Staten Island Car Rentals and Staten Island GreenBelt

The Staten Island Greenbelt is a system of public parkland that you can visit with your Staten Island car rental. It is located in the central hills of Staten Island and is the second largest component of the parks owned by the City of New York.

Putting together a large park

The Greenbelt was put together from an extensive system of connected trails that cover 2800 acres. It runs the length of Staten Island's midsection, while the wetlands and kettle ponds fill the low-lying areas. When you visit with your Staten Island car rental, you may learn that the Lenni-Lenape, who inhabited the area before Europeans came, called Staten Island the "place of bad woods". The island is naturally inhabited by oak, hickory, maple, beech, birch, sweet gum, ash, black walnut, wild cherry, blackberry, wild grape, and many other plants. Arrowheads have been found on the island, which shows that the Lenni-Lenape tried to defend their homeland. The British and Dutch found this to be an attractive place to settle because of the timber for ship building and iron ore for cannon balls.

From "a simple plan"

A park was proposed in 1871, to occupy the central portion of the land from the Fresh Kills near Richmondtown to Stapleton. During the first half of the 20th century, there were several proposals for parks and parkways for Staten Island. It wasn't until the 1960s that a plan for a parkway that would connect Brooklyn with New Jersey, including Staten Island. The administrative headquarters for the Greenbelt is located next to the entrance to High Rock Park in Egbertville. There is also a nature center on Rockland Avenue, just 3/4 mile down the road. The 4.8 mile parkway route which was originally proposed by Robert Moses has been de-mapped. Although there have been calls for its revival with the steadily increasing traffic on the island, non of the proposals have received significant support.

Take a hike

The Greenbelt has some spectacular forest vistas that you can explore when you visit with your Staten Island car rental. There are four major foot trails in the Greenbelt. They are well-marked. The Blue Trail is an easy-to-moderate 8-mile trail that mounts from Staten Island Boulevard and crosses the top of Todt Hill, one of the highest points on the Eastern Seaboard. The White Trail is on the southern end of an easy-to-moderate trail that connects to Great Kills Park, part of the Gateway National Recreation Area. The Red Trail is an easy-to-moderate 3.8 mile loop that begins and ends in Historic Richmond Town at St. Patrick's Place. The Yellow Trail is a moderate-to-difficult 6.6 mile trail that brings hikers through Reeds Basket Willow Swamp. It also ascends at Todt Hill. Each trail crosses different types of forests. All of the trails are open 365 days per year, from dawn to dusk. Check the signs for parking with your Staten Island car rental.

Check out the All Car Rent a Car location at 111 Quintard Street, Staten Island, NY 10305