Being anchored in Gravesend Bay was nice because it was away from the busy shipping channels, yet we could watch the big ocean liners as they passed by us and then under the Verrazano Bridge at the entrance to New York City.When it opened in 1964, the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge was the world's longest suspension span. The ends of the bridge are at historic Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn and Fort Wadsworth in Staten Island, both of which guarded New York Harbor at the Narrows for over a century. The bridge was named after Giovanni da Verrazano, who, in 1524, was the first European explorer to sail into New York Harbor.

None of had been in New York before, except Michael, who came during his university years, so we wanted to take this opportunity to explore.

Our first trip into the City from Gravesend Bay, was on the subway from Coney Island. I knew of Coney Island, but only from movies I saw many years ago. I had a very odd feeling about Coney Island and I think that was because most of the movies had been of a creepy nature, you know the psycho thriller kind.
From Gromit, we dingied a short way across Gravesend Bay until we reached a little creek which, we were told would lead us to a fuel dock behind a gas station. The creek was strewn with boat wrecks, old pilings and garbage. We arrived at an old dilapidated dock with equally dilapidated boats tied off with dock lines that were chaffed and dirty. The kids and I got out and because the dock was so small, Michael paddled the dingy around to the back, where we hoisted it up onto the dock, not only to keep it from puncturing on the side of the rundown dock, but also to keep it out of sight. Leading up from the dock was a steep metal ramp, one that moves up and down with the tide as it ebbs and flows. Our two biggest concerns at this point were whether the dingy would still be there and whether the steel door at the top of the metal ramp would be locked when we got back from Manhattan. The gas station attendant told us that the door sometimes got locked, but that he would be there until 9pm. It was already 2 in the afternoon, so that didn't leave us much time to spend in the city.
Our walk to the subway station was almost as creepy as the ride up the creek. I just didn't get a good feeling about this part of Coney Island and I was already wondering what it would be like at 9pm. We walked two blocks to the subway station and I was surprised at how much garbage was on the streets. Compared to Manhattan, this place didn't appear to be well looked after.
The kids were so excited about riding the subway. Their fun went beyond just looking out the windows. They were having fun trying to stay standing when the train started up and stopped. It took an hour to get into Manhattan to the stop where we met, Corey, a long-time friend of mine who I meet in Japan in the 1980s. Not only was it fantastic to see him again, but what a bonus to spend time with a friend who is very knowledgeable about his city! We walked for hours through Greenwich Village, Soho, Columbus Circle and of course, Times Square.
To our great luck, it was no ordinary evening in Times Square. It was a historic evening. The election results were being shown on colossal screens. Bleachers were set up and the crowds on them sent up cheers of joy everytime an new State was reported to have been won by Obama. The energy was incredible.
Alas, it was getting closer to the time we had to leave to get back to Coney Island. A quick dinner at a Mexican restaurant that Corey recommended and then back onto the subway to Coney Island. Happily, the door to the dock wasn't locked, the dingy was still there and the trip out of the creek and across the bay was windless and bright thanks to the moon. Whew!
The next day we left Gravesend Bay due to a forecast of very strong northeast winds. We felt that the bay was too wide open and we needed more protection. On our chart, Great Kills Harbour, an hour and a half across lower New York Harbour, looked very well protected. It is a harbour with land all around it except for its very narrow entrance. Our guide books warned us about being careful upon entering the bay due to shoaling. The tide moves so quickly through the narrow entrance that much sand is constantly being moved and deposited causing shoals to build in the channel. Once inside, we choose a spot to anchor. Now, anchoring can be a very simple quick procedure: find your spot, drop your anchor, let our the appropriate amout of chain for the depth of the water as the boat reverses, drift backwards until the anchor digs in. When the anchor chain tightens put the engine in reverse and give a good tug to make sure that the anchot has set. No problem, right? Sounds simple enough - in a text book sort of way! Welllllll, that day, there were no text books in sight! We don't know what the bottom of that bay was, but everytime we pulled up the anchor because it wouldn't set, it was covered with gobs of black goop, best described by Michael as black cream cheese. We tried with our 60lb CQR anchor 3 times. Then Michael moved our 44lb Bruce anchor onto the CQR anchor chain, because we didn't trust the rode that the Bruce was attached to. That involved cutting off the lock wire from the shackles, putting the cream cheesed CQR on deck. Reattaching the Bruce to the chain and lock wiring it onto the shackle. All this, while I drove circles around the bay dodging a sea of mooring balls - beach ball sized ball that is attached to a chain which is secured to the bottom of the bay. OK, the Bruce anchor is ready. Finally after the third try, it held, barely. We knew that the wind was going to be around 20-30 knots, with gusts up to 35 knots, otherwise known as a 'gale', so we were not at ease with one anchor that we felt was barely holding us. Those marina's around the harbour were looking pretty enticing by this time. Nevertheless, Michael lowered the dingy and removed the 43lb Danforth anchor from the rail at the rear of the boat. I lowered it to him along with 30 feet of chain and 110 feet of line. He dingied the anchor and line out, at about a 50 degree angle, to the set anchor and dropped it overboard. No small feat, with a 2hp motor on the dingy and a wind which was starting to pick up. Back aboard Gromit, we tightened up the second anchor line and retired to the lounge for mint julips. Well, the lounge and mint julips were just delirium after a rather exhausting afternoon. Yes, it took an afternoon. On the positive side, we can be happy about the experience we gained by anchoring over and over and over and over.