Highline And Environs, 1

NYC's Highline is an old, disused, elevated train track, dating from the early 20th, but converted in the 21st into a public park and trail. It is about 1.3 miles in length and runs from, roughly, the Hudson Yards to Chelsea, at the southeastern end of the island. In its prime, the tracks brought food into the city from the mainland (New Jersey) as well as raw materials needed for the burgeoning industrial sector. And carried things back out. The Highline--the contemporary park and walk-way--is said to have been inspired by Paris' Promenade Plantee, which runs through the 11th and 12th, from Place Bastille to Parc Vincennes, about 3 miles. And which we have done a couple times at least. We found the Highline to be quite impressive, one of the great up-cycling projects we have seen.

You can actually see the Highline from outer space...it's the line
curving from Hudson Yards down to red Highline dot...in the left
quadrant...click to enlarge

Bits of track left in place as a nod to history; starting
our walk here near 34th St.

Click to enlarge for further history, etc.

What's left of Hudson Yards and the new Hudson Yards development

Now near the river, admiring aircraft carrier and cruise ship

Us, there

The Highline passes by many interesting old buildings...here, the 
Starrett-Lehigh Building, 1920s, a nineteen story, 1.8 million cubic feet
warehouse and railroad hub (Lehigh Valley RR); now mostly offices

Plus many newer luxury condos

Much interesting sculpture along the way...this one
might have felt more at home in the 11th or perhaps the
Place de la Concorde

The London Terrace Towers...at the time, late 1920s, said to be the
largest apartment complex in the world, 1700 units, 19 stories high,
occupying a full NYC block

Amazingly, there was only one refreshments area,
no buskers, and just this one woman doing balloon
art for the kiddies...on a beautiful, crowded Sunday
afternoon

Bits of the Highline are nearly forest-like

Overlooking one of NYC's characteristic elevated parking garages

Passing through a canyon of artsy buildings

Walker Tower, 1929, now luxury condos; nice

art deco, as are the previous oldies...

The Lantern House; not art deco; but possibly great fun
if you've ever wanted to live in a glass house

One sees relatively few vacant lots in Manhattan; we wondered
what this one, at 10th Ave. and 18th St., might go for...

Most of the Highline is nicely landscaped, much of it native, all
of it pretty self-sustaining; with superb interpretive signage

The Edge at Hudson Yards...with it's 30th floor viewing
platform

Bridge of Sighs

Little Island...in Paris this would be called Ile Flottante; we'll see it
in another few days