Two October 1998 visions of the Henry Hudson Parkway in Riverdale, The Bronx, at 232nd St. This one faces south towards the parkway's namesake bridge leading into Manhattan. That arched bridge spans what is known as Spuyten Duyvil, Dutch for Devil's Spout, the short narrow waterway connecting the East/Harlem Rivers to the Hudson River. The Spuyten was not the most mariner friendly of channels, at least back in the 17th century when the average Dutch sip could only withstand so much adversity. Riverdale is one of the few Bronx neighborhoods not to face too much adversity in recent times. To its east, much of its sister Bronx neighborhoods underwent traumatic decline following World War II, greatly accelerated from the mid 1960s through the 1970s, until by the 1980s much of the southern half of the borough looked like 1945 Berlin. Other neighborhoods bordering the burgeoning slums, that escaped the worst of the blight, still fell into varying degrees of seediness. Riverfield and northern neighbor Fieldston were practically the only exceptions.

Here we view the Henry Hudson Parkway facing north, from just south of West 232nd Street, though I suppose the West 231st Street sign makes that fairly obvious. I annihilated my feet the day I shot these photos. My work boots were ready to complain to the UN about my violating their rights, I covered so much ground.