After three days visiting New York City from Great Kills Yacht Club, we departed for our 150-mile trip up the Hudson River. Excitement was high as the trip would take us under the Verrazano Narrows Bridge and then past the Statue of Liberty and Manhattan. We were not disappointed as we were dwarfed by the enormity of the structures and their symbolism. Add in the river traffic consisting of ocean-going freighters, ferries, tugs and tour boats, and the result is an adrenaline rush that is hard to duplicate.
Our first stop on the river was the 79th Street Boat Basin. It is a state park marina with docks and moorings. We chose a mooring and our friends on Déjà vu picked us up with their dinghy and took us to the dock. We walked to Central Park, visited an awesome deli and had dinner at the park restaurant.
The following morning, the river was flowing about 4 mph and we then understood why there were two pendants on each mooring ball. If a pendant broke, your boat would be downstream and out to sea before anyone could begin to respond! Once the tide changed and the current was in our favor, we disconnected and started north. A few short miles later beyond the George Washington Bridge, the landscape changed from high rise apartments and offices to high banks of trees and rock formations. There was little evidence of our proximity to NYC beyond the commuter trains on the east bank and long freight trains on the west bank.
Our next stop was Half Moon Bay at Croton-on-Hudson. From here, we rented a car and drove to West Point then the Culinary Institute of America. West Point, like the Naval Academy in Annapolis, was quite impressive. The architecture as well as the traditions are inspiring, not to mention the views of the Hudson River and valley. Next, we drove back across to the east bank and had lunch at the CIA. The meal was excellent, but once again, the buildings and views made everything else seem insignificant.
The following morning, we sailed north on the Hudson past the Palisades, West Point and Bear Mountain. The scenery was beyond description. It was one of those times that our vocabulary just simply falls short in trying to describe. We dropped anchor at Sandy Beach opposite Storm King Mountain. That should have been a clue. It was a stormy night and we pitched heavily throughout the darkness. By morning, the sky and river calmed, and we hoisted anchor for another day of WOW.
As we traveled north, the bridges over the Hudson were as magnificent as the buildings and landscape, Tappan zee, Bear Mountain, Mid-Hudson and more. The engineering and construction are truly works of art. It all adds up to support the New York state slogan as “The Empire State”. Also, along the river are several lighthouses including one known as the “Maid of the Meadow”. Built from the late 1800’s to early 1900’s, they appear like Victorian doll houses set on rocks in the middle of the river.
Our next stop was a mooring ball at Poughkeepsie Yacht Club, established in 1892. Once secured, we dinghied to the clubhouse to register and shower. We met several club members and ended up ordering pizza and spending several hours visiting with members, friends and other guests. One member, Scott, is a river pilot who brings large ships up and down the Hudson from Albany. Some ships are as large as 600’ long with a 30’ draft. No room for error in a 32’ deep channel!
After leaving Poughkeepsie the following morning, we made a rare midday stop to visit the Hudson River Maritime Museum in Kingston and have lunch ashore. Afterward we moved on to Duck Cove to drop anchor for the night. The challenge here is to place the anchor within the 20 yards where the 40’ deep channel bottom rises to 8’ before quickly becoming 2’. Too close to the channel and you drag anchor; too close to the flats and you go aground during the night! We were successful and had a very peaceful night.
The next morning, we were off to Castleton-on-Hudson and the Castleton Boat Club. The boat club has a jib boom crane that can be rented for self-service mast stepping. There is a 15 ½’ height restriction in the Erie Canal, requiring sailboats to lower their masts. Our friends on Déjà vu had one mast to lower, we had two, and another sailboat headed south needed to raise one. We all pitched in to help each other and all went well. Our new southbound friends insisted on buying dinner for the group, so we headed to the only restaurant/bar in town, The Village Inn. Interesting meal; the Amtrak trains run so close to the building (at 80-100 mph) you nearly jump out of your skin! The following morning, we all bid farewell and went our separate ways.
Now ready for the Erie Canal 15 miles north, we motored to Albany Yacht Club for a couple of days to check out the state capital. While there, we took the Amtrak back down to NYC to see a Yankees game and fulfil our goal of seeing five major-league stadiums this summer: Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and now both New York ballparks. All is well!