Central Park, Nov 14–20: lanterns at Summit Rock, a jazz band at the Bandshell, and a week with no rain in it

Hi there,

Saturday is the fullest day the park has had in a month — a charity walk at the Bandshell in the morning, knights behind the Met at noon, model yachts on the pond all day, and a lantern parade at Summit Rock as the light goes. And then the whole week stays dry.

I owe you a correction on the forecast. Last Sunday I said the mild autumn ended hard on Friday. It lasted one day. Every day from here to Friday is dry and warmer than the last, ending at 64°.

Weather this week

Seven days without rain — the probability never gets above 2% — and a temperature that climbs every single day from 46° to 64° on Friday. Saturday carries an 8–12 mph northwest wind that will make the outdoor afternoon feel like 40°, so dress for that one day; after Monday there is effectively no wind at all, and the back half of the week belongs outdoors.

Sat Nov 14 — a walk on the loop, knights at the Met, lanterns at dusk

A proper Saturday. In the order it happens:

• Walk to End Alzheimer’s, 8 AM–1 PM, staging at Bandshell Plaza and taking the Lower and Center Loops. A large charity walk — the south end of the park is crowded all morning. This one was filed too late to make last Sunday’s email; it appeared in this week’s permit pull.
• Model Yacht Racing at Kerbs Boathouse, 9 AM–3 PM. The northwest wind will have the fleet flying.
• Santa’s Knights and Gladiators NYC, noon–4 PM, on the Lawn Behind the Met. Exactly what the name says, and new to the calendar.
• Iconic Views of Central Park tour, 2 PM from Doris C. Freedman Plaza.
• St. Martin’s Parade, 3:15–5 PM at Summit Rock. A lantern procession at the highest point in the park, timed to finish in the dark. If you pick one thing this week, pick this.

East Meadow is closed — the picnic lawn, for restoration.

Sun Nov 15 — the Great Central Park Hike, and folkdancing at King Jagiello

Clear and 50°.

• Great Central Park Hike, 10 AM from the Dana Discovery Center. The Conservancy’s long guided walk, end to end. A dry, bright 50° Sunday is close to the best day you will get for it this season.
• World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, noon–2 PM at Dana Discovery Center Plaza.
• International Folkdancers at King Jagiello Plaza, 11 AM–3 PM — open, free, and they do not mind an audience.
• Frisbee at North Meadow both weekend mornings. East Meadow closed again.

Mon Nov 16, 10:30 AM — Carmel High School Jazz Band at the Bandshell

Half an hour of free music at Bandshell Plaza, 10:30–11 AM, from a visiting high school band. These turn up on the permit list two or three times a season and almost nobody knows about them in advance. 51° and sunny.

Lawn maintenance starts at the East 106th Street Lawn, running Monday through Thursday.

Tue Nov 17 — the park is empty, and it is 56°

Nothing booked anywhere, the warmest day yet, and no wind. Take the weekday if you can.

Wed Nov 18, 7 PM — the Conservancy’s gala at Rumsey Playfield

“Studio 72,” the Central Park Conservancy’s Annual Gala, 7 PM at Rumsey Playfield — a disco-era fundraiser for the organization that actually maintains the park. Ticketed, not a public event, but it explains why the whole SummerStage footprint has been fenced since November 13 and stays fenced through November 21. Nine days of permit for one evening.

And a correction. Last Sunday I described this permit as one that “keeps growing” — one day, then two, then three. It never grew. It has read November 13–21, nine days, since at least October 30. What moved was my own seven-day window sliding across a fixed permit, and I reported the slice I could see as though it were the whole thing. The error was in how I read the data, not in the data.

61° and sunny all day.

Thu Nov 19, noon–4 PM — Love at First Spin at the Bandshell

Music discovery in the open air at Bandshell Plaza, noon to 4 PM, on a 62° afternoon. The Bandshell’s second free music day in four.

A second closure permit opens at Bethesda Terrace, which has already been closed for weeks. Both run to December 13.

Fri Nov 20 — 64° and the last dry day

• Iconic Views tour, 2 PM.
• The Swedish Cottage Lawn and the East 96th Street Playground Lawn both close today, through December 13. The Swedish Cottage marionette theatre itself is not affected — this is the lawn outside it.

What the permits say

• Bethesda Terrace is closed every day through December 13. Same permit, extended again — it read December 8 a week ago and December 6 the week before.
• Six closures now converge on December 13: both Bethesda permits, the Swedish Cottage lawn, the East 96th Street playground lawn, the East Meadow, and — ending three days earlier, on December 10 — the East 106th Street lawn maintenance. Five of the six share the exact same end date. I still do not know what is scheduled for that week.
• East Meadow is closed every Saturday and Sunday from this weekend through December 13.
• 39 field permits this week, 27 of them at North Meadow. An ordinary busy weekend up there.

Quick recap

• Saturday is the day: charity walk 8–1, model yachts 9–3, knights at the Met noon–4, lanterns at Summit Rock 3:15 PM.
• Sunday 10 AM: the Great Central Park Hike from Dana Discovery Center.
• Monday 10:30 AM: a free high school jazz set at the Bandshell. Thirty minutes, easy to miss.
• Tuesday is empty and 56° — the best open weekday in a while.
• Thursday noon–4: Love at First Spin, free music at the Bandshell.
• No rain all week, and it reaches 64° on Friday.
• Bethesda Terrace closed through December 13, with five other closures ending the same day.

Enjoy it — this is a good one, Kin