I continued my walk in Washington Heights in the middle of the neighborhood west of Broadway when the heavens opened up. Thank God it did not last forever. The sun did come out later that afternoon and did cool down a lot. It was the perfect weather to walk around the neighborhood.
I took the subway back up to 181st Street and walked past the rock formation again that abuts the surrounding buildings. I can’t believe that someone would want to blast this away to build something but it looks like its under construction. This is such a focal point in a neighborhood filled with pre-war apartments.
My start point 181st Street Station in the Fall
The view of the side of the street
Looking down the street from the subway stop in the Fall of 2025
Bennett Avenue is just as beautiful in the summer months with all the trees in full form. You get a beautiful view of the rock formations while walking down the street.
West 193rd Street
West 193rd Street
The entrance to the 190th Street subway
The rock formations on Bennett Avenue
My first part of the walk took me down the 181st Street shopping area and maybe I missed it the first time but there is a Starbucks on the corner of 181st Street and Fort Washington Avenue. This is the tale tell sign that the neighborhood is changing again. This part of Washington Heights west of Broadway is really beautiful with its rolling hills, pocket parks and tree-lined streets and the most amazing view of the George Washington Bridge from the corner of 181st Street and Pinehurst Avenue.
West 181st Street by the George Washington Bridge
The West 181st Street shopping district is much quieter in the western side of Broadway than the eastern side
The street slopes down and you have a view of Riverside Park in the distance, a tree lined street and the pocket park next to the dead end of Pinehurst Avenue.
Walking up Pinehurst Avenue
This is a perfect place to take pictures and climb the stairs to relax on one of the many benches that line the walkway. Toward the top of the stairs, the fence is lined with modern art that is festive and unique. As I said on a previous day, this part of the neighborhood reminds me of the marina area in San Francisco.
The end of West 181st Street near Riverside Drive
Street sculpture in the West 181st Street shopping district
When you climb the stairs at Pinehurst Avenue, you are greeted by the Hudson View Gardens Apartments, a mixture of stone and Tutor apartments landscaped to match the adjoining parks. This offers the most amazing views and the buildings are so beautiful.
The Castle Apartments
The Castle Apartments on 181st Street
The Castle Apartment’s
The view at the bottom of East 181st Street
The view of the George Washington Bridge
The Plaza Lafayette at the end of 181st Street
This attractive apartment complex lines the streets of the west side on Pinehurst Avenue, across the street from James Gordon Bennett Park, a staple that attracts families from all over the neighborhood. The courtyards of the complex are colorfully planted and match the stonework of the buildings. The whole affect with the park across street is quite striking.
The Hudson View Gardens Apartments in lower Inwood
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hudson_View_Gardens
James Gordon was a newspaper publisher who launched the New York Herald in 1835. He donated this land which was part of his property. The land sat on the site of the original Fort Washington that had been part of the Revolutionary War battles. The park opened in 1929 and the unique aspect of the park is that is that the west side of the park site an outcropping of the ‘Manhattan Schist’, the layer of bedrock in which is the core of the island and how all the skyscraper’s are built on the island. This part of the schist is the highest point of Manhattan (Wiki).
James Gordon Bennett Sr. founder of the New York Herald Newspaper
https://www.britannica.com/biography/James-Gordon-Bennett-American-editor-1795-1872
I spent time in Bennett Park at West 183rd Street watching kids climb rocks, frolic around the playground and play with their parents, who were enjoying the park just as much as the kids. It gives me faith that raising children in New York City has changed over the last twenty years. I am seeing more and more young parents in the city staying put and bringing life back to New York establishing their roots here and not in the suburbs.
James Gordon Bennett Park at West 183rd and Fort Washington Avenue
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/bennett-park
Bennett Park offers a lot. There is lots of equipment in the playground to keep any child occupied. There is a area for soccer, kite flying, rock climbing and even a cannon to climb on. Kids were flying planes, throwing balls with their parents or chasing one another without a cellphone in sight. That gives me faith in the next generation.
Bennett Park in the Spring of 2026
This is noted to be the highest point in Manhattan in James Gordon Bennett Park
The sign for the highest natural point in Manhattan in Bennett Park
The highest point in Manhattan
When I walked out of the park entrance, I came across the memorial dedicated to Fort Washington which was once on the park’s location. I was surprised with the ‘250th Anniversary” of the country this year, this was not decorated.
The Fort Washington Historical marker
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=12670
Leaving Bennett Park and walking up the length of Pinehurst Avenue, I stopped at the little triangle park to rest and take a phone call.
Looking down Pinehurst Avenue
The Paterno Trivium, at the corner of Cabrini Boulevard, Pinehurst Avenue and West 187th Street is another small pocket park run by the NYC Park system.
The Paterno Trivium at Pinehurst Avenue is perfect for relaxing in the Fall of 2025
The Paterno Trivium sign
The Paterno Trivium in the Spring of 2026
It was a perfect place to converse with local seniors on the current status of New York City, happenings in the neighborhood and recommendations of restaurants on the small restaurant row on 187th Street. There is a little bit of everything in this area.
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/greenstreet-mz188/highlights/9757
Charles V. Paterno, Builder
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_V._Paterno
The park was named after Charles V. Paterno, a developer who was responsible for developing most of the Fort Washington section of Manhattan. He developed the Hudson View Garden Apartment complex, the Gothic apartment buildings near Fort Tryon Park in 1923-24. The park opened in 2000 and has become a Greenstreet site (NYCParks.org).
