SURE, we love parks — but they just got a whole lot cooler with National Parks Week NYC. Today kicks off the weeklong celebration launched by the National Parks Conservation Association, which includes a series of public, mostly free events throughout the city. If you’re interested in getting the, ahem, dirt on the history of our parks as well as their future, you’ll want to check out these happenings:
Manahatta: A Natural History of New York City
: Learn about the natural landscape of NYC in 1609. 2:30 p.m. today at Pershing Hall and Nolan Park on Governors Island, visit nps.gov/gois for more details.24th International Coastal Clean-Up Day: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. today at Plum Beach, Brooklyn. Visit alsnyc.org for more info.
Nature’s Air Show: Bring your family along to see eagles, hawks, falcons and vultures while they soar overhead, and visit with them up close after the show, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. today and tomorrow at the Bronx Zoo. See bronxzoo.com/airshow for details. (The only cost is the Bronx Zoo admission fee; $15 for adults, $11 for children. Get 50 percent off one child’s admission with one paid adult.)
Grant’s Tomb After Dark: Tour the tomb by candlelight with a Park Ranger while you go deep into the mausoleum’s underground crypt. Tuesday at 8 p.m. at the General Grant National Memorial; visit feelfree.org for more info.
Feel Free: A National Parks Celebration in Central Park: Watch clips from Ken Burns’ new PBS series “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea,” and catch musical performances by Eric Benet, Gavin DeGraw, Carole King, Alison Krauss and others. Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the East Meadow, visit feelfree.org for more info.
If tanning on the green grass of Sheep’s Meadow or frolicking through Riverside Park is an activity you can’t imagine city life without — allow yourself to be educated and entertained this week on ways you can protect and enhance our parks. For a full list of events, visit feelfree.org. For more conservation information, visit npca.org.