Day 191

Daily stats
Start: 12:00 PM - Pier 40 - New York, NY
Finish: 8:15 PM - Tellers Point - Crotonville, NY
Time: 8:15
Daily dist: 27 miles
Total dist: 3600+ miles
Companions: None
Weather: Mostly cloudy with widely scattered showers, 80 degrees
Notes: My first day back on the water after my NYC break.

People have warned me that on the Hudson River it’s very important to pay attention to the tide currents that flow up and down the river. Paddling with the current can add a mile to your pace while paddling against the current can slow you just as much. Tide charts exist that predict with amazing accuracy the time direction and flow rate of the currents on the river. Today a smart person would have jumped on the river in the early morning to ride the tide north to my camp site by early afternoon before the tide switched. Of course a smart person is powerless against the heavy traffic that crushes the city every morning as people come in to work. It was that traffic that kept Steve Kristin and I at home until 9:00 AM while we waited for rush hour to end before driving in. So, after waiting for traffic to clear and the two hour drive in, Steve dropped me off at the dock at Pier 40.

Steve waves goodbye from the dock at Pier 40

With 27 miles to go out of the city to the first camp site, and only an hour and a half of incoming tide to still run with, I quickly loaded my boat and was on the water by noon. With Steve waving goodbye from the pier I swung the loaded Ikkuma into the river and headed north.

At first I made great time as I paddled up the length of Manhattan island. Two hours into the days paddle I reached the George Washington Bridge and the river changed character. Right there (and right on schedule) the tide switched and I found myself paddling upstream against the now southbound current. The scenery changed too, just past the bridge the western shore changed from buildings right to the waters edge to towering bare stone bluffs dripping with lush green foliage. To say it was beautiful would be an understatement.

Glassy smooth water on the Hudson River

Paddling right next to shore I was able to avoid the maximum flow of the building current but it did slow my progress. The distance I had to go would normally take me seven hours which would have gotten me to camp by 7:00. By the midpoint of the day I was already a half hour behind my pace and I already knew I’d be coming in to camp right at sunset. Because I knew I was headed toward an established camp site that is part of the Hudson River Water Trail, I wasn’t worried about coming in to camp late. The reality was however, that I had no idea exactly what the camp looked like.

Right at sunset I arrived at the end Tellers Point to find a young couple sitting on the large boulders that line the steep trail that leads from the rocky beach to the grassy camp site above. Not sure of exactly what the camping situation was I asked the couple if they knew. They weren’t sure either but did know that there was a deck and set of stairs just a little further on that may make the climb off of the beach easier.

After landing between the boulders at the waters edge I climbed the stairs and was shocked to discover a full county park camp complete with cabins, mess hall, and shower houses all open for business. Spread out on the lawn was also a small village of tents. I walked up to the first person I saw and asked who I should talk to about camping. He didn’t exactly know, but the gentleman filled me in on what was going on. The camp was set up to house a site crew for an upcoming event to be held at the county park. Every year these volunteers spend two weeks setting up the Clearwater Festival. The event brings in dozens of bands that entertain 20,000-40,000 people on seven stages.

Site Crew Camp

When I learned that the person behind the event was Pete Seiger I figured I was in good hands and could set my tent up and blend right in. By then the young couple had wandered back from the end of the point and invited me to visit the folks that had assembled in the dining hall to hang out for the night. After quickly setting up my tent in the remaining glow of dusk I cooked dinner and wandered over then, before I knew it, I was wrapped up in a rousing game of Boggle. As people came and went from the hall they asked who the new face was. I was quickly introduced as the kayak guy and as I elaborated on what exactly I was up to they were very interested to hear more. Before the end of the night I ended up doing an impromptu slide show on my computer for a few of the most interested of the group.

Boggle anyone? I lost... Bad

In yet another “small world” moment the ring leader of the Boggle game mentioned that ten years ago she had met a young man that was going a trip just like mine and he had stayed with her for a night or so. She scrolled through her memory and recalled that his name was Nathan. I just about fell over. Before starting this trip I researched everything I could find about people who had done similar routes. One book that was mentioned to be by a friend was titled “On The Water” which I‘ve mentioned on my web site. The book was written by a young man that rowed a rowing shell then dory around a very similar route as mine, his name, Nat (Nathan) Stone. It was the very same man that the woman had taken in during his trip.