Rat Rock (Central Park)
| Rat Rock | |
|---|---|
| Umpire Rock | |
 East side of the rock | |
  Location of Rat Rock in Manhattan | |
| Location | Central Park, Manhattan, New York City, New York |
| Coordinates | 40°46′10″N 73°58′40″W / 40.769361°N 73.977655°W |
Rat Rock, also known as Umpire Rock, is an outcrop of Manhattan schist which protrudes from the Central Park bedrock in Manhattan. It is named after the rats that used to swarm there at night.[1] It is located near the southwest corner of the park, south of the Heckscher Ballfields on the lines of 62nd Street and of 7th Avenue. The outcrop is roughly circular, about 55 feet (17 m) wide and 15 feet (4.6 m) tall with east, west and north faces that each present different climbing problems.[2] The rock has striations caused by glaciation.[3]
The park police formerly ticketed climbers who climbed more than a few feet up the rock. The City Climbers Club approached the park authorities and, by working to provide safety features such as wood chips around the base, they were able to legalize climbing there.[2]
Gallery
References
- ^ Jennifer Bleyer (October 7, 2007), The Zen of the Rock, New York Times
- ^ a b John Sherman (1994), Stone crusade: a historical guide to bouldering in America, The Mountaineers Books, pp. 226–228, ISBN 978-0-930410-62-9
- ^ Carol Hand (2009), The Creation of Glaciers, Rosen, ISBN 9781435852983
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