When I was walking through High Bridge Park while exploring Washington Heights for my blog, ‘MywalkinManhattan.com’, I came across the Water Tower inside the park right next to the pool that was closed for the season and the Highbridge Walkway, which used to be the old aqueduct that used to bring fresh water into New York City.
The Highbridge Water Tower when I walked “The Great Saunter” through the neighborhood in 2023.
The Highbridge Water Tower is nearly 200 feet tall and stands around 174th Street in Washington Heights. The tower used to hold a 47,000-gallon water tank that was fed by the Croton Aqueduct. The Highbridge next to it was the last leg of the aqueduct’s forty-mile journey from upstate New York to Manhattan and is the oldest surviving bridge in New York City (T.M.Rives 2012).
The former aqueduct from FDR Drive when on The Great Saunter
I revisited the park in the Summer of 2026 and walked around Highbridge Park. I walked around the water tower and never realized how beautiful the tower really is when you see it up close. The detail work is of another era and then you realize how the fresh drinking water got to New York City and how important this was and innovative at the time. The respect it was given in design is shown in the detail work of the building.
The tower in the Summer of 2026
The tower in the summer of 2026
The doorway entrance to the tower that is bolted shut
The windows of the tower
The aqueduct over the East River from the tower location
The tower itself was built between 1866-1872 by architect John B. Jervis in the Romanesque Revival and neo-Greco styles and had a seven acre reservoir next to it. It opened in 1872 and was fully working in 1875. In 1949, the Water tower was disconnected from the system. The tower like the rest of the park had sat in disrepair for years and was restored between 1989-1990 (Wiki). The tower is now going through another restoration that should be finished by April of 2021 (NYCParks.com).
The water tower is part of a much larger park that lines the northern corner of Manhattan. The views are really amazing from all sides of the park. This is when you are walking down the pathways by FDR Drive.
When I visited in the park that summer and then again in the Fall, it was behind fencing because it was still unsafe.
Highbridge Park is beautiful in the Spring and Fall but not the safest park in NYC.
Walking the paths of Highbridge Park
Highbridge Park is a wonderful park to walk around in in the middle of the day during the warmer months. I would not venture around it later at night or in the winter months. It can be a bit desolate and when you walk around the paths by the river with all the abandoned cars and graffiti can be a bit dangerous. I got some looks when walking around.
This was at the bottom of the bridge just off the path.
I love Fort Tryon Park in Upper Manhattan. It is one of the most beautiful parks in New York City. It is a park of rolling hills, stone paths that hug the hills, interesting garden that are ablaze when in season, shady tree sitting areas and is home to many playgrounds and the Cloisters Museum which is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It has so much to offer a visitor coming into Manhattan from exploring the woods that line the path to looking at interesting art at the museum. This 67 acre park is one of the interesting and complex in New York City.
A city view of the beauty of the park by the Hudson River
The view from The Cloisters by the Hudson River
When you enter the park from Inwood by Broadway, you enter through Ann Loftus Park which is named after a local community leader and is one of the popular parks with kids and families in the area. In the summer months, the fountains and water fixtures are going strong and the kids run around them while the parents lie under shade trees talking to one another.
When taking the path from Ann Loftus Park and winding up the hills of woods and rock formations is the Hudson River looming in the distance with spectacular views of the Palisades and the large cliffs of Fort Lee, NJ on the other side.
The bathrooms in Ann Loftus Playground
Anne Susan Cahill Loftus biography:
At the top of hill like a crown jewel is the Medieval Galleries of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Cloisters Museum. Filled with all the Met’s collections of Religious and Medieval art set into themes of old churches, stained glass windows, flowered courtyards and vistas of the river, it is the perfect place to wonder around.
As you pass the Cloisters and walk further in to the park, there is still so much more to see and do. The Linden Terrace overlooks the Hudson River with its large shade trees over head and its stone benches to sit and just look in the distance or read a book. This was the site of the original Fort Tryon and is the highest location in the park.
