At Week’s End: Taking the high trail

We’ve all heard of the rails-to-trails movement, which involves turning abandoned railroad lines into linear parks. The successful movement has created many such parks, including several in the commonwealth, the most famous of which may be the Virginia Creeper Trail starting in Abingdon.

But have you ever heard of a rail trail 30 feet in the air?

You have now.

New York City has opened the first half-mile of its new High Line park, built from an elevated rail that was abandoned 30 years ago.

The old rail line in some places is as high as three stories off the ground and as wide as 60 feet.

The completed park will have views of the Hudson River, Statue of Liberty and Empire State Building.

“Anytime you usually look at the city from high up, you’re inside a building,” said City Council Speaker Christine Quinn. “But to be able to look from an elevated level and be outdoors is just a wonderful feeling.”

The park includes, at one point, a wading pool and has preserved many of the plants and wildflowers that colonized the line after it was abandoned.

Paris already has an elevated park, but this is apparently the first in the U.S. Philadelphia and Chicago are considering following suit.