Where To Go Sledding In NYC After The Winter Storm

NEW YORK CITY — It’s snow big deal to find the perfect New York City sledding hill to turn the biggest winter storm in years into a blast for the whole family.

Parks in all five boroughs boast sledding hills covered with inches of enticing snow that fell overnight. The storm dropped more snow in a single night than New York City saw all last winter, according to the National Weather Service.

So while school buildings are closed, businesses dig themselves out and plows clear the roadways, grab a sled and end 2020 by going the way the year went: downhill.

Here’s a list of city Parks Department-approved sledding hills across the city:

Manhattan

Central Park’s Pilgrim Hill is a classic spot. Nestled near 72nd Street and Fifth Avenue, south of Conservatory Water, it often attracts sledders after the snow falls.

Another sledding spot recommended by the Central Park Conservancy is Cedar Hill. Like Pilgrim Hill, it’s also on the park’s east side — this time between 76th and 79th streets.

Manhattanites looking for spots away from Central Park have plenty of options.

Carl Schurz Park has a nice sloping lawn near 89th Street, north of Gracie Mansion and just off of East End Avenue.

Morningside Park has three recommended sledding spots: at the southern end near 110th Street; a few blocks up at 113th Street and Morningside Avenue; and toward the middle of the park at 122nd Street and Morningside Avenue.

In St. Nicholas Park, the city recommends the giant lawn behind the 135th Street Plaza.

There’s also Fort Tryon Park, where the city recommends Billings Lawn. Visitors looking to sled there should enter the park from its southern end on Margaret Corbin Circle where Cabrini Boulevard and Fort Washington Avenue converge.

Check out these stories about sledding spots on the Upper East Side and Harlem.

Brooklyn

Brooklyn has the longest list of sledding hills, thanks in large part to Prospect Park.

Sledders looking to shred should check out these popular Prospect Park spots:

• Go to the slopes on the corner of Prospect Park West and 9th St.
• The meadow off Grand Army Plaza
• The Third Street entrance to the park near the Picnic House

Of course, there’s always exploring the park’s 526 acres and finding a hill of your own after a little adventure.

Outside of Prospect Park there are plenty of options. Perhaps none scream “sled” so much as Fort Greene Park, which is practically all hill. The park has four sledding hills, plus a gentle slope for younger children.

Likewise, Highland Park in East New York has several hills over its sprawling, sloping 140 acres. The parks department says you should enter the park at Highland Boulevard and Jamaica Avenue.

Check out this story for more recommended Brooklyn spots to sled.

Queens

Queens has the second-longest list of recommended sledding hills.

Juniper Valley Park has a popular sledding hill — and official Parks Department “snow day” location — near the Tennis Building off 75th Street.

Astoria Park also offers a sledding hill off 19th Street near Shore and Ditmars boulevards.

Check out this story for a longer list of sledding spots.

The Bronx

Don’t sleep on sledding in the Bronx.

The Parks Department recommends these prime sledding spots:

• Claremont Park Interior of the park at 172nd Street between Teller Avenue and Clay Avenue
• Crotona Park Slope behind ballfield #3 at Fulton Avenue and Cross Bronx Expressway.
• Ewen Park West 232 Street, between Johnson and Riverdale avenues
• Franz Sigel Park Interior of the park at 160th between Grand Concourse and Walton Avenue
• Shoelace Park Anywhere between 220th and 230th streets along Bronx Boulevard

Staten Island

And the forgotten borough’s sledding hills shouldn’t be forgotten either.

Cloves Lakes Park, an ecological gem, has a sledding hill near Martling and Slosson Avenues.

Do you have a favorite sledding spot that’s not in this story? Share in the comments section below!