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At
22 acres, the Lake is Central Park's largest body of water excluding
the Reservoir. Because of the many twists and turns in its shoreline,
however, it seems much larger. Olmsted and Vaux created the Lake out
of a large swamp; they intended it to provide boating in the summer
and ice skating in the winter. In December 1858, while the rest of
Central Park was under construction, the Lake was opened for
ice-skating. The opening happened to coincide with a long string of
hard winters in the City and sparked an instant craze for the sport.
According to one account in the Park's Annual Report, as many as
40,000 people skated on the Lake in one day. Nature couldn't always
be counted on to satisfy the demand for good ice, so Wollman Rink was
opened in 1951 and the Lake closed for skating.
Boating
is another matter. In the 19th Century you could enjoy boating
without lifting a finger. "Call" boats came with a private
boatman who would ferry you wherever you wanted to go on the Lake. In
addition to six-seater call boats plying the water,
"passage" boats – larger, canopied boats carrying
twelve passengers – made a circuit of the Lake starting from
Bethesda Terrace and stopping at five boat landings along the shore
where passengers could embark or disembark. It cost a dime to ride
the entire loop.
Today
four of the wooden boat landings exist (although they've been
rebuilt): one in Wagner Cove, two along the western shoreline, and
one along the Ramble shoreline by Bow Bridge. Today you must row
yourself, however; a boat can be rented at Loeb Boathouse. You can
even take a gondola ride – an original 19th Century offering
that is still available today.
Most
visitors are content, however, to circle the Lake on foot, following
the pathways that wind along its shoreline, watching the Park's
treeline shifting in its reflection. |
