North Central Park/City College and North Harlem Wandering

Date: Thursday, Oct 21, 2021

Metro North from Darien to Harlem/125th St—8.53 am

From Noroton Heights–8.57am

 

Note: get off at Harlem/125th St–do not go to Grand Central. We will congregate on the Harlem platform and head to the Lexington Ave subway station as a group to take the train to 103rd St.

 

This Wandering consists of two parts: first, a leisurely stroll through the northern section of Central Park–a lesser known section of the Park but no less beautiful.Then, a visit to City College and various points of interest in Northern Harlem. There will be two short subway rides in pretty empty subway cars because of the off peak hour.

 

We enter Central Park at 102nd St and visit the Conservatory Garden and its dancing fountain sculptures. Then on to the site of Fort Clinton, which played a role not only in the Revolutionary War but also in the War of 1812. We also visit the Andrew Haswell Green Memorial Bench since he is the star of the DMA Book Club’s November selection. The next part of the Central Park walk is more rugged as we explore the Ravine in the Northern Woods. We see all three waterfalls of the Park, two great arches and observe nature. In total we spend about 90 minutes in the Park.

 

A short subway ride will take us to 135 th St and the  highlight of the second part of this Wandering, namely  City College in Harlem. Its campus, though small, is surprisingly attractive because of its Gothic architecture.We have lunch there, around 12.30 at a well ventilated restaurant. Following lunch we stroll by , various historic sites in North Harlem, including Alexander Hamilton’s home, the magnificent townhouses of Striver’s Row and the Abyssinian Baptist Church. We may also get to peek at the famous WPA murals by black artists which are displayed at Harlem Hospital.Finally, we view the Astor Row homes.

 

By the end of this Wandering we will have walked about 5 ½ miles, over sometimes tricky terrain. So wear sturdy shoes. And remember to bring your masks and Vaccination certificate.

 

We expect to head home around 3.30pm from the Harlem/125th station.