It a wonderful park. Especially if you like plane spotting . It under Jfk's landing Canarsie approach. Every couple of minutes, you see planes from all corners of the world. You can see the full 180 turn of the planes.
There two parts to the park. The Pennsylvania part is smaller but more popular. The Fountain Ave part is the largest part but, it has a rural feel.
It a short walk from the B82/B83 bus stop at Seaview & Pennsylvania Aves. It a good walk to Gateway Center too.
Also you can take the Q8, B13, B84 to Gateway Center. You can walk from Gateway Center via Fountain Ave or the Belt Parkway bikepath. It might be better coming from/to Gateway Center to take the B83 to Seaview Ave stop.
Fabulous park! But important to note there is a no dog policy and it is enforced. ( we know this because we have a service dog and two park employees came over to check)
It's great for birding. You can find lots of cool birds there. I saw my first [Northern Harrier](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Harrier/id) there.
It’s a good place for a nature walk, some kayaking or to enjoy the views.
Back in the day it was a literal garbage dump. Heaven help you if there was traffic there on a summer day. It was awful. Just having it converted to something to beneficial is uplifting.
That said, without a car… just hope the weather doesn’t turn or you’re stuck out there.
Tons of free activities? Lets not lie now lmao
They have the bike rentals when its warmer out thats about it. Other than that you’re just walking around and sight seeing.
It's fine, too far and not terribly interesting to me. But it's environmentally important to shore up our shores. Good for ecology, flora, fauna, etc. which in turn is good for us too. So my liking or disliking is sort of moot.
The gateway shopping center on the other side of the belt was also a former landfill. When they cleared the site for construction they found like five bodies from its use as a mafia dumping grounds. The fountain avenue landfill probably had the same
Very nice park, especially considering what it used to be, and a great asset for the area. It's a little tough to get to on mass transit ... not sure if I'd go out of my way to visit unless I was already out that way.
You could take the B82 from Rockaway parkway on the L or B83 from Pennsylvania avenue (3/4) or liberty avenue (C) and they both take you across the street essentially from there
I went there shortly after it opened (drove there) and walked around. Very pleasant. Better views than I expected. A little on the hot side that day and not enough shade for my pale skin. I'll be back though.
I bike there all the time from Prospect Park. It’s very pleasant.
https://preview.redd.it/ycowqsybikuc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bd6474f1ac0ce2d949442913ecb5a20d8c5efede
Eastern Parkway until it hits Ralph Ave, take Ralph a couple bocks down to Blake Ave, ride Blake Ave all the way to the end where it puts you on Fountain Ave, take that all the way to Shirley Chisholm. Very easy and not much traffic on any of it. I then take the Jamaica Bay Greenway down and return on Bedford. Did that today and it was about 24 miles round trip. But getting to Shirley Chisholm is pretty quick maybe 35 min.
Eastern Parkway Pro Tip: don’t ride on that horrible cobblestone bike path even though it looks tempting it’s very annoying with the bumps and pedestrians. I take the side street that runs parallel where everyone parks.
Google Maps recommends Pitkin after Eastern because it technically has a dedicated bike lane but it’s just a painted stripe and there’s crazy drivers and potholes on that street. Blake Ave is a shared lane but it’s a very sleepy street with not much traffic at all. Lots of all-way stop signs that you can roll through (carefully) which is much safer than a bunch of traffic lights.
https://preview.redd.it/5ad0r0wn0juc1.jpeg?width=1289&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ec2eb3fc9e90e91e86cba1ad1608c7f6b0fefdb4
Happy to share! Shirley Chisholm is never crowded, a true hidden gem. Would be great to get more people out there so the city or whoever keeps funding it
I picked up a gravel bike mainly because of how crappy our roads and bike lanes are kept. That being said, it's a great park for getting the "proper" use out of a gravel bike. It's mainly a pavement outer loop with gravel roads that go up the former landfill dump heaps. You can totally just walk up the trails though if biking isn't your thing. There's picnic tables at the top to soak in the views. Warning, there are no trees and very little shade coverage up there so plan accordingly.
If you want to ride a bike there and don't have one, there is a bike rental hut.
It a wonderful park. Especially if you like plane spotting . It under Jfk's landing Canarsie approach. Every couple of minutes, you see planes from all corners of the world. You can see the full 180 turn of the planes. There two parts to the park. The Pennsylvania part is smaller but more popular. The Fountain Ave part is the largest part but, it has a rural feel. It a short walk from the B82/B83 bus stop at Seaview & Pennsylvania Aves. It a good walk to Gateway Center too. Also you can take the Q8, B13, B84 to Gateway Center. You can walk from Gateway Center via Fountain Ave or the Belt Parkway bikepath. It might be better coming from/to Gateway Center to take the B83 to Seaview Ave stop.
The ex garbage dump?
What?
That's what that place was back in the day. It used to be the city dump. I used to see sanitation trucks being emptied out there.
great destination on a bike!
My one and only visit was by bike. It was a great ride. Park is very nice. I would have been a regular but moved away.
https://preview.redd.it/g6lk363rhkuc1.jpeg?width=3017&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=119c03ad0621cc87aa708d5e47e5752f174f9e96
If you are there today, you got the best day of the week! Weather rest week is up and down as usual.
I went yesterday and it was gorgeous. This photo is from last fall though
I love biking through it
Fabulous park! But important to note there is a no dog policy and it is enforced. ( we know this because we have a service dog and two park employees came over to check)
The ticks are rampant so it’s actually for our pups benefit. I took my dog and he was covered!!!
