Places To Explore In NY - New Croton Dam / Croton Gorge Park
What You Need To Know:
Location: New Croton Dam / Croton Gorge Park (1-1.5hrs from NYC)
What to expect: Gorgeous views, open area to run/play, a playground, hiking trails, picnic tables, places to fish and grills. Great for photos, bring a tripod to snap some family pics.
Covid Update: Grills and playground currently closed due to the pandemic. Park closed Saturdays and Sundays in conjunction with the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, until further notice. Parking lot may close intermittently on high-volume days.
Parking Fee: $5 with Park Pass, $10 without Park Pass -- Daily through Labor Day.
Last summer, we set out to have our best summer yet. We wanted to make it extra special, as Jayden would be starting full time pre-k in the Fall. Little did we know, 2020 would hit and we would have a summer unlike any other and that we would be ending out summer prepping for Jayden (and Jude) to stay home for the 2020/21 school year.
In 2019, most of our adventures were local-ish, outside of Puerto Rico with the Family and Mexico for me with my girls. Our furthest local-ish adventure was only 3hrs away and many of them just so happened to be social distancing friendly. One of our favorite local adventures was checking out the New Croton Dam located in Westchester, NY, about an hour north of NYC. A friend recently asked me about this particular adventure and I was reminded just how great that day was.
We headed up to Westchester to visit our good friends and had the best time. It’s crazy to think this was over a year ago and even crazier to see how much the boys have grown and think about how much our world has changed overall. 2020 is a year we will never forget and while we have to social distance, wear a mask and be extra careful we can still explore, just in a more local way. If you live in the NYC area (and have access to a car) I highly recommend you check out New Croton Dam and don’t forget to pack a lunch for the trip.
