Viewing NYC Articles Categorized Under Swimming

[WATCH] Can You Swim In NYC's Rivers?

2026-04-19T12:00:00-04:00

The video explores the long-held belief among New Yorkers that swimming in the East River is dangerous and unhealthy. The host, Jack Coyne, investigates the historical context of New York Harbor's pollution, detailing how, after colonization, overharvesting of oysters and the dumping of human waste and industrial refuse rendered the waters lifeless by the mid-1900s. While the Clean Water Act of the 1970s led to improvements, a significant sewage problem persists due to the city's combined sewer system, which overflows untreated sewage and stormwater into the harbor during heavy rain. Coyne joins the Billion Oyster Project, an organization working to restore a billion oysters to New York Harbor to naturally filter its waters, to conduct water quality tests, showing that the water can be clean on clear days but becomes unsafe after rainfall. He also meets with Urban Swim, which organizes safe open-water swimming events, demonstrating that with proper precautions and support, swimming in these waters is possible and is becoming a powerful form of environmental advocacy.

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Wednesday, July 17th, 2019, Good Afternoon!

2019-07-17T14:00:00-04:00

Good afternoon! Wishing you a happy Wednesday, July 17th, 2019 from all of us at Viewing NYC!

Here's what the weather looks like in the City right now.

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[REPOST] This Williamsburg Man Swims Across the East River to Get to Work

2019-07-12T11:00:00-04:00

In this funny mini-mockumentary from Comedy Central, meet Greg Washburn, a Williamsburg man who swims across the East River to get to work every day.

The MTA sucks. Meet the guy who's taking his NYC commute into the East River.

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53 Public Pools Across New York City Open for Summer Today

2019-06-27T15:30:00-04:00

School's out for summer and it's time for some fun in the sun. More than 50 pools will open to the public this morning. CBSN New York's Jenna DeAngelis reports.

Check out the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation's Free Outdoor Pools page to learn more about which pools are open, and where they are across the five boroughs.

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This Williamsburg Man Swims Across the East River to Get to Work

2018-09-06T11:00:00-04:00

In this funny mini-mockumentary from Comedy Central, meet Greg Washburn, a Williamsburg man who swims across the East River to get to work every day.

The MTA sucks. Meet the guy who's taking his NYC commute into the East River.

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Neil Patrick Harris Throws His Support Behind East River Swimming Pool

2017-08-14T10:30:00-04:00

The +POOL is an ambitious public swimming pool project that has been floating (pun intended!) around for a few years now. It involves a floating pool sitting in the East River, shaped like a plus sign in order to maximize the external surface area and filter the water efficiently enough to provide a clean, safe pool to swim in. In this video from sponsor Heineken, watch as actor and Harlemite Neil Patrick Harris narrates the origin story and vision of the +POOL.

Heineken has partnered with the team from +POOL to bring a water-filtering, floating swimming pool to the city of New York!

After several years and hundreds of thousands of dollars, the project still needs our help. Want to see the +POOL come to life? Sign the petition to help the cause.

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Watch These New Yorkers Take the Coney Island Polar Bear Plunge

2017-01-02T13:34:59-05:00

The Polar Bear Club is an annual winter swim event where members and guests swim every winter Sunday in the cold Atlantic waters off of Coney Island. The largest swim they organize is the New Years Day Coney Island Plunge, in which non-members are invited to take a dip in the frigid waters.

January 1st 2017 was unseasonally warm in New York City, bringing larger crowds out for a brisk jump in the ocean. Check it out in this video from the New York Daily News.

Hundreds of New Yorkers braved the cold and dove into the water at Coney Island for the Polar Bear Plunge on New Year's Day.

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Vintage Photograph Captures Swimmers at McCarren Park on This Day in 1937

2016-07-12T10:25:43-04:00

The high temperature in New York City on July 12th, 1937 was 84°, prompting hundreds of hot Brooklynites to head to the massive McCarren Park Pool

Check out this vintage photograph shared by the New York City Department of Records documenting the occasion.

Today in 1937 - swimming pool at McCarren Park #thisdayinhistory pic.twitter.com/HW57SD1PoH
— NYC Dept of Records (@nycrecords) July 12, 2016

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Take a Dip! NYC's 55 Public Pools Open Today

2016-06-29T10:44:48-04:00

All 55 of New York City's outdoor public pools open today, June 29th. Parks Department Commissioner Mitchell Silver commenced the summer fun by taking a dip at Faber Pool.

The city's public pools will be open every day from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. until Sept. 11, Silver said. Aside from swimming, it also hosts free programs including lessons and senior swim classes.

Check out DNAinfo's interview to hear more from Silver. If you're looking to escape the summer heat, you now have 55 more options!

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Here's What Initiation into the Coney Island Polar Bear Club Looks Like

2016-03-10T08:47:25-05:00

You have probably heard of the Coney Island Polar Bear Club for their biggest event, the annual New Year's Day Plunge, but did you know they swim on each and every Sunday during Winter months?

In this video from James Bragg, watch as his buddy Sean takes his first plunge as a member of the club.

Every Sunday during the winter months, the Coney Island Island Polar Bear Club meet on the boardwalk for a cold water swim in the Atlantic.

The epic Baywatch anthem playing in the video is Jimi Jamison — "I'm Always Here"

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