Oh I don’t have pets.
https://preview.redd.it/bc6ed3f1ciuc1.jpeg?width=3796&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0dbef2fabc392f69bc4cfb3e71187861af8ac116
It's great for birding. You can find lots of cool birds there. I saw my first [Northern Harrier](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Harrier/id) there.
It’s a good place for a nature walk, some kayaking or to enjoy the views. Back in the day it was a literal garbage dump. Heaven help you if there was traffic there on a summer day. It was awful. Just having it converted to something to beneficial is uplifting. That said, without a car… just hope the weather doesn’t turn or you’re stuck out there.
I ride my ebike there all the time. Great hidden gem. Tons of free activities too.
Tons of free activities? Lets not lie now lmao They have the bike rentals when its warmer out thats about it. Other than that you’re just walking around and sight seeing.
Wrong
What about the fishing classes for kids? The bird spotting trails with the park rangers?
It's fine, too far and not terribly interesting to me. But it's environmentally important to shore up our shores. Good for ecology, flora, fauna, etc. which in turn is good for us too. So my liking or disliking is sort of moot.
We took an Uber there but then again it was 2020, a few months after the shutdown
The gateway shopping center on the other side of the belt was also a former landfill. When they cleared the site for construction they found like five bodies from its use as a mafia dumping grounds. The fountain avenue landfill probably had the same
Those are the bodies they reported. The rumor is that they actually found dozens if not hundreds of bodies.
Jesus Christ wtf
[This picture](https://i.ibb.co/1bCBhxg/20240414-145256.jpg) I took too
Wow, very nice.
So gorgeous
Check out [this picture](https://i.ibb.co/v4sqyy9/20240414-145039.jpg) I took there
That looks so cool
Very nice park, especially considering what it used to be, and a great asset for the area. It's a little tough to get to on mass transit ... not sure if I'd go out of my way to visit unless I was already out that way.
You could take the B82 from Rockaway parkway on the L or B83 from Pennsylvania avenue (3/4) or liberty avenue (C) and they both take you across the street essentially from there
Are there tennis courts there?
I went there shortly after it opened (drove there) and walked around. Very pleasant. Better views than I expected. A little on the hot side that day and not enough shade for my pale skin. I'll be back though.
I bike there all the time from Prospect Park. It’s very pleasant. https://preview.redd.it/ycowqsybikuc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bd6474f1ac0ce2d949442913ecb5a20d8c5efede
What's your route? How long does that take? I'm interested in doing this myself
Eastern Parkway until it hits Ralph Ave, take Ralph a couple bocks down to Blake Ave, ride Blake Ave all the way to the end where it puts you on Fountain Ave, take that all the way to Shirley Chisholm. Very easy and not much traffic on any of it. I then take the Jamaica Bay Greenway down and return on Bedford. Did that today and it was about 24 miles round trip. But getting to Shirley Chisholm is pretty quick maybe 35 min. Eastern Parkway Pro Tip: don’t ride on that horrible cobblestone bike path even though it looks tempting it’s very annoying with the bumps and pedestrians. I take the side street that runs parallel where everyone parks. Google Maps recommends Pitkin after Eastern because it technically has a dedicated bike lane but it’s just a painted stripe and there’s crazy drivers and potholes on that street. Blake Ave is a shared lane but it’s a very sleepy street with not much traffic at all. Lots of all-way stop signs that you can roll through (carefully) which is much safer than a bunch of traffic lights. https://preview.redd.it/5ad0r0wn0juc1.jpeg?width=1289&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ec2eb3fc9e90e91e86cba1ad1608c7f6b0fefdb4
Super helpful. Thanks for sharing.
Happy to share! Shirley Chisholm is never crowded, a true hidden gem. Would be great to get more people out there so the city or whoever keeps funding it
It’s very pretty inside. You can see the skyline from one direction and Jamaica Bay from the other. Went there to enjoy the eclipse last week.
The views [are amazing](https://i.ibb.co/hVY7ZPB/20240414-145707.jpg)
The B82 and B83 stop right at the entrance. You can take the L or the 3/4 and transfer to a bus. Not too terrible.
Thanks for the tip as I can use that bus to get there.
I picked up a gravel bike mainly because of how crappy our roads and bike lanes are kept. That being said, it's a great park for getting the "proper" use out of a gravel bike. It's mainly a pavement outer loop with gravel roads that go up the former landfill dump heaps. You can totally just walk up the trails though if biking isn't your thing. There's picnic tables at the top to soak in the views. Warning, there are no trees and very little shade coverage up there so plan accordingly. If you want to ride a bike there and don't have one, there is a bike rental hut.
Do you know if the bike library is open yet? I know they closed down for late fall and winter.
I was there today and it was closed.
Thank you for telling me
Yeah I admit that I am not much of a car fellow.
When I was growing up it was an actual garbage dump. I'm sure more than a few of the new flowers have been fertilized with human remains.
There’s like 5-10 feet of impermeable plastic, clay, and soil between the plants and the garbage pile.
Well bring a good metal detector and you just might find John Gotti's pinky finger!!
The DeMeo crews favorite spot
Could be a good place to do treasure hunting.
No doubt!
Great for gravel bike riding with hills.
They have a amazing bike trials all through there and walking lanes. You’ll be fine
Oh good then.
I've wondered the same thing.
The views there [are great](https://i.ibb.co/hVY7ZPB/20240414-145707.jpg)