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Maiden voyage
Rains cleared and beautiful weather returned on Wednesday. The Maiden, a 58-foot racing yacht passed through in the morning on the way to Kingston, NY. The Maiden was the first sailing boat to circumnavigate the globe with an all-female crew in the late 1980s and is currently on a world tour in support of its mission of improving educational and empowerment opportunities for girls (see themaidenfactor.org for more information).
The Maiden runs upriver with the flood tide heading for Kingston 
HRCS J80s turned out to provide an escort, and one deployed its spinnaker Meanwhile, commercial traffic picked up after Tuesday’s lull. The Saint Emilion weighed anchor Tuesday afternoon after two days parked off 72nd Street, headed down to the Kinder Morgan terminal in Cateret and was pushing back towards Albany by Wednesday morning. Saint Emilion was replaced by Cape Canaveral which anchored with its barge off 79th Street
Saint Emilion pushing for Albany Wednesday morning 
Cape Canaveral at anchor off the Boat Basin 
Quenames was also heading north with a loaded barge 
Saint Emilion, Maiden, Quenames and Cape Canaveral are all visible in this shot 
A Reinauer ATB headed for Albany, passing J80 sailboats 
Mary Alice pushed a load of flattened autos from the Sims Metal dock in Albany to the Sims dock in Bayonne -
Free parking and a seaplane
The run of great weather comes to an end Tuesday evening as storms move in, with winds gusting above 20 MPH by the end of the day. Commercial traffic was light, with just some of the usual locals observed. However, the approach of summer brought some seasonal activity, including an infrequent cruise ship visitor, a new sea plane service, and a sailboat anchoring in the Boat Basin mooring field
The James William was filling in on the stone run down from Tilcon’s Clinton Point quarry south of Poughkeepsie. The Buchanan12 usually makes this trip but she may be out of service—her last AIS ping was 5 days ago showing her headed for the Feeney Shipyard in Kingston.
James William pushing stone south from Tilcon’s Clinton Point quarry 
A load of paper waste headed to the Pratt mill in Staten Island for recycling 
The DEP’s Red Hook tanker ferried sludge to Hunts Point for dewatering The small cruise ship Seven Seas Navigator was tied up at Pier 88, arriving Tuesday morning from Newport. She was set to head out Tuesday evening on an extended cruise to the UK, heading for Martha’s Vineyard first, then up the New England coast, over to Iceland, Scotland, and Ireland before ending in Southampton, England.
The Seven Seas Navigator tied up at Pier 88 
A seaplane passed up the Hudson, having taken off in the East River and looped around the Battery, the plane was heading for Boston, a new three times a day service initiated by Tailwind last week The Boat Basin Marina is closed and there are no seasonal moorings offered this year. However, this sailboat did anchor in the usual mooring area and someone looks to have rowed ashore in a dingy, which they tied up right under a “no docking” sign on A dock. It would have taken some athletic ability to climb out to the dock at this spot though as there is no ladder.
A sailboat anchored near the boat basin 
And a unpowered dingy tied up at A Dock -
Monday moves
Beautiful though increasingly hot weather persisted on Monday. Observed traffic was mainly southbound, including two of Reinauer’s older and smaller tugs, the Franklin and Dace. Saint Emilion remained at anchor off 72nd Street after arriving there Sunday afternoon.
Franklin Reinauer returning from Albany 
Dace Reinauer returning from Newburgh on the ebb tide and passed the anchored Saint Emilion 
Kimberly Poling returned from Albany and headed for Carteret Treasure Coast brought a load of cement down from Lafarge’s Ravenna plant to the Lafarge Bayonne terminal 
The DEP’s Red Hook tanker brought sludge from the North River plant to Hunts Point for dewatering 
Foxy 5 was an exception to the rule, towing empty hoppers north with the flood tide, passing the anchored Saint Emilion and a dual hull sailboat 
Canada geese were another exception, also flying north, perhaps migrating or maybe locals looking for a new park to foul up 
A juvenile double-crested cormorant sitting on an old NY Central Pier -
What’s up with Pier 98?
