Orchard Beach!
Who knew the Bronx had the best beach in the city? Who knew that - I can think it, I can say it, but it's hard to write it - a Robert Moses creation could make me so happy?
Orchard beach is beautiful, clean, and used. The white sand beach is narrow but has a wide "boardwalk" nicely paved with flat stones. There are food carts and stalls and a pavilion with stores. Beyond the boardwalk are picnic areas with grills, a wooded area with trails, and a small lawn for volleyball or just sitting under a tree and reading. It is truly lovely. I'm not saying it's up there with the Long Island beaches, but for a city beach, it's close to perfect. The man knew how to design an engineering miracle and get the money to execute it. Orchard Beach is largely landfill, originally three islands, on one of which the City was trying to improve a pitifully small beach. Moses scrapped the original plans, demolished the structures erected up to that point, and filled in the space between the islands to create the nearly mile-long crescent that exists today. The arrogance is amazing. The result is breathtaking.
City Island is just off Pelham Park, accessed by a single causeway. It looks like a New England fishing/tourist town but really is part of the Bronx. I discovered it while apartment-hunting shortly after moving here. R- had never been there, and I insisted on showing it to her. It was actually prettier than I remembered it. We stopped off at a little neighborhood bar type of place and ordered fish sandwiches while the Yankees lost to the Devil Rays. I checked my phone and learned that the Red Sox and Mets had won and the Phillies had lost. The weather was perfect, there was salt on my skin from the air, and we didn't get lost or hit traffic on the home. Just about a perfect day. Except for the bathing suits. We hadn't brought them, thinking it would be too cool to go in the water. Of course, it was not, and the water was warm, so we discovered this jewel of a beach under perfect weather conditions and couldn't go in. Frustrating. We went wading, though. We're going to check in with each other tomorrow morning to see if we're in the mood to go back tomorrow afternoon with bathing suits, since this is the last weekend the beach is open.
Orchard beach is beautiful, clean, and used. The white sand beach is narrow but has a wide "boardwalk" nicely paved with flat stones. There are food carts and stalls and a pavilion with stores. Beyond the boardwalk are picnic areas with grills, a wooded area with trails, and a small lawn for volleyball or just sitting under a tree and reading. It is truly lovely. I'm not saying it's up there with the Long Island beaches, but for a city beach, it's close to perfect. The man knew how to design an engineering miracle and get the money to execute it. Orchard Beach is largely landfill, originally three islands, on one of which the City was trying to improve a pitifully small beach. Moses scrapped the original plans, demolished the structures erected up to that point, and filled in the space between the islands to create the nearly mile-long crescent that exists today. The arrogance is amazing. The result is breathtaking.
City Island is just off Pelham Park, accessed by a single causeway. It looks like a New England fishing/tourist town but really is part of the Bronx. I discovered it while apartment-hunting shortly after moving here. R- had never been there, and I insisted on showing it to her. It was actually prettier than I remembered it. We stopped off at a little neighborhood bar type of place and ordered fish sandwiches while the Yankees lost to the Devil Rays. I checked my phone and learned that the Red Sox and Mets had won and the Phillies had lost. The weather was perfect, there was salt on my skin from the air, and we didn't get lost or hit traffic on the home. Just about a perfect day. Except for the bathing suits. We hadn't brought them, thinking it would be too cool to go in the water. Of course, it was not, and the water was warm, so we discovered this jewel of a beach under perfect weather conditions and couldn't go in. Frustrating. We went wading, though. We're going to check in with each other tomorrow morning to see if we're in the mood to go back tomorrow afternoon with bathing suits, since this is the last weekend the beach is open.