A New Chapter for the High Line

© The High Line

The High Line opened up a new section yesterday, between 20^th and 30^th streets, thus doubling this remarkable park in the sky to a roughly a mile in length. It now runs from Gansevoort Street to West 30th Street, connecting the Meatpacking District, West Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen.

New features include a “Woodland Flyover” section of elevated walkways that weave through a dense canopy of Sumac trees and a “Viewing Spur” that looks east across 26^th Street. A see-through section floats directly over 30^th Street. There are bird and butterfly feeders, and a wildflower field.

Development of the third and final section, which cuts west around the Hudson Rail Yards to 34^th street, is still up in the air, as it is owned by the railroad company rather than the city. But everyone assumes it will happen after the requisite amount of haggling.

In its two years of existence, The High Line has received over four million visitors.  Urban planners flock from around the world to admire it before returning home to hunt for blighted train tracks, factories and dockyards to salvage into sylvan wonderlands. It was was an abandoned and weedy elevated train track that was simply formalized as such, to magnificent effect. They should extend it into a great verdant loop that rings Manhattan.

We suggest visiting during the afternoon on a weekday, after a late morning stroll through Chelsea Market and a long lunch at Colicchio and Sons. Summer hours are from 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM.