All good things come to an end; on Long Island that end is Montauk, a sprawling hamlet at its easternmost tip.

Although bumper stickers call Montauk "The End," the chamber of commerce (www.mon taukchamber.com) says this is "Where Long Island Begins."

The lush terrain has lofty sand dunes, ponds and parks. Lake Montauk, carved between East Lake and West Lake Drives, opens to Block Island Sound. Amsterdam Beach, which contains more than 122 acres of undeveloped land, will soon become a state park.

The Concerned Citizens Of Montauk, an 800-member group founded 35 years ago, primarily focuses on open space preservation. Today more than 50 percent of the hamlet is in reserve, said Sonia Gaviola, an 18-year resident and co-manager of Prudential Douglas Elliman.

About 4,000 full-time residents share their community with tens of thousands of summer visitors. The area's attractions include fishing, boating, surfing, beaching, whale watching, biking, hiking, golfing, horseback riding and camping. "Montauk really is all about the outdoors," Gaviola said.

The historic Montauk Point Lighthouse, museums, shops and restaurants are also part of the local tourist scene.

"Most of the people who come here are from Long Island," said resident Laraine Creegan, executive director of the Montauk Chamber of Commerce. The community hosts annual events including a harbor festival, a wine cruise, Fourth of July fireworks and an October chowder tasting contest.

Montauk's eclectic housing stock includes cottages, ranches, 1970s contemporaries, 1920s Tudors and Hamptons-style homes that have sprouted in the last decade. With a shortage of buildable land, Gaviola said, 10 percent to 20 percent of homes that are sold get knocked down for new construction.

Prices start at about $595,000 and can soar to $10 million and higher, according to Gaviola. A sampling of neighborhoods includes: Ditch Plains, the hot surfing area where homes on small lots near the ocean range from $700,000 to $1 million; Hither Hills, where homes with private beach deeds trade from the $800,000s to more than $1 million; waterfronts on Lake Montauk that run $3 million to $4 million; homes on Block Island Sound, which list for just under $3 million, and oceanfront homes that reach $5 million.

-Lisa Doll Bruno (9/2/2005)