Floyd Bennett Field houses jewels that studded the Golden Age of Air, the age before we were patted down, felt up, and shoe-horned in.

Some friends and I got permission (money changed hands) to set up a catered table, and drink away the afternoon under the belly of the beast shown here.

The airfield is large, and apart from this Hangar B, which houses the Historic Aircraft Restoration Project (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. 718-338-3799), there are other hangars and buildings offering all sorts of activities.

Floyd Bennett, a New York State native, got a Medal of Honor for flying over the North Pole.  Although still credited with the feat on naval sites (and the Arlington Cemetery site), historian Dennis Rawlins thinks he and explorer Richard Byrd didn't make it.  The controversy continues.

Amelia Earhart flew from Floyd Bennett Field.  So did Howard Hughes on his record-breaking round the world flight.  The bicycle making Wright Brothers used it (and, today, serious cyclists use the runways year-round).

Today, you can take an ecology cruise in Jamaica Bay, go canoeing; there's a climbing wall and two indoor ice rinks.

But the real news is that the National Park Service has opened a campground there.  20 bucks a night!  All of those people in their RVs or with tents in their trunks, who were passing us by on their way from Florida back to Toronto, or Boston to the West Coast, can now pitch up and camp out.  No. 2 subway to Flatbush/Nostrand Aves.  Connect with Q35 bus to park.