Linden Terrace is a nice place to relax and read a book
The flowers by the Linden Terrace
Further down in the other entrance of the park is Heather Garden, a large path of flowers , bushes and trees with benches lining it. The garden was the Olmstead Brothers when the park was taking shape and is a beautiful place to walk in the Spring and Summer months when the park is in full bloom.
The stairs leading to the Linden Terrace
The plaque for Fort Tryon
The anniversary plaque
The Stan Michels Promenade
The Heather Garden in the front
The Heather Garden was recently remodeled to follow the original design by the Olmstead Brothers.
The Heather Gardens
The Heather Gardens in full bloom
The Gardens facing the George Washington Bridge
The Gardens in full view
There is even a terrace restaurant in the middle of the park, the New Leaf Cafe (See review on TripAdvisor-Closed in 2018) which sits off to the side of the Corbin Circle on the other side of the park. The food is over-rated and very expensive. The last time I ate there the menu was pretty standard. It is a great to take out of towners who want a view of something. It is not worth the trip. The views are nice and in the summer months it is pretty but the food and service are standard. Inside the park in 2026, a new restaurant has replaced the former New Leaf Cafe, Le Bonnefont, a Modern French restaurant.
The Bonnefont Restaurant replaced the New Leaf Cafe
The new Bonnefont Restaurant is open for lunch and brunch
The restaurant was closed that afternoon but I was able to look at the menu online and it is an interesting menu. The cuisine is a mixture of French and Contemporary cooking.
The park has so much to offer in all months of the year especially in the Spring and Summer.
The entrance to Fort Tryon Park
Cabrini Woods Nature Sanctuary in the front of the park
The Cabrini Sanctuary in the Spring 2024
History of Fort Tryon Park:
The area was known by the local Lenape Indians as Chquaesgeck and by the Dutch settlers as Lange Bergh (Long Hill). During the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Fort Washington was fought on this site. The park is built on a high formation of Manhattan schist with igneous intrusions and glacial striations from the last Ice Age (Wiki).
The gardens in the Fort Tryon Park
John D. Rockefeller Jr. bought up most the land in 1917, which by that point had been old estates, to create Fort Tryon Park. He hired the Olmstead Brothers firm, under the direction of Fredrick Law Olmstead Jr., the son of the designer of Central Park, to design the park and James W. Dawson to create a planting plan. Mr. Rockefeller also bought the collection of Medieval art from sculptor George Gray Barnard and it was the cornerstone of The Cloisters Museum which was built in 1939 (Wiki).
The Fort Tryon gardens in full bloom
The stairs in the park
Through the years the park has seen its ups and downs especially in the 1970’s and 80’s with the decline of finances in New York City. There were extensive renovations when finances got better in the late 90’s and parts of the park were fully renovated. The Fort Tyron Park Trust, a non-profit organization was founded in 1998 to help maintain the park (Wiki).
When I walked through the park on the recent Great Saunter walk in 2025, they rerouted us through the park when the Riverwalk was closed for renovation. The park was in full bloom and it was the most spectacular day for a visit.
The entrance of the park on that sunny afternoon
The beautiful colorful tulips at the entrance of the park
The colorful gardens were in full bloom
Everyone was routed through the park on the way to Inwood Park for our rest stop. What I found strange was that the park was so beautiful in full bloom and people were not stopping to relax and just enjoy the views. The gardens were amazing and so colorful.
I stopped to look at the beautiful rock garden
The entrance to Heather Garden in the Spring of 2026:
The pathways through the Heather Gardens
Walking through the Heather Garden
The gardens
Walking through The Heather Garden
Walking through the Heather Garden
The other side to Heather Park
Walking through the Gardens
Walking through the pathways of the gardens
Walking around the gardens
Walking back through the gardens to the Fort Tryon location
Walking to the Fort Tryon site
The Fort Tryon site
Walking through Fort Tryon Park during the Great Saunter in 2025:
Welcome to Upstate Manhattan!
