Central Park Family Plans: Jul 31 – Aug 6 — model yachts and storytelling Saturday, the Harlem Meer all day Sunday

Hi families — Saturday is the big one this week. Model yacht racing on Conservatory Water and storytelling at the Hans Christian Andersen statue happen in the same corner at the same time, so you can do both without moving the stroller more than fifty yards. Sunday the whole day belongs to the north end at the Harlem Meer.

Weather this week

The weekend is dry and hot — 86°F and sunny Saturday, 83°F and cloudy Sunday — then rain arrives Sunday night and Monday is a proper washout, with Tuesday through Thursday humid in the mid-80s and thunderstorms possible in the afternoons. Do the outdoor plans Saturday and Sunday morning, keep the Arsenal gallery and the Chess and Checkers House in your back pocket for Monday, and bring more water than you think for the weekend.

Fri Jul 31 — market day at Columbus Circle

The Columbus Circle food market runs 9:30 AM to 9 PM at Merchants’ Gate — easy lunch if you’re coming in from the southwest. The Arsenal’s free photography exhibit is open 9 to 5. Soccer programs are running on the West 96th Street Landscape, Rudin Playground Lawn and East Meadow all morning, and the CP Sports summer program has South Dead Road in two blocks, morning and afternoon. One long-range note: Bethesda Terrace and Fountain is closed for the whole of August, so the fountain isn’t the meet-up spot this month.

Sat Aug 1 — model yachts, storytelling, chess and a skate circle

The best family day in weeks, and most of it is free.

• Model Yacht Racing, 9 AM to 3 PM at Kerbs Boathouse on Conservatory Water — the boats go out all day, and kids can watch the skippers work the radio controls from the edge.
• Storytelling in Central Park, 10 AM to 1 PM at the Hans Christian Andersen statue — the classic Saturday-morning session, fifty yards from the boats.
• Chess lecture and simul series with a beginners’ workshop, 9 AM to 5 PM at the Chess and Checkers House — genuinely good for a kid who’s just learned the pieces.
• That Guitar Man at Hernshead, noon to 6 — sit on the rocks by the Lake and listen.
• Central Park Skate Circle, 2 to 7 PM on Dead Road — the best free show in the park for a six-year-old. Heckscher Fields and North Meadow have youth ball all day; East Meadow is closed all weekend.

Sun Aug 2 — Summer on the Harlem Meer, 9 to 6

The Dana Discovery Center runs Summer on the Harlem Meer all day, 9 AM to 6 PM — the north end’s flagship family day, with Kobie Dozier playing free at 2 PM. If you’ve never taken the kids up there, this is the day to do it: the Meer, the Ravine and the North Woods in one afternoon. Mid-park, the International Folkdancers are at King Jagiello Plaza from 11, always a hit with small children who want to join in. The Skate Circle is back on Dead Road from 2.

Mon Aug 3 — the indoor-ish day

81°F with rain most of the day. The Arsenal gallery is free and open 9 to 5 — the SummerStage photography show is a decent twenty minutes out of the weather. The East 72nd Street Playground is closed for maintenance, so if that’s your regular, pick another.

Tue Aug 4, 7:30 PM — free orchestra at the Bandshell

If bedtime is flexible, the Naumburg concert at the Bandshell at 7:30 is free, outdoors, and about ninety minutes — baroque, which moves fast enough to hold a kid’s attention. Bring a blanket and get there by 6:30 for space. Earlier, National Night Out runs 2 to 6 PM at Merchants’ Gate with the local precinct — usually giveaways and a fire truck.

Wed Aug 5 — nothing scheduled, playgrounds all yours

84°F with a shower chance. Nothing on the calendar anywhere in the park. The quietest day of the week for the big playgrounds — Heckscher and Adventure both, and the Ancient Playground if you’re doing the Met.

Thu Aug 6 — market, tour and youth tennis

The Columbus Circle food market is back 9:30 to 9. Youth tennis runs 1 to 4 PM on the courts. The Arsenal has both the photography show and a 4:30 talk about the people who built SummerStage. Rumsey has a very big concert at 8, so the 72nd Street entrance is crowded from 6 — worth avoiding with a stroller.

Quick recap

• Saturday is the day: model yachts 9–3, storytelling 10–1, chess all day, guitar at Hernshead from noon, skating from 2.
• Sunday: Summer on the Harlem Meer, 9 to 6, with free music at 2.
• Free orchestra Tuesday 7:30 at the Bandshell — arrive 6:30.
• Monday is the rainy one. The Arsenal gallery is the fallback.
• East Meadow closed Saturday and Sunday; East 72nd Street Playground closed for maintenance from Monday.
• Bethesda Terrace and Fountain is closed for all of August.

See you in the park, The Central Park Guide