97th St Transverse, Central Park

The 97th Street Transverse is way too far north for my liking, seeing as I'm a downtown kinda gal. But, I have a friend that lived in Harlem and when he did, he used it all the time. This transverse marks the top end of the resevoir which is pretty popular for joggers. I think it's just over 1.5 miles around the water so if you like that kind of run and you live uptown, then this is your road to get there. There's not a whole lot else around here, but you can get to great north Central Park attractions like the Pool (awesome for a picnic), the Hill (highest point in the park with great trees) and the Conservatory garden. Those are all in the 100's, street-wise, but a few blocks in this city is nothing and you may as well do them in a gorgeous park with sweeping views, no?
Like all transverse roads, the actual road isn't much for a leisurely stroll as cars shoot through the road and traffic can get backed up. But, it's a great access point and makes getting across the northern part fast and easy.

I read the review about 97th street proper and I agree, many of these streets tend to blend together after a while. Almost every street in the city is a combination of apartment building with stores beneath it! 97th transvers is just a bit different than its entirely urban counterpart. This street enters Central Park on the northern end near the massive lake. I once visited the mid-town lake thinking that is was quite large, especially for being in such a big city. Enter on 87th transverse and look at this lake, it is simply flabbergasting how such a big body of water could exist in such a dense city. Use this access road to go ice skating in the winter or to go to ball fields in the summer. Busy New Yorkers can also use this road to cross between the east and west sides.

97th Street wasn’t really worth visiting, and though the streets in the neighborhood tend to blend together, this one set apart. There was a lot of garbage and noise on this street, and I didn’t find any of the businesses or services to be worth remarking about. Really, this street is meant for the people who live there and I wouldn’t consider it on a move to the city.