You leave the bustle of the City behind when you clear the soaring George Washington Bridge and head north up the Hudson River. You are greeted with the rocky heights (200-540 feet) of the Palisades on the western shore and are engulfed in the greenery and quiet of the Palisades Interstate Park. The eastern shore has a rolling steep hill topography dotted with commuter towns linked together by whistling trains.
We left our Statue anchorage at 7:15am to catch a rising tide which would give us a 1-2 mph speed boost up the Hudson. The day was overcast and hazy which certainly affected the photography but not our spirits. This is the 400th Anniversary of Henry Hudson sailing up the Hudson on the Half Moon in his search for the elusive Northwest Passage to the Orient. He noted the incredible beauty of the Hudson and called it “the River of Mountains.” He thought he might have found the Passage when he got to the wide Tappan Zee area, continued north to the shallows of Albany, admitted defeat and returned to Europe in frustration. We now enjoy the legacy of what he explored.
We wanted to anchor or dock on the western side of the river in the Palisades section but it is surprisingly shallow and there are no natural harbors in this section. We opted instead to go to eastern side, Croton-on-Hudson and beautiful Half Moon Bay Marina ($2.25 per foot). There is a good anchorage here in the Bay but with 60 mph t-storms forecasted, we wanted to be tied down. Steve, the dockmaster, is very helpful and you can see why this marina was voted #1 marina in a Northeast Boating magazine poll recently.
Part of our excitement in cruising the Hudson is that our history as a couple started here. We rented a car so that we could go over to Bear Mountain where 41 years ago, we decided to get married as young college students. It’s like opening a time capsule, and if I had it to do all over again, I would make the same decision. Let’s see what Bob says----“I’m a lucky man.”
We left our Statue anchorage at 7:15am to catch a rising tide which would give us a 1-2 mph speed boost up the Hudson. The day was overcast and hazy which certainly affected the photography but not our spirits. This is the 400th Anniversary of Henry Hudson sailing up the Hudson on the Half Moon in his search for the elusive Northwest Passage to the Orient. He noted the incredible beauty of the Hudson and called it “the River of Mountains.” He thought he might have found the Passage when he got to the wide Tappan Zee area, continued north to the shallows of Albany, admitted defeat and returned to Europe in frustration. We now enjoy the legacy of what he explored.
We wanted to anchor or dock on the western side of the river in the Palisades section but it is surprisingly shallow and there are no natural harbors in this section. We opted instead to go to eastern side, Croton-on-Hudson and beautiful Half Moon Bay Marina ($2.25 per foot). There is a good anchorage here in the Bay but with 60 mph t-storms forecasted, we wanted to be tied down. Steve, the dockmaster, is very helpful and you can see why this marina was voted #1 marina in a Northeast Boating magazine poll recently.
Part of our excitement in cruising the Hudson is that our history as a couple started here. We rented a car so that we could go over to Bear Mountain where 41 years ago, we decided to get married as young college students. It’s like opening a time capsule, and if I had it to do all over again, I would make the same decision. Let’s see what Bob says----“I’m a lucky man.”