I thought this was so clever. One of the volunteers made this sign up which was so funny!
We walked through the park on our way through the park on the way to Inwood Park.
The aquarium’s outside tanks with sea lions, otters and penguins.
The penguins were very entertaining that afternoon.
The otter just ignored us. They just played amongst themselves.
I have been to the NY Aquarium many times since it reopened after Hurricane Sandy and there have been many positive improvements in both the facility and the service. The new Ocean Wonders: Shark! exhibition which has opened up giving an interesting look at the underwater world of the many different types of sharks that dominate the deep.
The Shark Exhibit
The Shark exhibition
The sharks and string rays
It is not just a display but also a commentary on the conditions of the deep and the treatment of sharks around the world. There contributions as bottom dwellers cleans our oceans and benefits other fish. It was shocking what the treatment is of these animals in Asia when strip these animals of their fins for soup. I like how professionally the aquarium shows this in their displays and videos and doesn’t preach but offer solutions to the problem.
The entrance to the new shark tanks.
That and walking through the tanks themselves in the darkened rooms with music makes for a fascinating and almost ominous trip into the ocean behind the walls with the sharks and other mammals and fish swim past you. There is also a small tunnel that you can climb under to watch the fish swim on top of you and past you.
The tropical fish exhibition
In the Conservation Hall, you will learn all about the fish that dominate and keep our reefs vibrant and what happens when pollution takes over and kills them. Again the aquarium displays this in a positive way, shows how the animals keep the reefs healthy. I point out that there are a lot of colorful fish on display and it is fun to watch the small children yell out to them.
There is a wonderful seal show during the day that you should not miss especially in the warmer months when you can sit in the stands and watch them perform with their trainers. They are more Native New Yorkers than most humans having been born at the aquarium and showing their own pride in their home and abilities.
The Sea lion show at the aquarium is very popular.
The Sea lion show
The Sea lion show
The new “Spineless” exhibition shows all the jelly fish and related species.
The “Spineless” exhibition
The beautiful jelly fish at the aquarium.
The “Spineless” exhibition
The different creatures of the deep.
The Jellyfish tank
The Jellyfish are amazing to look at in the tank
There were all sorts of tanks displaying many different types of tropical fish and corals that are exotic and very much endangered. We are beginning to destroy their habitants.
The fish habitats
As part of the new building there are also several new eating establishments at the aquarium including the new Oceanside Grill that I have not visited yet (it was closed on my last visit) as well as The New York Bite food truck (which was also not opened). The most impressive restaurant is the Oceanview Bites on the second floor of the Ocean Wonders building. This beautiful new restaurant has an interesting but somewhat routine menu with prices usual to an aquarium but offer the most spectacular views of the ocean and of Coney Island. Do not miss just walking up to the restaurant in the circular pathway for the views alone.
The NY Aquarium is a treat in of itself and a great excuse to visit Coney Island. Don’t miss the rest of the island’s amusements and museums while you are there.
The NY Aquarium
History of the New York Aquarium:
(this information is provided by a combination of the NY Aquarium and Wiki and I give them full credit for the information)
The New York Aquarium is the oldest continually operating aquarium in the United States, having opened in Castle Garden in Battery Park in Manhattan in 1896. Since 1957, it has been located on the Reigelmann Boardwalk in Coney Island. The aquarium is operated by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) as part of its integrated system of four zoos and one aquarium, most notably the Bronx Zoo. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
The sea lion tanks
As part of the WCS, the aquarium’s mission is to save wildlife and wild places worldwide through science, conservation action, education and inspiring people to value nature.
The facility occupies 14 acres and boasts 266 species of aquatic wildlife. Its mission is to raise public awareness about issues facing the ocean and its inhabitants with special exhibitions, public events and research. The New York Seascape program, based out of the aquarium, is WCS’s local conservation program designed to restore healthy populations of marine species and protect New York waters, which are vital to the area’s economic and cultural vitality.
