For years I have been riding by bike through Manhattan early on the weekend mornings. Many years ago I did this on a ten-speed Peugeot racer and carried a Leica M2 with me. The Peugeot is long gone, and the M2 now sits on a shelf in my office as a nostalgic reminder of all those early trips through the city. On one of those long ago trips I took the photo below of an ornate section of the old West Side Highway just before it was torn down.
This morning while once again riding a bike along the Hudson River, I happened upon a graveyard for some of the artifacts of the old highway and took these pictures:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghIfxqbIAD_c7_BHdgB0iZ-SYxEu0pPQayXmajRAq52fcASAqkZFl6ODZqUGuxOFX6-Mq1ezdiCU1AeXNzIipPLdLhyphenhyphen4BzIHs3Mtb2A_N3mu-Gmyw8bRaudBt8XC6VEZL9pduuggUAhlk/s400/ti0159038.jpg) |
The same ornament from the old West Side highway image above now sits an empty lot on the edge of the Hudson River, which is where I took this photo on my bike ride this morning. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilGhq8ufFYRR43YlAUYLtAa0LVC3odRq43-xvcv4K5Xmqwi0WrmCcf7dikL9y4JMGIYG0QboPw5vIkUT0feRuiT6Fl77FumGEiHj2moX_ZUzi1zkpKL0kDYAVlRnYLMd2bCnMB7mIEmxg/s320/ti0159049.jpg) |
Rusted girders from the former highway also rest in the lot, as wild flowers grow around them. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUdEPorFH4PPzUvPWi3kHV9e9ZGmQMI7gOy3udGHiMXakgrOKfSGl-T_TodlVDfw1KLJB4fblQDiDhEYEgZ5a5c1O6BqAxW4H0_rHy-nS6EDs0cxzDgN8oo1DTvQbPvsJV2V3wkYia1uQ/s400/ti0159051.jpg) |
This is the original Leica M2 I used to take the topmost black and white photo of the West Side Highway. The camera is shown here with an accessory Leica meter and a dual-range 50mm Summicron lens. I still use this camera occasionally for shooting with black and white film. |
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