the sun and gentle surf. I am usually a fan of pounding waves - but Coney Island, Brighton and Manhattan Beach offer very gentle waves. The waterline isn't far at all and the water was very warm. Unfortunately, the beach had a few glass fragments among the shells and after standing still for about 5 minutes a newspaper strip wrapped around my toes. My son befriended a small crab in a wooden barrier near a jetty.

Darn it, why don't people take care of their garbage. There are plethora(s) of garbage cans in clusters everywhere...why do people throw their *&%$ in the water. You are only hurting yourselves....ok, rant over.

The boardwalk for a Monday was crowded and there were people from all walks of life. They were just enjoying the day. Lots of people from every ethnic and racial areas and it was fantastic seeing people just having fun. Yay people!

Luna Park and Denos was hopping. We really weren't going to do a lot of rides, but after thinking about how sad Coney Island had become, it was nice to see rides that were kept well and a sense of "OK this is a safe place." The parks kind of go around each other, and there were lines for kiddie and adult rides.

I wanted to take Preflux on the wonder wheel. We always see it from the best parkway and it's something everybody should try once. I couldn't believe it was 8 bucks per person, but we headed for a swinging car. It was just fun and we both loved it. We got two laps and that was it. Great views and a couple of selfies.

The lines for both Nathan's (The regular one and the boardwalk stand) were too long, so we grabbed some grub from "Paul's Daughter" stand. Great fries.

Then it was on to Steeple Chase Pier. Gorgeous views, lots of fishermen, lots of sun bathers, young, old, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, all good.

Sadly, the "Dancing Floor Fountains" near the baseball stadium were not working. I love that thing.

We picked up a t shirt on the way to the train. An officer was in serious mode addressing a potential passenger. "You can pay a ticket or you can come with me. Now you tell me that you don't have any money. You should have mentioned that before you skipped the turnstile." We were going to board a different line to get us back to Barclays Center, but they made an announcement that there was a train with an emergency brake pulled. We opted for the line we took before. On the train, I noticed a few kids who looked like they were up to no good. (They were drawing unnecessary attention to themselves, so we got out and opted for an express. Perhaps it was nothing, but I tend to break into safe mode when I travel with my kid. We all do.

Overall, we didn't do a lot of rides, but we had a great time and a fantastic day. (And I didn't have to sit in traffic for two hours!)

Thank you for reading this.

That sounds like a great day.
I enjoy "all" that is Coney. It's a real eye opener for an Ohio boy, but I dig it. I think we tend to contain ourselves in whatever little local world we live in, and a visit to a place with millions and millions (and millions) of people really puts it all in perspective.
I've only gone there from the city and each time I go the train ride seems to get longer. I think the total trip from our mid-town hotel was over an hour. And my fellow passengers are interesting, but the rule in New York is "eyes front". I always like it when I can finally see the parachute tower in the distance.
I haven't been there since the fresh, ZamperlaLand improvements were made, and I imagine it's nice. I'd miss the funk of Astroland, especially the world's best Breakdance and Top Spin, but the new rides seem cool as well. I hope to go back there soon.

And ya know, I think I'd rather pee my pants than use the men's room in a subway or train station. You're braver than me, just sayin.

I am a frequent traveler to Manhattan, but have only taken the trek down to Coney Island once, and it was way back in 2007. The subway ride was never ending (almost 90 minutes) but I am glad I went once and got a perfect front seat ride on Cyclone. The place was in bad shape then, but even with the upgrades since then I am in no rush to take that long train ride when I always keep myself so busy in Manhattan. Still, great to see the place seems to be doing well.

Thanks for sharing. I really enjoy the atmosphere of Coney Island. Went there about 5 weeks ago and may get back before the rides close for the season. 2-hour ride on a Greyhound bus (love Greyhound b/c as a senior citizen I can get to NYC and back to Philly for under $30) plus another 45-50 min. on the subway from the Port Authority. Cyclone remains a great favorite of mine, especially since the seats were revamped so that there is padding on the sides. This year was the 1st time I'd ridden in the back and I was shocked to discover that contrary to expectations, the ride is actually smoother in the back. Could have ridden all day but at $10 a pop this wasn't feasible.

http://s1282.photobucket.com/user/bobbie1137/media/ConeyIslandJul20...p.jpg.html