The penguin tank
The Penguin exhibition on the outside
On June 6, 1957, the Aquarium opened at its new location in Coney Island. The new site of the New York Aquarium is the home of the WCS New York Seascape program, the society’s research and conservation program focusing on nearby rivers, harbor and ocean from Cape May, NJ to Montauk, Long Island.
The aquarium kept an orca briefly in 1968 and a narwhal in 1969. Both reportedly died of possible pneumonia. The aquarium’s beluga whales were transferred to the Georgia Aquarium in 2007 as part of a breeding program. In September 2011, the aquarium named its new electric eel Wattson and in March 2012, it launched a sea horse breeding program.
In October 2006, the New York Aquarium announced the finalists to a competition to develop a more inviting and visually prominent exterior for the aquarium. In March 2007, the winning design by firms WRT and Cloud 9 was selected, which featured an enclosure resembling a whale over the aquarium. However, in March 2008 that concept was scrapped due to concerns over a new exhibit based on sharks was announced. The massive 784,000 US gallon exhibition, Ocean Wonders: Sharks! was originally scheduled to break ground in November 2012 and open in 2015.
The Penguin exhibition
The Penguin tank
The penguin tanks
A penguin ready to take a dive.
However, the New York Aquarium was significantly damaged by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, which severely flooded the facility and shut down power. A small group of WCS staff who remained onsite during the hurricane were able to save 90% of the animals in the collection. As a result, the exhibition opened June 30, 2018, becoming the first major exhibition at the New York Aquarium to open after Hurricane Sandy.
The Shark tank’s fish display
Disclaimer: this history of the NY Aquarium is taken from Wiki and I give them full credit for this information.
The Sculptures in the NY Aquarium in 2024:
These sculptures were at NY Aquarium by Washed Ashore
The sign for Leo the Jellyfish
The Leo the Jellyfish sculpture
The Angus the Longhorn Cowfish sculpture sign
The Angus the Longhorn Cowfish sculpture
The Nora the Salmon sculpture sign
The Nora the Salmon sculpture
The Maggie and Charlotte Adele Penguins
The Maggie and Charlotte Adele Penguins sculpture
The Chompers the Tiger Shark
The Chompers the Tiger Shark sculptures
The Penguin sculpture
The artworks were all made of items that were thrown in the ocean and plastics that are thrown in the ocean. Washed Ashore created these works to show what is thrown in ocean and how it affects the wildlife in the oceans.
The boardwalk outside the aquarium
The beach outside the aquarium
Private Members Night at the NY Aquarium:
Members Night at the NY Aquarium:
The NY Aquarium held a Private Members Night for the members of the Wildlife Conservatory in July of 2026. Because of the wild fires in Canada, the air in New York City was not that good and that’s what probably kept the crowds away. was pretty bad and the crowds were light outside. Still, the aquarium planned a lot of family events and it was fun to walk through the exhibitions without dealing with crowds.
The front of the aquarium the Members Night
The aquarium at the beginning of the night
The crowds were mostly made up of families with small children and a lot of the outdoor activities were geared to them with face painting, chalk art displays and a Mermaid on roller skates who skated the courtyard making colorful bubbles of all sizes. It was fun seeing kids be kids without cellphones.
The Chalk Art that evening was enjoyed by everyone
The creativity of the art
The kids were really creativity
We also had a Mermaid skating around making bubbles that the kids really enjoyed. There were bubbles of all kinds floating around the courtyard. She was having as much fun as the kids who were chasing them around popping them. I thought it was out of the scene of a 1970’s film. It is fun to see those simple things still be so popular.
The Mermaid entertaining the children who attended the event
The Mermaid entertaining the kids
Bubbles were all over the aquarium and it was pretty cool
Then at 6:00pm, we had the Seal Show in the Aquacade but because of the heat and the smoke from the wildfires made the air not so good to stay outside. The breezes were nice and cleared much out but it was still not the best to sit for long periods. The show was fun but was quick.
