Mystery of Storm King Solved!
For many years I wondered just what was going on “over there” as I passed what I eventually learned is the Storm King Art Center, a collection of art and sculptures on display on 500 acres in New Windsor, New York. I would always see these fabulous, colorful sculptures set on the open fields as my friends and I were driving north on Route 87 toward Pawling, or Woodstock, or Rhinebeck. We would have the same conversation every time. “One of these days we’re going to go there and check it out.”
I think the reason I never made it a top priority is that there is quite a bit of walking and long before getting my scooter, the only walking I really enjoyed was traversing the city streets. I grew up on a farm surrounded by about 250 acres of woods, which was my playground. Those woods hold so many wonderful memories, they are the only woods I want to walk. City streets are way more entertaining to me now.
What’s going on “over there?” As seen from the observation deck at Storm King.
Anyway, one of these days finally came on November 3, 2023, when my friend Trish and I decided “Let’s just do it!” Trish said she had taken a bus out of the Port Authority years earlier and it was still operating. She was fairly certain it would accommodate the scooter. Sure enough Coach USA operates a bus that travels there directly daily, and the bus is handicapped accessible. No reservation required.
You can learn more about getting there with a mobility device on the Storm King website. https://stormking.org/plan-your-visit/.
On the designated day and time Trish and I met at the gate and sure enough, the bus driver nodded to me to wait midway down the outside of the bus. Immediately a side panel opened, a platform popped out and slid toward me. Once on, the scooter and I rose slowly, stopping at the opening where I would enter the bus, which is level to the seats inside. The driver had already moved the seats back giving me an easy entry.
In theory this is meant to give me plenty of room to ride on and park. Thank God I drive a three-wheel; I probably could not have gone using a four-wheel. The Pride Victory is three inches longer than the more widely used smaller scooters so I’m not always guaranteed I can make it fit. A smaller scooter would have had plenty of room to turn and park. But it was trickier for me. Eventually, however, I got the scooter situated and then moved to one of the empty bus seats for the hour or so ride north.
My scooter snuggly parked after two seats were pushed back.
Inside Storm King, the Coach bus leaves you near the bike rental barn. Trish had specific art she wanted to photograph, while I wanted to see as much if not all of it so we split up texting one another periodically and eventually meeting up at the museum, which is roughly at the center of the property.
I decided to follow the direction the bus was facing, which meant I would do the south loop first. At this point the road is paved and fairly flat, but not too far from the barn, the road turns to gravel, although it remains reasonably level.
Following the South Fields Loop. Art is displayed on both sides.
Roy Lichtenstein’s The Mermaid and Figolu, by Mark di Suvero to the left.
Just past the Mermaid, I crossed a short bridge and then began an ascent past Andy Goldsworthy’s Storm King Wall. The Wall is gorgeous, handsomely built. From a distance or up close, it looks like a serpent coming up out of the pond.
Andy Goldsworthy’s The Storm King Wall
Here I got off my scooter, put it in low gear and walked beside it to the top. The path was rough in spots, and I felt it was too steep to carry me and give me enough battery for the rest of the day. Especially since I didn’t know the paths ahead.
At the top of the hill, other sculptures can be seen, but many are on rolling slopes of mowed lawn with no cut path. Not ideal for any mobility device so I stayed on the gravel, which looped around to the center of the property. What I couldn’t see but learned later is that there are paved paths to more of the sculptures than I thought. Next time I visit, I will take better notes and update the blog.
Observation Deck with two large elevators near the museum and center of the property.
By the time I got to the museum, I was down about 3 bars on the scooter so I thought it would be good to plug in for a half hour or so. While there were outlets and room where I would be out of the way, the museum staff would not let me use them—including the manager. This got me upset as no explaining that the scooter uses a lead battery not an explosive lithium battery swayed them. They said the building is old and they didn’t think the outlets could handle it.
Clearly, they knew nothing about mobility scooters nor did they seem to care how important it was that I keep a strong charge.
Sculptures found near the museum or just below the Observation Deck.
Instead they suggested I go back to the bicycle rental barn. They had outlets that I could use. The museum is located at the top of a hill, so I knew I could get to the barn without a problem, but it limited how far off the path I could go to see other art along the way. There was still the entire North Loop to see, and I wanted to see as much as I could.
Thankfully the staff at the barn was more helpful, offering an outlet just inside the barn door. I plugged in and sat for about a half hour, but by then Trish had covered what she wanted to photograph and there was only a half hour before the Coach bus would be arriving to take us back to the city. She joined me at the barn, and we waited together, reviewing our pictures and assessing the day.
Art along the North Loop trail.
Upon arrival of the return bus, the driver motioned to me to get on first. It was a little embarrassing as by then quite a line had formed. Everyone was tired, the wind had picked up making it cold, and people just wanted to find a seat. But now I was experienced, so it should have been a quick boarding for me . . . until it wasn’t! On the platform I went and up the side of the bus I rode (with everyone watching, of course), but when the driver went to slide the two seats back, they wouldn’t budge! They were simply stuck and no matter how much brute strength he used, nothing moved. OMG Now what? There I sat on the scooter, suspended above the crowd, outside the open door of the bus.
This is one of those situations where time went into slow motion. I wished I had some talent where I could’ve offered the crowd more substantial entertainment, but alas, I cannot carry a tune, clearly I couldn’t dance and my sometimes quick wit had evaporated!
Instead, I tried to focus everyone’s attention on the poor driver.
Arriving at Storm King in the morning. Same spot for boarding in the afternoon.
People in the line were shifting positions and being kind, but I completely understood their desire to just get on the bus. I asked the driver if he could let them on and then come back to me, but he said no. I had to get on first.
Sheepishly, I apologized to everyone and waited to see how the driver would resolve the problem. It turned out the rails, that the seats slide on needed a quick cleaning. As soon as he realized this, he produced a screwdriver, removed the obstruction and then the seats moved easily. Hallelujah!
Offering a Queen Elizabeth wave, I now had to demonstrate my great parking skills while everyone watched. You just have to go with it. The size of the space was the same so it required several back and fourths before the scooter was properly stationed and my position as headliner entertainment was over! :)
As soon as I was settled, the rest of the passengers happily boarded, and we were on our way back to the city.
At the end of the day my assessment was I wish I had visited this amazing art center years earlier. The sculptures are so huge and look awesome seen up close or from afar. The only detriment in using a scooter is I was unable to read the information plaque set near each piece, and I could see the art from only one maybe two perspectives. Sculptures, of course, need to be viewed in their entirety. The art delivers an emotional response from the light shining on it to the shadows it casts. Whether it is set on gravel, surrounded by water or springs out of a manicured lawn, it is best seen from every angle. But this hindrance will not prevent me from returning.
My scooter did the job. It was great to have freedom to explore as much as I did.
Update:
Since our visit in 2023, they have add a new visitor center with new, accessible restrooms and plenty of places for charging.