-
Rainy Monday
Monday brought rain and muggy conditions, keeping a damper on recreational activity. Commercial activity was light. Two ATBs belonging to Centerline Logistics Corporation were anchored in the river for a second day, with the Rhea Bouchard off 72nd Street and the Barry Silverton off Riverbank State Park. The Evelyn Cutler was anchored further up, north of the bridge.
Rhea Bouchard and her barge off 72nd Street 
Barry Silverton and barge anchored further upriver 
A cruising yacht heading north 
A Corps of Engineers tug heading downriver 
A DEP tanker hauling sludge Harbor Charlie on the move ©2022 Daniel Katzive Uncategorized -
Stay cool
Blazing heat prevailed on Sunday, with light winds out of the south. Recreational activity was most notable early, while things were still cool. Commercial activity was typical for a Sunday. Another escorted swimmer came through in the morning, with its accompanying powerboat flying an “I” flag.
A swimmer (circled) with a kayak and powerboat escort. 
A standup paddle boarder dug in, passing a cormorant on a pier Outrigged canoes moved south, passing a cormorant drying its wings 
Carolina Coast came down light from the Yonkers sugar plant 
Saint Emilion headed for Albany with what was probably a partial loaded barge 
Overtaking Kimberly Poling with a heavy barge 
Norwegian Joy loaded up for a trip to Bermuda 
And was serviced by a bunkering barge 
Daisy Mae passed Weehawken enroute to Coeymans with dirt and gravel 
Buchanan12 had an unusually light load of just one hopper heading back to Clinton Point 
Another empty tanker barge heading south The tug Rhea Bouchard anchored off 72nd Street with an empty barge. The Bouchard Towing Company is out of business and the tug is owned under new ownership but apparently retains this name.
The tug Rhea Bouchard at anchor 
A sailboat running upriver in late afternoon 
Ruth Reinauer headed upriver, passing a mid-town bound ferry 
One of the last goslings off the season follows a parent ©2022 Daniel Katzive Uncategorized -
The Jet Ski Invasion
Saturday was the annual Jet Ski Invasion, where 100s of personal watercraft gather and make a circuit of Manhattan, very enjoyable to the riders and a big noisy nuisance to pretty much everyone else who traverses or follows the North River. The “invasion” rounded the Battery after 11am and proceeded north.
The Jet Ski invasion arrives The invasion was escorted by Coast Guard, NYPD, and the FDNY, as well as fireboats from Jersey City, Hoboken, and North Hudson departments.
Hoboken Fire 
US Coast Guard 
Jersey City Fire 
FDNY 
NYPD Regular commercial traffic and ferry boats had to operate as usual, mostly maintaining course, occasionally leaning on the horn, and hoping that self-interest keeps the riders out of the way.
Dann Marine’s Charles A towed a large barge right through the flotilla The DEP’s Red Hook overtook the invasion, with plenty of horn and an escort from the Coast Guard for much of the way 
The Fort McHenry waited for the river to clear before leaving its bunkering job at Pier 88 
As did DonJon Marine’s DSNY recycling run to Staten Island 
The river was all clear by the time Buchanan12 headed back to Clinton Point at the end of the day A Canadian Forces coastal defense vessel, the HMCS Moncton, is visiting New York wearing commemorative World War II style anti-submarine camouflage. She was bunkered by the Vames Brothers tug Fort McHenry in the morning.
HMCS Moncton tied up on the south side of Pier 88 
Moncton being refueled ©2022 Daniel Katzive Uncategorized -
Air traffic
Rain held off for most of the day Thursday, with relatively cool temperatures prevailing. River traffic was typical, with a few large sailing vessels noted, while military traffic over the river was noted.