The Seal Tank that evening
The sealions are actually ‘native New Yorkers’ who were born in captivity in the aquarium and know their stuff
The seals were talented and disciplined and entertained the crowds
After the show was over, I got another chance to walk through the indoor exhibitions to see the Shark exhibition and the Hudson Canyon’s Edge exhibition. Watching the fish, sharks and corals move and sway and it was very interesting to know that it is really down there.
The full tank of fish and sharks. Is this was what was really in the canyon?
The end of the evening we could see the blood moon or was that the sun? The air was so bad from the Canadian wild fires you could see it through the whole City. Being by the shore, the breezes really did help.
Still it was a nice evening and it was fun to walk around the exhibits without the crowds. It was fun to watch the families having a good time and it was a nice evening.
This is why being a Member of the NY Wildlife Conservatory is so much fun. You get to visit all the parks with your membership and get to see the exhibitions on your own time. You also learn a few things about Mother Nature and the affects of the climate on it. I always enjoy a trip to the aquarium.
*The statue has been moved since this blog has been written and it on Broad Street near the New York Stock Exchange.
The ‘Fearless Girl’ statue is the latest addition to the street art in lower Manhattan. Placed next to the statue of the ‘Charging Bull’, she portrays a defiance and a look that almost says, “I am standing up to the power and I am standing up to fear’. She has a look of determination on her face that clearly shows that she is standing her ground. She was designed by artist Kristen Visbal.
The statue is located at the northern tip of Bowling Green Park in Lower Manhattan both statues are an easy find on the Broadway side of the park. Be aware that this is a big tourist area for pictures so there will be a crowd.
There has been some controversy from Arturo Di Modica the creator of ‘Charging Bull’ who says that it takes away from the meaning of his own work. Di Modica has challenged that the piece exploits his work and distorts the meaning of his own work by turning the ‘Charging Bull’ into a villain instead of the his true meaning for the work which is a ‘symbol of prosperity and for strength’. Both statues are being planned to be moved by the NYC Parks Department in the future (Wiki and the New York Times 2018).
The Charging Bull
History of ‘Fearless Girl’:
The statue was installed on March 7, 2017, the day before International Women’s Day, by State Street Global Advisors, in a campaign developed by advertising agency McCann New York. SSgA was celebrating the first anniversary of its “Gender Diversity Index” fund that “invests in U.S. large-capitalization companies that rank among the highest in their sector in achieving gender diversity across senior leadership. The concept for the statue was developed by Senior Art Director Lizzie Wilson and Senior Copywriter Tali Gumbiner. Wilson and Gumbiner established both the idea for the statue as well as the overall look of the girl using countless mood boards and imagery, which Visbal referenced (Wiki).
Fearless Girl was originally given a one week City Hall permit that was later extended to 30 days. Later, it was announced that the statue would remain in place through February 2018. Among those advocating for the statue to stay longer was U.S. Representative Carolyn Maloney of New York’s 12th congressional district who stated, “This statue has touched hearts across the world with its symbolism of the resiliency of women. New York City Public Advocate Letitia James wrote a letter that supported keeping the statue, “Fearless Girl stands as a powerful beacon, showing women, young and old, that no dream is too big and no ceiling is too high” (Wiki).
A petition on Change.org asking for the statue to be made permanent gathered 2,500 signatures in the first 48 hours. Efforts to make the statue permanent continued after the statue was granted a one-year permit. In April 2018, after ‘Fearless Girl’ had been in place for thirteen months, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that both ‘Charging Bull’ and ‘Fearless Girl’ would be moved to a location facing the New York Stock Exchange. The move would occur before the end of 2018 (Wiki).
The plaque below the statue states: “Know the power of women in leadership. SHE makes a difference.” (Wiki)
The statue is available to be seen 24 hours a day.
Disclaimer: The history of the statue was taken from Wikipedia and I give them full credit on the information. The rest is my personal opinions on the statue.
Visiting a Museum: The Unique, Unusual, Obscure and Historical 