Post #8: New York, New York!!

 Saturday, September 19, 2020

We waved goodbye to Port Washington and headed towards the Throgs Neck Bridge, the first of 8 bridges we’d go under on our way past Manhattan.  Even though I remember sitting in a car for what seemed like hours on that bridge many years ago, it was pretty quiet on this Saturday afternoon. When you approach a bridge in a sailboat, it’s easy to be convinced that your mast is going to hit it, given the angle of your view:

But of course, we didn’t even come close.  Onward’s air draft is 61’6” plus a solid TV antenna that’s 10” next to a flexible VHF antenna of 30”.  So we need at least 62’6” for bridge clearance.  Small potatoes for NYC waters where the bridges along the East River range from 127’ (Brooklyn Bridge) to 152’ (Throgs Neck). 

Next came the Whitestone Bridge, (an eerily quiet) LaGuardia Airport, and the infamous Riker’s Island prison.  And then... the much-discussed Hell Gate, where the Harlem River joins the East River, the currents flow in different directions and the tides and winds often compete against each other.  Add in power boats, ferries, jet skis and tugboats, and you get the picture. You just kinda take a breath, hope that all your calculations have been correct, and “shoot the chute”! Off we went at 10.5 knots, about 75% faster than we normally travel.  (Think going down the highway at 60 miles an hour and suddenly—without moving your foot on the gas pedal—you’re doing 105 mph!)

Adding to the excitement was the opportunity to see (at least with binoculars) our nephew Jeremy who lives in Astoria.  He came down to the banks of the river under the RFK bridge (the largest one on the chart above) and took a photo of Onward.  What a wonderful welcome to the Big Apple!

We motored between Roosevelt Island and FDR Drive—which is incredibly noisy whether you’re driving on it or sailing by!

It got a little rougher and more boat traffic once we passed the end of Roosevelt Island:

What a thrill to see the United Nations, the Chrysler Building, and the Empire State Building from the water.  I remember seeing the UN complex for the first time back in junior high school and being inspired and reassured that there were adults working together to try to make our world a better, safer, more peaceful place.  It sounds simplistic, I know, but we have to keep trying. We have to.

As we rounded the bend at the lower end of Manhattan, a familiar silhouette made me catch my breath.  There she was, despite everything that has happened both recently and over the past 134 years, “The Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World.” (It reminded me of exiting the train station in Venice and seeing the Grand Canal for the first time.  I gasped and my daughter asked, “What’s wrong, Mom?”  “Nothing’s wrong—it’s just that it’s Right There!”)

I turned around to admire the architectural magnificence of the Brooklyn Bridge.  I recommend historian David McCullough’s book The Great Bridge for an in-depth history of this engineering marvel.

Looking back at the city one more time:

One cannot but be inspired by this strong lady.  Though her flag was flying at half mast yesterday in honor of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, she still represents hope for the future of our country and our world.  Truth, justice and liberty will prevail.