May 21, 2009, 3:54 pm
The view is cool beyond words.
In anticipation of the Independence Day reopening of theStatue of Liberty's crown, theNational Park ServiceWednesday gave reporters a sneak peek.
They were the first people inside the top of the statue 9/11.
After the grueling climb to the top, reporters and camera people stood on the 50 square foot platform and peered out the 25 small windows that are the great reward for getting up there.
Thanks to a series of Daily News editorials and a new administration inWashington, the public will be taking in this stirring view for the first time in eight long years.
Before 9/11, visitors were admitted in a steady stream that allowed those who reached the top only a moment's pause before people behind them nudged them along.
Under the new system, visitors will be chosen by lottery and admitted in groups of 10 and given time to pause and marvel.
"Quality, not quantity," a National Park Service spokesman said.
Those who are not in reasonably good physical condition or who are made queasy by heights should think twice.
The crown sways as much as five inches in high winds and can be 20 degrees hotter than the outside.
Visitors will not be allowed when the temperature rises above 90 degrees.
