3. Port Morris Branch Train Tracks

The Port Morris Line Train Tracks in the Bronx were built in 1842. They were once nicknamed the “Mott Haven Swamp” for the water accumulated in the rail corridor, though the Department of Environment Protection removed 625,000 gallons of water from a one-mile section of the corridor in December of 2009. The city has since made renovations to the area so people can pass through the tracks. The track beds were vandalized by graffiti in the 1990s and early 2000s and have been filled with many homeless encampments in recent years.

Last year, photographers and authors James and Karla Murray shared their photos of their adventures through the Port Morris Line Train Tracks, which they visited before and after the draining of the corridor. Though the EPA’s efforts made it area more accessible, it was still largely littered with trash and rubble. In recent years, there has been talk of converting this area into a “Lowline Park.”