There have been reports that arrests were made for sexual misconduct in the infamous “Meat Rack” on Fire Island last weekend – sparking some outrage in the gay community. The Meat Rack is the wooded area between the gay villages of ‘The Pines’ and ‘Cherry Grove’, and has been a sexual meeting place for decades. The area is governed by the National Park Service, which has traditionally turned a blind eye to the shenanigans.
Here’s a crash course on Fire Island: it is basically one long sand bar that is dotted with settlements and villages. There are no cars on the island – you have to get there by ferry or water taxi. The Pines and Cherry Grove are the two gay areas, but there are also “straight” villages (Kismet, Ocean Beach, Saltaire and others). The Pines is the wealthy and upscale area – the homes there are the most extravagant on the entire island. The crème de la crème of gay society ends up in The Pines at one point or another, and people there party like animals (lots of drugs, lots of sex). Calvin Klein kept a house in The Pines for years – ‘nuf said.
Cherry Grove, on the other hand, is the campy cousin of The Pines. If The Pines is Marc Jacobs and Porn Stars, then Cherry Grove would be Rip Taylor and Drag Queens. Whereas the guys of the Pines do a lot of drugs, the queens from Cherry Grove LOVE their liquor (a lot). The residents of the Pines take great delight in pointing out the many faults of Cherry Grove’s population, and vice versa. However, inhabitants of BOTH Cherry Grove and The Pines have always happily had sex with each other in the Meat Rack. It’s like a mini-United Nations with oral instead of translators.
I spent exactly ONE night in The Pines as a guest of a friend years ago – and I vowed never to go back. It was like being in the middle of a bad gay joke – men in sarongs telling you where the best orgies were, and the best drug dealer to go to before the orgy (seriously!). But heaven forbid you arrive at the orgy (or the bar, or the beach, or the ferry dock, or the bathroom) too EARLY, or ate more than a skimpy salad for dinner, or said that you happen to think Puerto Rican guys are hot. Such individualism is NOT tolerated under Pines Gay Fascism! I couldn’t wait to get the hell outta there.
Read the story about the arrests here. And if you ever get a chance, watch When Ocean Meets Sky, a documentary about the history of The Pines (they show it on LOGO). Hat tip to Joe.My.God for the Google Maps image.
Here’s a crash course on Fire Island: it is basically one long sand bar that is dotted with settlements and villages. There are no cars on the island – you have to get there by ferry or water taxi. The Pines and Cherry Grove are the two gay areas, but there are also “straight” villages (Kismet, Ocean Beach, Saltaire and others). The Pines is the wealthy and upscale area – the homes there are the most extravagant on the entire island. The crème de la crème of gay society ends up in The Pines at one point or another, and people there party like animals (lots of drugs, lots of sex). Calvin Klein kept a house in The Pines for years – ‘nuf said.
Cherry Grove, on the other hand, is the campy cousin of The Pines. If The Pines is Marc Jacobs and Porn Stars, then Cherry Grove would be Rip Taylor and Drag Queens. Whereas the guys of the Pines do a lot of drugs, the queens from Cherry Grove LOVE their liquor (a lot). The residents of the Pines take great delight in pointing out the many faults of Cherry Grove’s population, and vice versa. However, inhabitants of BOTH Cherry Grove and The Pines have always happily had sex with each other in the Meat Rack. It’s like a mini-United Nations with oral instead of translators.
I spent exactly ONE night in The Pines as a guest of a friend years ago – and I vowed never to go back. It was like being in the middle of a bad gay joke – men in sarongs telling you where the best orgies were, and the best drug dealer to go to before the orgy (seriously!). But heaven forbid you arrive at the orgy (or the bar, or the beach, or the ferry dock, or the bathroom) too EARLY, or ate more than a skimpy salad for dinner, or said that you happen to think Puerto Rican guys are hot. Such individualism is NOT tolerated under Pines Gay Fascism! I couldn’t wait to get the hell outta there.
Read the story about the arrests here. And if you ever get a chance, watch When Ocean Meets Sky, a documentary about the history of The Pines (they show it on LOGO). Hat tip to Joe.My.God for the Google Maps image.