The tangle of pipes and conduits on Pier 98 at the end of 58th Street has long intrigued me. The pier is a fuel dock for the nearby 59th Street steam plant but the machinery on the dock seems elaborate for that purpose alone. I looked into it for the West Side Rag and learned there is also a heat exchanger here for cooling cables at a nearby electrical substation which accounts for the profusion of conduits. The article published today also looks at the role of steam service in the city more broadly: https://www.westsiderag.com/2022/06/02/not-all-piers-are-for-play-keeping-the-steam-up-and-the-lights-on
Con Ed’s Pier 98 
A 1960 photo of the IRT Powerhouse and Pier 98 configured for coal delivery. Source: Con Ed report to NYC Landmark Comission Meanwhile, life goes on as usual on the river, though hot temperatures gave way to a later afternoon downpour which shutdown the afternoon Yankees game in the top of the 9th inning. The most interesting traffic was the Norwegian flagged bulker Belfriend which passed by on the way out after delivering gypsum to the Continental wallboard plant in Buchanan NY. The cargo originated in Garuccha, Spain, a major gypsum export point, and this is the first cargo we have noted going up to the plant in a long time. The Belfriend was followed out by Moran Towing’s Kimberly Turecamo and Dorris Moran which were also up in Buchanan, likely helping the Belfriend leave the dock up there.
The Belfriend heads south after delivering gypsum to Continental’s wallboard factory in Buchanan… 
…followed by Doris Moran which assisted leaving the dock up there 
A Reinauer ATB heading back to the harbor 
The DEP’s North River tanker on sludge duty 
Don-Jon Marine takes out the recycling at Pier 99 -
Cooling down
Temperatures dropped sharply Tuesday evening and by Wednesday morning we were back to the 60s with skies increasingly cloudy as we headed into storms coming Wednesday night.
The Jennifer Turecamo pulled up her hook Wednesday morning, dropped into the notch on her tanker barge Tennessee, and left the North River after an unusually long stay here of around 10 days. Jennifer moved down to the old Stapleton navy dock on Staten Island and then moved around to Moran Towing’s base on the North Shore. She may have left the barge behind in Stapleton and this could offer a hint at why she remained in the river for so long: the Stapleton dock was home to several navy and Coast Guard ships visiting for Fleet Week and perhaps the barge needed to be elsewhere.
In any case, the Dean Reinauer, which had been anchored north of the bridge for a shorter period, also weighed anchor, leaving only the Saint Emilion anchored off Grant’s Tomb remaining.
Jennifer Turecamo leaving with the barge Tennessee after an extended stay 
Dean Reinauer heads for the Kill van Kull 
Carolina Coast was light heading down from work at the Yonkers Domino Sugar plant Northbound traffic included the Norwegian flagged bulker Oslo Bulk 5, arriving from Guyana and heading for Albany or Coeymans most likely 
Sarah D was also heading north towards Hudson, NY with hoppers 
Sound Marine’s Kenny G towed one of its own boats up to the North River Shipyard in Nyack, NY 
A crane on a barge delivered Tuesday looked set to get to work on Pier 97 on Wednesday. Pier 97 is being converted into a recreational pier. It formerly was used to store DSNY equipment and salt. 
A view of the Intrepid from Pier 84 -
Back to work
The un-official and non-astronomical start to summer brought hot temperatures in the 90s to the North River as the city got back to work after the long weekend. The USS Bataan made an early departure from Pier 88, leaving town with considerably less fanfare than when it arrived. The HMS Protector remains tied up at Pier 90 as of Tuesday afternoon. (See The Fleet Arrives for more on Fleet Week).
The USS Bataan leaves town at the tail end of the morning ebb tide Workboats from the Miller company arrived and set up a crane near Pier 97, which is being developed for recreational use. Two of the boats set up a containment boom in case of accidental spills.
Deploying containment boom The morning began with the Haggerty Girls and and the Jennifer Turecamo still anchored off Riverside Park. By 2pm, Haggerty Girls had weighed anchor and headed for Bayonne IMTT but Jennifer remained.
Jennifer has now been anchored in that spot for over a week, an extended stay which would require permission from Coast Guard Sector New York, the first such dispensation granted since the Teresa departed in early April. Jennifer Turecamo is part of the Moran Towing fleet and her circumstances are no doubt quite different from Teresa. The tug and barge seem likely to depart soon.
Dylan Cooper and Kimberly Poling were anchored further upriver, off Grant’s Tomb and Yonkers, respectively, but both made morning departures.
