Freilassen

In 1920 the SS Madonna came through these same waters to America carrying an orphaned 6 year old boy from Sicily in the hope to find a better life. Nearly a hundred years latter I was sailing the same route through New York harbor with his daughter, my wife Ann.
Starting from Sandy Hook (6/30, 0830) we were just passing underneath the Verrazano Bridge and entering New York Harbor. We could see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island in the distance and the looming Manhattan sky line illuminated by a morning sun on a beautiful sunny day. The statue was the same as when Charlie Fiduccia came from Cefalu but the skyline couldn't be more different. It's almost impossible to imagine the stresses he must have coped with to take the risk to come here and then the courage to become as successful as he was.
We were enroute to go through the harbor and transit the East river with an ultimate destination to reach Port Washington in Manhasset Bay, Long Island Sound. As you pass under the Verrazano we noticed a very old stone structure that you can't see from the busy expressway above. It was the old Wadsworth fort (built in 1663!) used to guard the entrance to the harbor. You could see how the structure could accommodate about 50 cannon and multiple other gun placements. If you were unwelcome in NY harbor in the old days you would have had a very unpleasant reception party.
After the bridge you have about an hour left to reach the Battery and plenty of time to take in all the sights. We sailed for the Statue of Liberty first. Now we had heard a lot about boat traffic in New York and have watched the craziness from shore, but I have to say it wasn't any worse than what we encounter around Annapolis.
We stayed out of the cargo ship lanes and slowed down to let the 300 foot Daedelus pass by as it made its way to the marine dock west of the harbor - right of tonnage! The high speed ferries and the Staten Island Ferry were pretty easy to avoid as you watched their preferred routes. It was the tourist boats that were the most erratic but, experienced captains kept us apart. The most difficult thing are the barges. They don't seem to answer to any higher authority, come and go as they please, and expect you to get out of the way regardless whether you are right or not. That's the only vessel you have to worry about. The only other risk were the pleasure boats and people fishing right in the middle of the harbor in the midst of all the craziness.
The one thing i didn't anticipate was the noise. Seaplanes taking off right beside our boat, helicopters buzzing like angry bees, jet noise from nearby Newark, the wind, and boat engines constantly changing speeds.
We passed the Statue of Liberty and approached Ellis Island to port with the new Freedom Tower behind us across the water. The combination of new and old, the historical significance of all three structures....I can't think of a more symbolic spot to be in our country to reflect on what it takes to protect our freedoms and way of life. It was a very moving moment. We hope the politicians haven't screwed it up and we have only praise for our military service men and women.
It was 1215 and we had to head up the East River by 1230 to make the tide. We made our move to go past the Battery and what an amazing experience to go past lower Manhattan. Everything was in motion and making noise. Boats, planes,tug boats, helicopters, ships, barges, people on shore. We made it without any problems and began going under the bridges up the river. Got a great picture of the Brooklyn bridge with Freedom Tower in the background that I will try to post.
After going under the Williamsburg bridge we hugged the starboard side and made our way close in to Transmitter Park. There is a long peer there with good water depth. At the end of the peer as we went by about 50 feet away was Mary our daughter with her co-workers from her new design studio. We were all smiles as we asked for one grande mocha frappucino and a tall latte to go (just joking of course!). What a thrill to sail past your daughter on the East river. We couldn't spend too much time there because of the moving tide and we had to stay on schedule.
The tide in the East River is an impressive thing. A very narrow river with a relatively deep channel that can have 4 knots of current with the tide. That means a boat that goes 7 knots would only make 3 knots if it fought the current and potentially >9 knots with the current. We made 8 knots the whole way with no major incidents.
The northern channel for the East river is pretty industrial with treatment plants, docks, Riker's Island with it's prison surrounded by razor wire, and LaGuardia airport with planes landing every couple of minutes.
It was dramatically different as we rounded Oc G lighthouse, the entrance to Long Island Sound. Cooler air, cold water, more rocks, and more wind...definitely a more northeast feel. It was the end to a perfect day as we rounded the corner to a mooring ball in Manhasset Bay.
This has been an amazing experience. Hope you get a flavor of it from reading the post.
God Bless America, what a great place we live in!