Architectural Highlights
Dimensions: Length - 65 feet:
Width - 27 feet:
Height - 11 feet 6 inches.
Walkway: Width - 12 feet:
Length - 65 feet.
Revetment (surface): Manhattan schist
excavated in the Park, and mountain
greywacke, a light-bluish sandstone
set in random ashlar.
Railing: Sandstone with open quatrefoil
patterns.
Special Features: Two balconies on the
east side.
Along the busy West Drive near 77th Street,
in Central Park stands Balcony Bridge. The
span of the Bridge conveys West Drive traffic
over the Lake where it flows into a small
marshy inlet.
In the 1870s, this inlet extended into
Ladies Pond, a small portion of the Lake
reserved strictly for female ice-skaters.
It was filled in during the 1930s.
The Bridge itself gets its name from the
two small, bench-lined balconies inset on
its east side that extends beyond the
wall of the Bridge. Many Park visitors stop
at these spots to marvel at the spectacular
view they offer of the City skyline.
From this vantage point, beyond the trees
that provide a frame for the field of view
is the Lake as it stretches southeast to Cherry Hill. The best way to view
Balcony Bridge is from the shores of
the Ramble or from a rowboat
on the Lake.
