We set out from our
sheltered slip at Lockwood Boat Works in Morgan, New Jersey at
1:40 p.m. Once we cleared the Cheesequake Creek inlet we headed
for deeper water, turned toward the wind which was coming from
the west and set our mainsail with a double-reef. We then headed
off on a broad reach towards the mouth of Raritan Bay.
It was another one of those beautiful, clear, wind-filled days. The breeze continued to freshen as we sailed and I was glad I only set our double-reefed mainsail. The wind was blowing at 30+ knots and Realization sailed happily along at 6.
We passed Old Orchard Shoals lighthouse, then West Bank lighthouse and headed up towards the Verranzano Narrows.
A container ship passed us as we headed under the west side of the span. We then crossed the channel to continue our sail into New York Harbor as the ship turned westward into the Kill Van Kull for Port Newark or Elizabeth in New Jersey.
We
passed the massive ships in the harbor's mooring field and then
another large ship suddenly emerged from the East River and quickly
crossed our bow as we headed towards her stern. Then the Staten
Island Ferry left the landing in Manhattan for Staten Island.
I could also see the other ferry returning from Staten Island.
We were on a collision course with that ferry and tacked to avoid
her. We gave her passengers a glimpse of our bottom before tacking
again behind her. We continued on, dodging barges, water taxis,
sightseeing and excursion boats.
We were nearing our destination and tried hailing the Manhattan Yacht Club at Pier 25. We called several times without an answer. We passed the Battery, then North Cove. Then we tried hailing the Manhattan Yacht Club again -- no answer. We entered the mooring field at Pier 25 and circled around. We shouted to a fellow on the dock that we wanted a mooring for the night and he told us which one we could use and offered us a ride to the dock when we were ready. We accepted his offer and headed for our mooring.
Realization settled back on her mooring and we prepared the boat. Cimon, our dalmatian, was anxious to get off of the boat so we hailed our ride. It was 7:00 p.m. We made the 30 mile trip in 5 hours averaging 6 knots with only a double-reefed main.
Climbing out of the
dingy, Cimon made a mad dash for the gangway up to the pier. Then
we had to find a patch of grass, and quick. There wasn't any grass
but there was a small garden in the park. It would have to do.
Cimon took care of business, I cleaned up after him, and we went
for a stroll. There were plenty of people walking, jogging, biking
and skating as well as others walking their dogs. Cimon even got
a few pats on his head and others stopped to ask what he was wearing
as he still donned his bright yellow PFD.
We returned to the boat and Bruce prepared another fine meal. The setting sun cast a golden glow on the skyscrapers towering over us and it was surprisingly quiet compared to what I had expected. We watched the lights come on in the city as well as across the river. We had views of the World Trade Trade Center, the Chrysler and Empire State buildings, the Colgate clock and the Statue of Liberty to name a few. Both sides of the river were a glorious spectacle of light.
The mooring field is exposed to the west and the boats are prone to rolling from the wakes of cruise ships, other large ships and excursion boats. But by 1:00 a.m. the rolling stopped and we slept comfortably. River traffic began again at the crack of dawn with barge traffic and inbound cruise ships.
The previous evening,
the launch operator promised to come and get us again in the morning,
but Cimon was up at 6:00 a.m. We didn't feel it would be fair
to radio the launch operator so early in the morning, especially
on Sunday, so we brought our dingy up on deck and inflated it.
Cimon, who thinks the dingy is just for him, hopped into it immediately
while we were trying to inflate it and we had to chase him out
of it several times. We heaved the inflated dingy over the side,
added our battery and trolling motor, then we all hopped in and
headed for the pier. Cimon, like usual, was first out of the dingy
in a frantic run to find an appropriate place to relieve himself.
We made it up to the park, he took care of business and we walked
along the river. It was now 6:30 a.m. and the park was already
full of walkers, joggers, skaters and bikers, and there was a
group of kayakers getting ready to launch their boats.
We headed back to the dingy and back to the boat. We enjoyed a fine breakfast and readied the boat for our return voyage home.
It was another beautiful morning. A group of J-24s sat in the river before us. There was very little wind and the current was taking them backwards. What a difference from the previous day. Owners and their families began ferrying back and forth to the boats in the mooring field. We made one last trip to shore with Cimon and then we were off with the iron genny all the way out of the river and into the bay.
Note: Pier 25 is part of the Hudson River Park system. The
mooring field is located on the south side of the pier and moorings
are available at $1 per foot per night. Transient moorings are
available only to sailboats and Pier 25 can be called on VHF channel
69.
Click on the links below if you'd like to know more.
Last modified: 19 January 2000