The Hayward looking for navigational hazards 
The Evelyn Cutler pushed a loaded fuel barge upriver, passing the Hayward 
Saint Emilion left its anchorage off Yonkers and headed to Cateret to pick up a new cargo 
Emily Ann brought empty hoppers back to the DonJon base in Newark 
A Coast Guard response boat on the river 
A two-masted schooner sailing downriver 
Another brig, the Shearwater based at the Brookfield Place Marina, passed Battery Park City 
Marine Viper attack helicopters flew past the Financial District 
A trio of Blackhawks came down the river from Stewart Airbase in Newburgh, made a few loops around the Statue of Liberty, and then headed back A Tailwind seaplane, likely returning from Boston, came down the Hudson to loop around the Battery and land in the East River ©2022 Daniel Katzive Uncategorized -
Air traffic
Rain held off for most of the day Thursday, with relatively cool temperatures prevailing. River traffic was typical, with a few large sailing vessels noted, while military traffic over the river was noted.
The Hayward looking for navigational hazards The Evelyn Cutler pushed a loaded fuel barge upriver, passing the Hayward Saint Emilion left its anchorage off Yonkers and headed to Cateret to pick up a new cargo Emily Ann brought empty hoppers back to the DonJon base in Newark A Coast Guard response boat on the river A two-masted schooner sailing downriver Another brig, the Shearwater based at the Brookfield Place Marina, passed Battery Park City Marine Viper attack helicopters flew past the Financial District A trio of Blackhawks came down the river from Stewart Airbase in Newburgh, made a few loops around the Statue of Liberty, and then headed back A Tailwind seaplane, likely returning from Boston, came down the Hudson to loop around the Battery and land in the East River ©2022 Daniel Katzive Uncategorized -
City boats
Cool temperatures and cloudy skies prevailed on the second official day of summer, with rain arriving in the late afternoon. Observed commercial traffic was light but government owned boats were more prevalent.
Buchanan12, observed back on the Clinton Point run yesterday after a hiatus, came through with a load of quarry output headed for the Greenville moorings in the morning, and came back with empties at the end of the day after also paying a visit to the Lafarge Brooklyn dock. 
Coral Coast made a slow loop up the river with an empty cement barge but then returned to the Lafarge Bayonne terminal 
An NYPD 45’ boat headed for the GW Bridge, overtaking the DEP’s Red Hook tanker on its way to the North River sewage plant 
The NYPD was followed by another official looking boat… 
…and then by a Coast Guard response boat… 
…and then by Marine One’s large fireboat… 
…and then by the NYC DEP’s water quality sampling vessel the Osprey. What were they all doing up there? -
Moving rocks
The first day of astronomical summer brought pleasant temperatures in the 70s and light winds, but a line of rain storms was heading in by the end of the day. Commercial traffic remained light and dominated by bulk cargos while sailors reported dolphins sighted in the river. The Benjamin Franklin Reinauer left its anchorage off 72nd Street around midnight and headed down to the Upper Bay to drop anchor there.
Brinn Courtney has been making runs down from Tompkins Cove north of Haverstraw down to the Inwood Materials dock off Jamaica Bay near JFK. The Tompkins Cove quarry has been closed for years but perhaps this area is being used to transfer hoppers of material quarried elsewhere. Meanwhile, Buchanan12 was back on the Clinton Point quarry run after some time out of service.
Brinn Courtney heading for Jamaica Bay with a load of gravel 
Buchanan12 was back on the Clinton Point run, moving empties north past the Battery
Photo Credit: L. Katzive
The venerable Dace Reinauer, built in 1968, brought an empty barge down from Albany. 
A stand-up paddle boarder we have seen before was fighting the ebb tide passing Pier i on her trip up from Pier 84 ©2022 Daniel Katzive Uncategorized -
Magic Monday
Beautiful conditions prevailed to start the week, with winds settling down though still blowing steadily out of the northwest. The Carnival Magic cruise ship arrived early and then headed out by 4pm for a cruise to the Bahamas. Ben Franklin remained anchored off 72nd Street for the second day in a row. Coeymans Marine Towing tugs were busy moving bulk products and Domino sugar in Yonkers received a delivery.
