We didn’t have to get up as early to leave our anchorage in Nyack, although we decided, once again to delay breakfast to take advantage of the favorable tidal current. With little river boating experience, we have been amazed to learn that the Hudson River is affected by the ocean tides all the way to Albany (where we will encounter a lock). It seems counterintuitive, having always assumed that rivers only flow one way from higher elevation to lower elevation. Every day on the water is a lesson in what we didn’t know we didn’t know.
A few interesting observations while heading north on the Hudson today:
- There are very busy train tracks on both sides of the river. To our right, there are Amtrak passenger trains constantly traveling back and forth to NYC. To our left are freight trains carrying shipping containers all day long.
- We passed a nuclear plant (Indian Point Energy Center) with three units, built in the ‘50s and ‘60’s. The plant is no longer active, the last unit that was running was decommissioned just a month before we came by.
- We passed by West Point Academy which has a beautiful site on the Hudson. It appears to be a beautiful campus with impressive architecture, however Sidekick Sue could not disagree when Captain Mark said it looked similar to a prison…. maybe more like a fortress.
- We passed by Bannerman Castle, which was built by Francis Bannerman VI, as a warehouse for his military surplus business. His family was originally from Scotland, and the warehouse was built to look like a Scottish Castle. It has long been abandoned and tours of the island (you can’t go in the castle as it is partially collapsed) are offered through the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation.
- The views along the riverbanks have changed to hills and cliffs instead of the flat views along the southern part of our journey.
- There are lots of loose logs floating down the Hudson. So now, Captain Mark is having to dodge those, as opposed to the crab pots that he was dodging from South Carolina to Maryland.
We anchored in Poughkeepsie between the Mid-Hudson Bridge and the Walkway over the Hudson, a bicycle and pedestrian friendly bridge. The “anchorage” was very deep, nearly 50’, even though we were only 200’ from shore. We had never anchored in such deep water before and the current anchor rope we had on our chain was not going to be long enough for the 250’ scope that we would need. Captain Mark was prepared and got out a brand-new reel of anchor rope that he had bought before the trip, attached it to the anchor, and let it drop. Unfortunately, shortly after the anchor hit bottom, the rope got terribly knotted (like trying to pull yarn from a skein), so he had to quickly pull the anchor up and Sidekick Sue drove in circles while Captain Mark unknotted his anchor rope. A half hour later, the ordeal was over and the Wayward Explorer was anchored safely in the deep water. The reason the word “anchorage” is in quotes above is because it was not like most of the anchorages we have used. It was not protected at all; it was a very wavy experience until after dark when the recreational boat traffic finally ceased. We also noted that we never really “rotated” in a circle around the anchor. We were pulled directly upstream and then downstream, in a straight line, depending on which way the tide was going, which was different from the normal arc-like pattern we have seen in calmer waters.
While waiting to make sure the anchor had “caught”, we had our late breakfast and planned our next moves. We were parked next to a park that had a boat launch and a dock, but the dock was posted as 15 minute loading/unloading, and we wanted to go walk for a few hours. A sheriff patrol happened by and Captain Mark shouted out to him, asking if we could use the dock for our dinghy for a few hours. He said it was fine, but when we got there, we still pulled our dinghy around the back of the dock where it wouldn’t interfere with all the small boats and jetskis that were coming in and out on the boat ramp.
We walked up the hill into Poughkeepsie to do our walking. Initially, we thought about walking the pedestrian bridge across and back, but the heat was sweltering (93 degrees), and we didn’t know what it would be like up there, with no shelter, so we decided to walk through the city instead. We weren’t disappointed about missing the pedestrian bridge, because we had biked it a few years prior during our biking/camping trip from NH to PA.
Poughkeepsie is a typical old NY industrial town that has seen better days. There is lots of crumbling infrastructure, empty storefronts, graffiti, and abandoned buildings. Another thing that struck us was the trash everywhere; I’m not sure we’ve seen a place looking so littered and uncared for. It definitely didn’t have the fun vibe of the other waterfront towns we have visited so far. The only thing that was really impressive was their old government buildings; huge stone buildings from another era which housed their City Hall, Post Office, and other municipal functions.
Unimpressed by the city and the neighborhoods, but still needing more Fitbit steps, the Explorers decided to trek to the nearest “real grocery store” which was a couple miles away. We weren’t desperate for any particular supplies, but it gave us something to do to get our steps for the day. As the heat of the afternoon got worse, they decided this may have been a poor decision, as it was brutally hot, and the route they had followed had no shade trees and no sidewalks. Google had categorized the route as “mostly flat”, but Sidekick Sue begged to differ. Lots of uphill and zig-zagging across the city to get to the air-conditioned Stop and Shop, which they didn’t want to leave. The walk back was nicer, the sun was starting to go down, and they picked a route down Main Street which was more walker-friendly (although no more inviting or clean). In the end the Explorers walked nearly 7 miles in the heat and were ready to kick-back for the rest of the night. We had one more quick scare when Captain Mark remembered he had tied up the dinghy, but not locked it, so we were hoping to find it still there.
As it turned out, the park was still bustling with activity. There were several large family parties going on, some involving fireworks and a release of sky lanterns. Our dinghy was safe and sound, we figured that the presence of so many people would have deterred any mischief. Our only obstacle was a handful of young girls on the dock that asked us a hundred questions about our boat, told us all about the fish they can caught with their bare hands (and then ripped apart and threw back in the water), and wished us a “romantic ride” as we set off in our dinghy.
Back on the boat, Captain Mark jumped in the water to cool down, while Sidekick Sue choose the on-board shower (people warn against going in the Hudson south of Albany). Sidekick Sue tried to work her jigsaw until it got too dark to reasonably see the colors (our battery powered cabin lights aren’t that bright) while Captain Mark sat up on the flybridge enjoying the cooler air. They watched a few videos from their favorite YouTube vlogs and called it a night.
