Imagine an event in northern Manhattan that celebrates being in the outdoors. A happening where kids and their families can learn about outdoor activities—from sports to nature walks. A place to meet and greet, have your photo taken on the top of Mt. Everest, get lots of very cool stuff. Where you can play games, sample foods, dance to music, and take a nature walk with yours truly. And all of it free! Doesn’t this sound perfect?

Now imagine the event taking place in the dead of winter (yesterday the 13^th of February) in Swindler Cove Park along the East river on the northern tip of Manhattan. Imagine no sun but instead an eerie flat-gray sky. Imagine an average temperature of 28 degrees and a foot of crusty, soiled snow on the ground. Imagine a mild breeze blowing off the river—just enough to factor in a mild wind chill—the kind that makes your lips chap. Brrrrr!

It took 3.5 hours for Rob and I to get to Swindler Cove Park  (via car, train, and cab) and we arrived at 9 AM to a hustling scene of tents being erected, boxes being unloaded from trucks, and people moving things by wheel barrow, hand truck, and anything else they could muster. It was darn cold and there was snow and ice everywhere. As we navigated the walkway to find our place at the event I sang to myself “ice on the ground…ice on the ground…walk very carefully with ice on the ground”.  I kept questioning “what self respecting New Yorker is going to leave the warmth of their home to come outside on this cold, dreary day? No one will come to this event”.  But boy was I wrong. So wrong.

Kids with their Planet Explore bags of free stuffI was thrilled to see a large crowd attend the “Winter Warm Up”. People came for the free stuff from The North Face. They came for the entertainment. They came to see Swindler Cove Park and to learn about the New York Restoration Project. Some came because they are fans of NYRP and benefactors of their community programs.  They came for the nature walks and ice fishing lessons. They came for the food. But mostly, they came for the fresh air and a reason to be outdoors with their children in the dead of winter. There were children young and old and there were adults old and young. It was fantastic!

I don’t know how many people attended but I heard no complaints about the cold. People bundled up and there were lots of activities to keep them moving. A DJ helped to keep the crowd warm, too. There were people dancing everywhere—even during our nature walks.

Shadale, an event volunteer and my new friend from Albany, helped me lead my nature walks. Shadale and I in our “BFF” (Best Friends Forever) pose for Rob’s camera He found a small paper wasp nest and he also found a Praying Mantis egg case. He was very excited to share his findings with anyone and everyone! Despite the crowds and the music, we saw Canada Geese, Ring Billed Gulls, Mallards, and Cormorants near the shore. We saw House Sparrows, Chickadees, and Titmice flitting around the park. We saw evergreens, bushes with berries, and bare-naked deciduous trees. We found seeds from grasses and trees. And we found an old oak tree that was still hanging onto its gigantic brown, dead leaves.

This Winter Warm Up was a fabulous success. Everyone had a ball! It also marked the launch of a new website by The North Face called “Planet Explore”.  Visit this site and you can find outdoor activities in your neck of the woods. As the site grows so will the calendar so give it a little time if you don’t find events close to you the first time you visit. Become a member of the site and you’ll receive notification of events. I’m proud to say that I’ve been chosen as a “visionary” by The North Face and you’ll soon see my face and my public events in the visionary section of Planet Explore.  

Many people took our nature walk and learned about migration, hibernation, brumation, and all types of winter survival.I would have bet a lot of money that the cold weather and snow covered sidewalks would have kept people indoors yesterday. I’m so glad I was wrong. And I’m darn glad I’m not a betting person! On the train ride home I was stuck on a line from a Beatle’s song: “imagine all the people”. I think the turnout at this event speaks to our hunger to be in the outdoors. In Swindler Cove Park, NYRP has given New Yorkers a green space to return to the outdoors. I’m proud to have been a part of this Winter Warm Up. Watch our calendar and the Planet Explore site for more such events.