Day 270: Saturday, June 1, 2013
Port to Port: Liberty Cove to New York City, NY
Underway: 12:09 pm Motor Off: 2:30 pm Miles Traveled: 10/8 Stayed At: Mooring
First Things First: We passed by the QE II docked off the Battery in Manhattan.
Mile 154 to Mile 146: We only had about 10 miles to go today so we decided to take it easy and enjoy our quiet little spot in the shadow of Lady Liberty a little longer (plus we are waiting for a favorable tide to motor up the Hudson to the 79th St. Boat Basin). We invited Bill over for breakfast so he brought hot coffee and I made scrambled eggs, bacon and blueberry muffins and we enjoyed the warm sunshine and company again. Life is Good.
Bill returned to his boat and was soon pulling up his anchor (with his electric windlass) and he slowly motored down the channel. We were going to follow him out but we soon got a call that his cooling system wasn’t working right and after trying a few things he decided to come back and anchor to figure out the problem. I went over to help a little later and we soon found the problem – a 5” long chunk of seaweed had been sucked into the intake and was plugging the flow. Once that was pulled out, the system worked perfectly. It was a messy but cheap fix. Yah! We said goodbye and fair winds again, and he headed up the East River towards his ultimate destination of Nova Scotia and we headed out past the Statue of Liberty and north up the Hudson.
Our 10-mile trek to the marina was short and amazing but not very relaxing. Between all the tourist boats, fake pirate ships, ocean going ships, jet skis, paddle boards, kayaks, sailboats, water taxis and big waves, we were a little stressed. It was all worth it though. The slog was slowed by a counter current (we didn’t time it perfectly) so we put up the mainsail and got a 1+ mph boost all the way to 4.9 mph. Downtown Manhattan slowly passed by our starboard side and we reveled in the realization that we had made it to NYC. What an amazing feeling.
We were hoping to luck out at the marina and get a mooring ball really close to the dinghy dock (in 2002 we were in the first row of buoys). This time we first ended up about a half mile up the Hudson – not the worst but still a long dinghy ride. Then we had to move even farther away (long story) and we were in the third tier suburbs. Oh well, maybe we will luck out and be able to move up later. We got secured to the ball again and decided to go to shore to take showers and explore. While waiting for the only shower, we met Josee and Yvan from Canada. They have spent three years in the islands sailing and exploring and are now returning home to get ready for their next adventure. We chatted with them for a while and found out they were leaving the next day and they are only about 8 rows back from the dinghy dock. Woohoo. We walked and talked while we made our way 3 blocks up to Broadway and we parted ways to get our respective projects done. (Good luck with your cruise north).
We are going to gain 10 pounds in a week here. There are bakeries, food stands and restaurants everywhere – and it all looks and smells amazing. I don’t think we are going to do a whole lot of cooking on the boat this week. The city was bustling and the little stores were packed with shoppers. We were overwhelmed after spending so many months in relative isolation – this will take some getting used to. But there is a beautiful parkway running right along the Hudson and we are only a handful of blocks from Central Park. Best of all, a mooring ball is only $180 a week – in Manhattan. (In 2002, we paid only $90 but this is still a great deal and now they have a shower and bathroom).
We had pizza for dinner and dragged ourselves back to the marina as the sun was setting. On our long dinghy ride back to Aurora we spied an empty yellow transient ball only 4 rows from the marina – what luck. We immediately tied a cushion to it to lay claim and motored home only to untie again and motor Aurora down river to tie up for the third and final time. It was worth it, though and we are now set for the week.
We can’t wait for the girls and Jake to get here. Sarah has plotted out all the places they want to go on Google Maps and is working on an itinerary for next weekend. We are also going to get to visit with our nephew (the girls cousin) Garrett who happens to live only about 7 blocks from us here. We called him as we were motorsailing up the river and he generously offered to let the kids stay with him in his apartment next week (thanks Garrett). That is way better than their original plan of staying at a hostel. Plus, they will get to experience the nightlife of the city with someone who knows his way around – local knowledge is the way to go. That will be an amazing experience. Manhattan, here we come.
