We did a "journey run" on Christmas day - it turns out that NYC is a great place to run on Christmas. Many more places were open than we expected, we weren't alone on the running paths, and (although this isn't guaranteed every year), we had good weather.
Our adventure started at the apartment in Brooklyn with a 2-mile jog over to the Harlem River and the Broadway Bridge.
Look, Amtrak!
It looks like this bridge can be raised straight up to allow tall boats to pass underneath - that would be something to see.
Around the north end of Manhattan we ran on trails in Inwood Hill Park, where we found this odd thing.
A little bit of uphill for the day, to a high point of over 200 feet!
Feels strange to be in the middle of the woods...
Our southernmost target = Battery Park, a few miles away from here:
The trail along the river began near The Cloisters and continued all the way down the western side of Manhattan Island. Very cool.
John being John:
Imagine living here:
The George Washington Bridge - our friend Markus tells us we should try running across it sometime (although we don't have to start in LA like he did):
Cute lighthouse!
We just can't help ourselves around the public art...
Kayakers on the Hudson! At least they were heading upwind. We had some headwind while running south, but it wasn't as bad as expected.
Pretty birds:
Life imitating art again:
I liked this perspective:
What in the heck is this??
View looking into the bottle - it has a whole set of living quarters inside! One of the odder pieces of outdoor art we have seen in a long time. Or maybe somebody lives there...
Boat butt:
Pondering the meaning of the chairs:
We ran out onto several piers, including this gigantic driving range, complete with gigantic nets to keep the balls out of the river. Wow.
Cute little apple - John read that it used to be at the World Trade Center site:
Shall we dance?
As close of a shot as I could get - from Battery Park (we made it all the way south!):
Heading around the bottom tip of the island, we found some hot chocolate and then the Brooklyn Bridge:
The trail lasted all the way to the UN... and then we took to the streets. I imagine this is prettier when there are a bunch of flags and color in the trees:
We found a little pizza shop for lunch :) and stopped in Grand Central Terminal to use the bathroom...
John led the way up Fifth Avenue, dodging tons of tourists and practicing our urban racing skills. He took me to this statue in Central Park - Alice in Wonderland with oodles of children:
Several of the quotes around her had significance - memories of NOLA 2003 Urban Challenge:
Right next to it, a tribute to a couple urban racers who were at that race:
Unrelated to urban racing, but a highlight for John:
We ran through Central Park and found this holiday-themed street on the north side - my final goal for the day!
We ran up to 125th Street and hopped on a subway for home. It was getting late and Harlem doesn't have a lot of appeal at the end of a long day. I'd like to try running around the whole island at some point, as I think it's possible to stay closer to the East and Harlem rivers on the east side. Another day when we have more daylight and won't be quite as distracted by things that we have already seen :)
"Welcome home!" from the kitties!
One of our most interesting Christmas days that I can remember!