Ben Franklin Reinauer and its barge at anchor off Pier i 
CMT’s Daisy Mae brought a hopper of what looks like asphalt shavings south to the Upper Bay 
Later Daisy Mae came back heading home with sand and construction equipment 
Daisy Mae’s colleagues on the Mackenzie Rose came up from the Jersey Shore heading for Coeymans with sand or gravel and passed the Ben Franklin 
Carolina Coast headed north to Yonkers with a sugar barge as a chopper landed at the 34th Street Heliport 
Carnival Magic took a fuel delivery at Pier 88 
And later left with help from John D. Moran as an NYPD launch kept an eye on jet skiers and pleasure boats 
A car fire blocked 495 coming out of the Lincoln Tunnel and sent up a plume of smoke 
Brinn Courtney brought a hopper south from Tompkins Cove, passing Lackawanna Terminal 
An FDNY boat on patrol 
Army Corps of Engineers on patrol 
Port Authority Police on patrol 
The Naval Academy’s training boats remained tied up at Pier 86 ©2022 Daniel Katzive Uncategorized -
Fathers Day Fun
Stiff winds continued to blow out of the northwest but slowed enough for recreational boaters to enjoy Fathers Day on the water. Some dads remained hard at work though, as commercial activity remained steady.
Ben Franklin Reinauer was back at anchor off 72nd Street, less than 24 hours after leaving that spot to visit the Reinauer dock in Staten Island 
James William was making his usual quarry run, bringing down loaded barges that look to have been left up in Haverstraw Bay and making deliveries to City Asphalt, on the Arthur Kill side of Staten Island. Personal watercraft overtook. Bring Courtney was heading in the other direction, bringing sand or fill north and passing the anchored Ben Franklin 
The bulker Arcola came through, arriving from Turkey and bound for Coeymans Photo credit: M. Katzive 
New Jersey State Police were on patrol, passing a pleasure boat. NY State Police generally leave the North River to the NYPD, but troopers patrol from the Jersey side The Zelada Desgagnes made a quick turnaround in Albany, heading down river and signaling Thunder Bay, Canada less than 48 hours after she headed up. There was no discernible change in draft so we cannot guess whether they were loading or unloading in Albany.
Zelada Desgagnes leaving Sunday (l) and arriving Friday (r) with no discernible change in draft 
A J80 sailboat tacked upriver 
The cormorant council was in session as usual -
Sand goes up, rocks come down
Winds whipped out of the northwest all day Sunday, with gusts above 20 knots keeping sailors and most other recreational activity off the river. Commercial activity was not deterred by the wind though, with a flood of northbound traffic coming through once the morning ebb tide ended. Coeymans Marine Towing’s Helen, the former Vames Brothers Charles Burton, came south pushing a load of rocks from Coeymans, less than 18 hours after she passed in the other direction pushing a load of sand north.
Helen came through pusing a load of stone down from Coeymans Her colleagues on Daisy Mae moved north towards Coeymans with hoppers full of sand 
Nathan G pushed empty hoppers north 
As did DonJon Marine’s Thomas D Witte 
James William continues to make runs from Clinton Point quarry with Buchanan12 still out of service 
Evelyn Cutler pushed a loaded barge north 
Over on the East River, Reinauer’s Matthew Tibet’s provided an escort for an ATB about the enter Hell Gate in heavy wind conditions 
These powerboats were also heading through Hell Gate, and continued around the Battery up the North River 
Sound Marine’s Kenny G towed an unpowered party boat up to the North River Shipyard in Nyack, NY 
The Baylander, a former Navy utility craft which saw service in Vietnam and later as a helicopter landing training boat in Pensacola, was open for lunch as usual at the Harlem 125th Street Pier despite the wind 
Conditions were quite different on Friday evening, with conditions pleasant enough for a water skier to galavant off Riverside Park ©2022 Daniel Katzive Uncategorized
Daily observations on the Hudson River as it passes through New York City. The section of the Hudson which passes through New York is historically known as the North River, called this by the Dutch to distinguish it from the Delaware River, which they knew as the South River. This stretch of the Hudson is still often referred to as the North River by local mariners today. All photos by Daniel Katzive unless otherwise attributed. Twitter @dannykatman
North River Notes 