Along the East River, part 3

Walk in NYC # 6, Roosevelt Island & Astoria, is a 3 miles self-guided tour that goes, as its name implies, from Roosevelt Island to Astoria, off the beaten path.

It will take you 2 hours of strolling and taking photos, more if you visit the museum on the way. It can be combined with Walk in NYC # 5 if you don’t mind a much longer outing.

You’ll go through different residential areas; you’ll have beautiful views of the East River; you’ll see intriguing sculptures and colorful murals.

This walk is now only available on Payhip in pdf format with a clickable map and updated descriptions.

In this pdf you will also find:

  • the list of Highlights.
  • the Metro stops to get there and back and infos for Buses.
  • tips about restrooms, places to sit and eat.
  • details about a particular place you will find on your route.

You can download it (or just the map of the walk) to your phone to help you in your discoveries.

This will allow you to live a unique experience of the city far from what you might find elsewhere.

If you purchased the Boston NYC book, this download will be free for you, just send me a note for an access code for this walk if you don’t have it already.

The description below, incomplete and with cropped photos, gives you an idea of this walk before you decide to buy it.


A: When coming out of …, turn right and follow … towards the center …

You will be in the middle of trees and post-modern residential buildings, in a quiet street without much traffic.

In front of you and to the left, you’ll see the …, some Manhattan skyscrapers, and the …

Once you reach …, don’t miss the … on your right. It’s one of oldest houses in NYC, built by the 1st European owners …

A little further, trees will give way to concrete and you will soon be under arches with shops and above you, apartments duplex.

Incongruous in this setting, but giving it an air of small village, the … church will be on your left in the middle of a place with trees and benches.

A little further to your right, after a school, you’ll find the … bridge with its red metal structure. It connects …

Take the elevator or the stairs to the 4th floor to find the pedestrian crossing; it will take you over the river and offer you views of the impressive …

At the end, graffitis, garages with bright colors and painted signs will tell you that you are now in …

B: Turn left and follow the avenue for a moment. You’ll walk along the walls of the power station and some vacant lots waiting for construction work, probably wondering why you are here.

Patience, once past… somewhat barren but with nice views to the river, you’ll see the…museum on your right, at the beginning of…

It is a serene and minimalist place with exhibitions of contemporary art from … Don’t miss it if you have time.

C: Right after it, on … but on you left, the … Park houses original sculptures and what looks like a metal sculpture workshop. From the banks of the river, you can see the … lighthouse.

Next, continue on … along … and its tiny beach with, more or less in front of you, the terminus of the … ferry line.

For the price of a metro ticket, you could take a ferry back to… or to lower … (they run every hour or half hour depending on the time of day) but keep that in mind for later because, once … turns right and join …, you will reach the … Project.

D: The graffiti and murals surely overflowed from the original project as they are everywhere around this place, of all styles and colors.  A little further, they circle a set of communal gardens, the …

You can easily spend 30 minutes exploring the adjacent streets to see what the artists have painted.

Once it’s done, find … again and take the …. on your left, right after the gardens.

You’ll go up to …, a once up-and-coming place that looks a little like a village with its brick-and-gravel house with white painted wrought-iron fences. Here and there, there are some beautiful colonial-style colonnade houses, including a Greek Orthodox Church at the intersection of …

Next, take the … to the right to reach … which you’ll take to the left for another glimpse of the neighborhood and other beautiful homes.

E: … will then be in front of you.

It’s one of the largest green spaces in Queens with unique views of the river and two imposing bridges connecting … to … Islands, then …. The one for cars is called the … Bridge, the one for train is called the ….

You’ll also find benches, bocce and tennis courts, and the largest and oldest outdoor pool in New York City.

Go under the…and go up some stairs to see the pool from above, then leave the park at …

F: You’ll enter another quiet residential area: follow the avenue to …., and take it to your left to see another Greek Orthodox church, this time the largest and oldest of the US Calendarist churches.

G: Then go back to … and follow it to … and … Station, the end of this walk.

The station will be on your left, in the middle of other murals, and you won’t miss it as this metro line is elevated and gives a surprising character to the street (not necessarily to the taste of the inhabitants, though).

If you’re looking for Greek restaurants – after all, you’re in the right neighborhood, they’ll be on … or a little further on …. to the right.

Convinced that this walk will be exceptional? Find it on Payhip.

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