If you want to really see New York take a walk, a nice long 30 plus mile walk!. All the way around the island of Manhattan!
The Great Saunter is a walk sponsored by the Shorewalkers walking club to draw attention to the shoreline, greenways and parks around Manhattan's riverfront.
On Saturday we joined 1498 walkers for the annual Great Saunter. And what a great walk it was!
Woo Hoo!!! Woot Woot!!! Blow the horns and throw the confetti because we were two of the 630 that finished the whole entire walk!!!!
My biggest fear on tackling this walk was the weather. I knew if it was hot I'd never make it. But it turned out to be a beautiful day for walking. Even though the weather predicted rain at various times on Saturday we didn't experience any drops on our heads. It was a perfect day to walk. Overcast, cool and dry! Perfect!
An overcast sky above the Hudson River...
Couldn't resist getting a photo with Lady Liberty
We walked up north on the east side of the island beside the Hudson River past Chelsea Piers to Riverside Park. And then on to Riverbank State Park. Next stop the Little Red Light House under the George Washington Bridge.
When I think of New York City I think tall buildings, concrete and crowds. It was a pleasant surprise to find so many parks to walk through.
My biggest fear on tackling this walk was the weather. I knew if it was hot I'd never make it. But it turned out to be a beautiful day for walking. Even though the weather predicted rain at various times on Saturday we didn't experience any drops on our heads. It was a perfect day to walk. Overcast, cool and dry! Perfect!
7:30 Start Time!
It was a very short walk from our hotel to the start point at Fraunces Tavern. We were preregistered but we checked out the line before we took off walking. People were lined up all the way around the corner of the building waiting to register.
An overcast sky above the Hudson River...
Couldn't resist getting a photo with Lady Liberty
Battleship Intrepid
The centerpiece of the Sea, Air and Space Museum on the Hudson River
Little Red Lighthouse
We walked up north on the east side of the island beside the Hudson River past Chelsea Piers to Riverside Park. And then on to Riverbank State Park. Next stop the Little Red Light House under the George Washington Bridge.
When I think of New York City I think tall buildings, concrete and crowds. It was a pleasant surprise to find so many parks to walk through.
Innwood Hill Park
Walking through Innwood Hill Park I'd swear we were out in the middle of nowhere. Trees and rocks surrounded the path and there was no street noise! Hill is appropriate in the name of this park. These were the first hills we encountered and they were quite steep in parts.
Harlem
As we got on the west side of the island heading south we lost the riverfront in a few places. This meant a zig zag into South Harlem.
There was actually a graffeti contest of sorts going on...
Bridges Galore!
If you like bridges this is the place to be. Thankfully the Saunter didn't require walking over any bridges but there were plenty to walk under. I think I counted 15 bridges along the walk.
Williamsburg Bridge
Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridge and Statue of Liberty up ahead.
Finally Made the Finish Line!
Even though it's advertised as 32 miles, it's actually a little over 34 miles. But what's a couple of miles here or there? It took us right at 13 hours to get to the finish. We certainly weren't the first ones but we also weren't the last! But that's OK it wasn't a race or a competition. Although we were determined to finish and we did!
Thanks Derrick it did feel pretty fabulous to be able to complete this walk!
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