July 23, 2020 Thursday

The weather continued hot and humid and today very hazy. I made our usual breakfast of oatmeal (with yogurt and raisins) and coffee while I wrote yesterday’s blog update. We had a spare guide book to New England and we knew Miles did not, so we put it in a paper bag and after pulling anchor we passed by their boat; as we said good morning to Cindy on Miles, Sharon tossed the guide book into their dingy for them and we continued on toward Manhattan on the incoming tide.

With all of the haze and low cloud cover it was less than an ideal way to see the Big Apple from the water but we were anxious to get north and maybe away from the heat. The usual plethora of shipping met us in New York Harbor. A giant container ship was behind us going under the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and three tug boats were coming out of the harbor to meet it. Other tug boats were pushing and pulling loads across the harbor. Two Staten Island Ferries coming and going crossed our path. Coast Guard and Harbor Patrol boats were making their rounds of the harbor. A few jet skies went past, Sharon said maybe they commute to the city on them; nothing would surprise me when it comes to NYC.

Soon we were passing along the Statue of Liberty which is always an inspiring site. Sharon told me when her mother was younger, she had gone up and stood at the torch but when Sharon visited as a young girl she was allowed only to the crown and now we don’t think you can even go inside the statue. But regardless of that it is an inspiring sight to behold even in the grey gloomy haze of today’s weather (and politics).

Once we passed the George Washington Bridge, the shipping traffic stopped with the exception of a few ferry and tour boats. There were numerous sailboats out enjoying the fresh breeze from the south of about ten knots. We passed along Manhattan admiring the architecture on both sides of the Hudson River and wondered at the scale of the cities that were still growing with numerous tower cranes leading the way to the clouds. If you haven’t seen the NYC skyline in years it is worth taking a look all the crazy designs, not exactly all box shaped masses.

The current and engine was carrying us along at nine knots and we soon passed under the George Washington Bridge and continued under the three hundred-foot cliffs “Palisades” on the New Jersey side of the river. It was nice to see no one had sprayed graffiti on the cliffs since they are such a tempting canvas for a rock-climbing artist.

We were getting tired by the afternoon as we passed under the new Tappan Zee Bridges that are on the chart as Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge. The new bridges are graceful matching suspension bridges and I had enjoyed watching them go up over the last several years as we drove to and from New England crossing on the old bridge. While crossing I always have admired the beauty of the Hudson River to the north and I was thrilled now to be able to travel it on our boat.

Around two-thirty after passing Sing-Sing Prison we pulled into a beautiful anchorage off Croton Point Park in Haverstraw Bay. I was a little nervous of such an exposed location where the Hudson is at its widest spot and there were lots of thunderstorms building up around us but there are not a lot of options on the river. Croton Point Park has a long beach with a few visitors and beyond a grass covered hill rising above it. The rest of the Croton Point is covered in deep green forest hiding a campground.

I took a long nap after securing the boat. The high levels of heat and humidity were taking their toll on me and I slept very soundly barely hearing the passing trains that ran along the shore to the city. Sharon posted yesterday’s blog and made us big salads for dinner. After dinner I watched the several large thunderstorms passing by but we never even got any rain that evening.