Cloud Nine and Golden Daze reunited in Whitehall, NY in July of 2004 to cruise south to Manhattan via the Champlain Canal and Hudson River. This year we intentionally planned to stop at Waterford during the Steamboat Round-Up event and my niece Beth and her boyfriend planned to met up with us there via motorcycle.
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| Cloud Nine arrives at Steamboat Round-Up, Waterford, NY |
No sooner had they arrived that we were invited for a ride on African Queen - a not-to-be missed opportunity! Mid-ride Capt. Bill mentioned that these wood-fired steamboat engines have a habit of blowing up….at which point he fired off his aft mounted cannon. A heart-stopping moment!
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| Beth arrives |
You might enjoy these photos of African Queen:
African Queen steamboat
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| The fun begins! |
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| Adele tries out Dave's Harley |
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| Did I mention that the day was HOT and we were sweaty messes? |
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| Cloud Nine tied up to a tug |
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| Ballew relaxes in the V-berth and the coolness provided by our window mounted AC |
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| Half Moon docked in Albany |
It’s always hard to tear yourself away from Steamboat Round-Up but eventually we did and headed down the Hudson bound for Kingston. We had wanted to go to the boatyard where they are restoring dredged up Hudson River boats but found the place closed up for the July 4
th weekend.
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| Lighthouse at Roundout Creek, Kingston, NY |
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| Kingston docks |
The trip south was amazing because at every turn we seemed to pass a place we knew of or had heard of or was just generally famous. We pulled into the Tarry Town Marina, on the east side of the river, for two nights because of its location to the NYC commuter trains. I wanted to visit the Hudson River Marina in Yonkers which isn’t accessible by boat. This really worked out! The train station is quite close to the marina - which is a rarity.
The final day south started with boating under
the Tappan Zee Bridge. To boat under a bridge that you
know from driving over it in a car is quite an experience. You really get to
SEE the bridge. And from this point on it was ‘Look at this’ and ‘Look at
that!’ all the way down the river. The
Palisades, the Harlem River, the George
Washington Bridge,
Grant’s Tomb, the Empire State Building...
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| West Point |
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| Pollopel Island with Bannerman Castle |
....and on the west side, the Colgate Clock in Jersey City, NJ.
The Colgate Clock signals the turn to Liberty Landing Marina, where we planned
to stay for the week while we played tourist.
- - But first, you don’t go this far
down the Hudson
and stop before cruising up to Lady Liberty herself! I egged Craig into boating
as close as possible and then radioing Golden Daze to come up for a photo op.
Is it a thrill to drive your boat up to the Statue of Liberty? Yup!
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| Cruising past Ellis Island |
And, while we had heard dire warnings about tight security
in New York Harbor, we never saw any.
Then we did a U turn and headed back to Liberty Landing
Marina. Just as we pulled into the fuel dock to get our dock assignments Golden
Daze had a crisis as Don lost all ability to steer her. Thank goodness that
hadn’t happened any sooner!! Eventually both of our boats were docked, a
mechanic was summoned for Golden Daze and we kicked back in Cloud Nine's cockpit to
enjoy our new surroundings.
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| Relaxing at Liberty Landing |
The problem on Golden Daze turned out to be a
steering rod that had not been properly secured following work done on the
boat. Once the fix was made we ventured forth to enjoy New York City by water. The plan was to
leaved our boats at dock and use the Marina
ferry to visit Manhattan. Over the next several days we explored the
city by foot, Circle Line Cruise, ferry and exciting Hop On/Hop Off yellow Taxi catamarans. Hop On/Hop Off Water Taxi
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| Top deck of Water Taxi for us |
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| For Adele and Don too, of course! |
One day we rode the Water Taxi up the western tip of the
City stopping off to visit the Concorde
and the ship Intrepid.
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| Concorde is really tiny inside |
Another day we took the Circle Line Cruise around Manhattan - and noticed
that the South Street Seaport looked like a perfect place for us to visit.
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| Brooklyn Bridge |
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| Fire boat with Colgate tower in background |
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| Party people boarding Yacht |
That evening when we returned to our boats we encountered a
number of dressed-up people (way too dressed up for boating, but fun to
watch!) making their way to a large yacht docked at Liberty Landing. Not something we see at home!
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| View of Manhattan from our dock |
The last day of our stay we started with breakfast in
Greenwich Village and ended with a tour of Ellis Island.
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| Brunch in Greenwich Village |
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| Ellis Island - Grand Hall |
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| Jersey City Liberty Park Train & Ferry Station |
While at Ellis Island and looking toward the Jersey Shore,
it occurred to me that my Norwegian grandfather must have worked at the
elaborate train station just across from Ellis Island.
He resided in Jersey City
and was a carpenter on the train in the early part of the 1900s.
And then it was time to cast off from Liberty Landing and
head north again. Leaving during rush hour on Monday morning was a goof! For
the first several miles up the Hudson
commuter ferry boats were hurtling toward Cloud Nine from every point of the
compass! Our necks became swivels keeping look-out for oncoming vessels and
then doing our best to get out of their way. And then, as we reached the George Washington
Bridge, all settled back
down and all that insanity fell behind us.
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| Homeward bound |
There is steady barge traffic on the
river but these boats are easy water companions. You just want to be aware of
the wakes they throw, day and night, when you choose a place to overnight. It
is best to get your boat up a creek, like Catskill Creek or Roundout. And, if
that option isn’t available, be sure to get behind a good strong jetty. One
night we docked at a marina on the east side of the river that was a good
distance from boat traffic but had no other protection. Wakes from boats we
never even saw almost swamped Cloud Nine till we turned her around facing the
bow out. Even then we rocked and rolled all night long. Lesson learned!
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| Catskill Marina |
We had two great overnights on the river: the Catskill Marina and Coeymans Landing
Marina. It was at Coeymans (I think) that we found a hot tub on the office
porch. Adele and I were chin deep in no time at all - and it was there and then
that the weather changed from sunny and pleasant to torrential rains. Rain that
lasted all night. Rain that completely filled the inflatable dinghy on Cloud
Nine’s roof and then sent sheets of water cascading down the sedan walls when
the boat rocked. Rains that lasted for the next several weeks. It was truly time to head home!
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| Cloud Nine at Ft. Edward |
Back on the Champlain
Canal we had an overnight at Fort Edward
along with dinner at the Ft. Edward
Diner (cheap, local spot with good food!).
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| Relaxing on Golden Daze in Ft. Edward |
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| Locking through in the rain, Champlain Canal |
The next day we arrived back at Whitehall after doing
locks in the rain.
Another super trip!
The problem on Golden Daze turned out to be a
steering rod that had not been properly secured following work done on the
boat. Once the fix was made we ventured forth to enjoy New York City by water. The plan was to
leaved our boats at dock and use the Marina
ferry to visit Manhattan. Over the next several days we explored the
city by foot, Circle Line Cruise, ferry and exciting Hop On/Hop Off yellow Taxi catamarans. Hop On/Hop Off Water Taxi
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