Castle Village Apartments around West 181st Street
I then walked around Chittenden Avenue off Cabrini Avenue to see the views of the Hudson River. This section of the City is like a hidden gem in one of the most picturesque sections of Manhattan. They really keep this area quiet.
Walking down Cabrini and Chitterden Avenues by the Hudson River
Looking down the Hudson River from Cabrini Chitterden Avenue
After walking both sides of Fort Washington Street and finished the upper western part of Washington Heights, I walked down 181st Street towards Broadway and made my way down Broadway to 165th Street following the western perimeter of the neighborhood.
The West 181st Street shopping district by Broadway
Make note of this shopping district around 181st Street on both sides of Broadway which is loaded with reasonable restaurants and stores all along the street and down Broadway, St. Nicolas Street and parts of Audubon Avenue. It was especially vibrant during the holiday season when all the overhead Christmas lights were up.
The West 181st Street shopping district at Christmas time
The shopping area again in the early Fall of 2025
I then walked around the Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital complex with dominates the 165th Street from Broadway to the Hudson River. All the housing surrounding the complex has been updated obviously for the staff of the hospital and in the later evening staff from the hospital was walking all over the neighborhood, conversing, walking their dogs and eating out.
Walking down Fort Washington Avenue on my way to the hospital
There is a distinct change in the neighborhood once you cross 169th Street on Broadway. It goes from a Dominican neighborhood to a more college oriented one, lined with chain stores, upscale restaurants and gourmet shops and businesses catering more to the college and hospital staff then to the neighbors slightly to the north. Honestly though, I see plenty of young Hispanic professionals in the restaurants.
Walking back up Fort Washington Avenue from Broadway
I had enough time to walk all the side streets between Broadway and Haven Avenue and the first three blocks up, the housing looks strictly for the hospital staff changing again around 172nd Street. I ended my walk for the evening walking the edges of J. Hood Wright Park, watching everyone walk their dogs through the park and the last playground stragglers leaving the park for the evening.
The entrance to J. Hood Wright Park in Washington Heights
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/j-hood-wright-park
My review on TripAdvisor:
The views from the lawn at Hood Park
J. Hood Wright was a wealthy banker and financier who owned a mansion on the site and donated heavily to the local Washington Heights branch of the library (NYCParks.org).
James Hood Wright, a banker and philanthropist
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Hood_Wright
The rock formations at Hood Park
The gardens in Hood Park
I stopped at La Nueva Empanadas Monumental at 3772 Broadway for some empanadas to munch on way back to the subway station. I had the chicken and cheese and the chicken. Not bad but a little doughy and be prepared to speak your broken Spanish if you unless you speak the language.
La Nueva Empanadas Monumental at 3772 Broadway
http://www.empanadasmonumental.net/
My review on TripAdvisor:
Most everyone is a Spanish speaker in the restaurant and some of the patrons seemed a little shocked that I walked in. To me, it’s a nice place for a quick, reasonably priced snack.
Their empanadas are really good!
I will be finishing the rest of this side of Broadway in the coming days.
Please read my other blogs on walking Washington Heights. It was a big area to cover:
Day Twelve: Walking West of Broadway to West 170th Street:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/98
Day Thirteen: Walking Broadway west of 193rd to 165th Streets
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/113
Day Fourteen: Walking south down Broadway west of 174th to 164th Streets
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/122
Day Fifteen: Walking west of Broadway from Washington Heights to Harlem:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/139
Day Seventeen: Walking the border of Riverside Drive in Washington Heights from 181st to 153rd Streets:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/163
Day Eighteen: Walking down Broadway from Wadsworth Terrace to Wadsworth Drive:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/184
Day Nineteen: Walking the East side of Broadway from 193rd to 155th Streets:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/192
Day Twenty-One: Walking Washington Heights from Amsterdam Avenue to Highbridge Park:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/210
Days Twenty-Five and Twenty-Six: Crisscrossing Broadway from 181st to 155th Streets:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/225
Day Thirty-Six: Visiting the Little Red Lighthouse and the Morris-Jumel Mansion in Washington Heights:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/850
Day Forty-One: Walking Dyckman Street from 207th Street to 155th Street and the Polo Grounds Apartments:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/1376
Places to Visit:
James Gordon Bennett Park
West 183rd and Fort Washington Avenue
New York, NY 10033
(212) 639-9675
Open: Sunday-Saturday 6:00am-1:00am
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/bennett-park/history
J. Hood Wright Park
West 173rd Avenue between Haven Avenue and Fort Washington Avenue
New York, NY 10033
(212) 639-9675
Open: Sunday-Saturday 6:00am-1:00am
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/j-hood-wright-park
Paterno Trivium
At the corners of Cabrini Boulevard, Pinehurst Avenue and West 187th Street
New York, NY 10040
Open: Check the Website
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/MZ188/highlights/9757
Places to eat:
La Nueva Empanadas Monumental
3772 Broadway
New York, NY 10032
(646) 559-2502
https://empanadasmonumentalnewyork.com/
Open: Monday-Thursday-9:00am-11:00pm/Friday, Saturday and Sunday-9:00am-12:00am
My review on TripAdvisor:
mywalkinmanhattan 
Don’t miss all the interesting parks in this area of Washington Heights.
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This is one of the most beautiful and underrated hidden neighborhoods in Manhattan.
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