May 27, 2007

This morning we got up and said good bye to New York City and headed North toward the Erie Canal which is north up the Hudson River. We had enough fuel so we pulled out of the marina canal just as two huge cruise ships were heading up the river. It was interesting to see how one did not need tugs and the other one did. We also observed the security measures and only saw a couple of boats on duty on the holiday. Then we headed toward the Tappan Zee Bridge; crossed under; and spied the Tarrytown lighthouse sitting under it. Then it was on northward to the Bear Mountain Bridge with bluffs all along the Jersey shore and small hills on the New York side. We also caught a glimpse of Stony Point Lighthouse which is the oldest lighthouse on the river. The next sight was that of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Even though it was a gray day it was so impressive to see this monumental institution and to know its part in the history of our country. The river then narrowed a lot and we had to follow more definite channels. We passed Washington’s headquarters during the Revolutionary War but not much was visible. We then passed under the Newburg Beacon Bridge and went onward to the Mid-Hudson Bridge and passed Hyde Park the home of Franklin Roosevelt which was not visible from the water but the Vanderbilt House was just visible. Then we came upon the Hudson River Lighthouses that are in the middle of the river. The first was Esopus Meadows and then came the Rondout Lighthouse and then it was under the Kingston Rhinecliff Bridge. Then came the Saugerties Lighthouse which was very neat and actually sat on its Jetty to the channel. Soon we turned the corner and there was the Rip Van Winkle Bridge and we decided to stop at a marina just before the bridge for the day and it is now five o’clock and we are tied up and they have a good laundry area so we are going to do that chore. We are probably 40 miles at most from Troy, NY and the Erie Canal. We really need to have Shorty’s oil changed but it is a holiday until Monday so it will probably have to wait until then. Some of the lighthouses were open for tours. We also passed what looked like an old castle of some sort in the middle of the river and we are going to have to research that one. The countryside really surprised me. There were the Palisades of New Jersey and the bluffs and mountains around the Military Academy and then in the distance further from the shore you could see the Catskills which were caught up in kind of a blue haze today. The river had a lot of sticks and trash floating in it like they had a lot of rain which washed down into it. There was some type of tree in bloom along the riverside and lots and lots of pollen floating in the air. We passed a large ship anchored in the river about half way into our trip today and some barges and tows coming down the river but nothing loaded going up the river. We passed a two masted schooner going up river with a group of tourists on it. I can’t remember the name but I have a photograph of it.

As a postlude to New York we walked down to the edge of the river last night and looked at the skyline at night. It was so much fun to see the buildings all lit up that you had seen on TV and elsewhere before your own eyes in person. The Empire State Building, Chrysler building and others were really neat. This morning when we left we think we saw the United Nations towers and Central Park and others in the daylight.
I don’t remember if I mentioned it or not but the Liberty Landing Marinas restrooms and showers and etc., are in the original old Liberty Lightship itself which was really neat