Jennifer Turecamo and Haggerty Girls at slack tide Tuesday morning 
Haggerty Girls heads for Bayonne IMTT 
Dylan Cooper heading for Kinder Morgan’s Linden terminal, passing a Miller workboat trailing containment boom 
Kimberly Poling heading for the Upper Bay 
The goslings are now teenagers 
Watched by a lone grackle -
Back to the 60s—tanker edition
Being away from the river for the weekend is a good excuse to share some more photos from the family archives. These photos, taken in 1965 by a parent before I was born, show the tanker Texaco Kentucky heading south down the river at around 125th Street.
The Texaco Kentucky was built in 1949 in the U.S. but was Panama flagged, which means this vessel was either returning from delivering oil products upstate or carrying product from Albany for export overseas. The Kentucky was scrapped in 1985.
In addition to the tanker, if you look closely you can see on the left of the first picture the outlines of the Ferris wheel and roller coasters of Palisades Park amusement park on top of the cliffs. The amusement park closed in 1971 and was replaced by high rise apartment buildings.
The Texaco Kentucky passing Palisades Park NJ in 1965
Source: Katzive Family Collection
The 125th Street garbage transfer station on the right is still there, but is no longer in use and is overshadowed by the North River sewage plant built in the 1980s
Source: Katzive Family Collection
Old factory and industrial buildings are visible on the Jersey shore, all replaced now by condominiums and retail development
Source: Katzive Family Collection -
The Fleet Arrives
Fleet week kicked off with a parade of ships entering the bay and sailing up the north river. The larger vessels, the USS Bataan and the HMS Protector, headed directly for their births at Pier 88 and Pier 90, but the shallower draft vessels proceeded up the north river towards the bridge before u-turning to their berths in Stapleton on Staten Island. See my article in the West Side Rag for more details: https://www.westsiderag.com/2022/05/26/the-fleet-is-in
Coast Guard Cutter Beluga made an early run up the river to check security 
And Navy Blackhawks kept an eye on things from above 
The USS Bataan arrived with Blackhawks above and three harbor tugs to assist with docking Sailors, Marines and Osprey aircraft were visible on the flight deck 
Newport based buoy tender Sycamore and the local Army Corps Hayward presented the colors 
The British Navy’s Antarctic patrol ship Protector arrived 
Coast Guard Cutter Dependable arrived from Virginia Beach and made a loop up the river 
As did the Littoral Combat Ship USS Milwaukee 
NYPD, USCG, and NJ State Police provided security 
USS Bataan got refueled on arrival at Pier 88 The Bataan is the largest naval vessel to visit Pier 88 since the hospital ship USNS Comfort arrived at the height of the pandemic in April 2020.
The USNS Comfort arriving in April 2020 Of course, regular commercial life went on as usual on the river. The Jennifer Turecamo remained anchored off Riverside Park and would have had a great view of the arriving ships. Sand headed north and sludge and empty tanker barges headed south.
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Getting ready for the fleet
An atmosphere of anticipation prevailed over the river Tuesday ahead of Wednesday’s arrival of the ships participating in the annual fleet week events. Cool and pleasant conditions prevailed.
A Coast Guard 65’ harbor tug was heading for the Battery in the afternoon 
As was Marine 1’s large fireboat 
A flattop barge was brought upriver and docked on the south side of Pier 88 as perhaps a viewing platform of some kind Regular business also went on as usual of course.
Business as usual ahead of Fleet Week -
What’s in that tanker?
The MTM Kobe headed back to sea before sunset on Sunday, three days after passing us heading north to the Buckeye Terminal in Albany where she was docked until Saturday. Foreign flagged tankers like Kobe can carry foreign cargos to Albany or pickup export cargos there for shipment overseas. Moving product between U.S. ports restricted to the U.S. flagged barges we see more often.
Leaving us, the Kobe appeared to be drawing deeper than when she arrived, and the vessel is signaling Montreal as a destination. What cargo could be moving from Albany to Quebec? Crude exports from Albany stopped a few years ago but Buckeye does handle ethanol and it is plausible this was what was loaded up there and now en route to Quebec. Of course only the shippers and the Kobe’s mariners know for sure, but demand for U.S. ethanol has been expected to increase in Quebec due to passage of new environmental regulations there according to the U.S. Grains Council. The first two months of the year saw record U.S. ethanol exports to Canada according to the EIA.
MTM Kobe leaving Sunday night and passing the anchored Jennifer Turecamo 
Kobe was lighter when arriving last Thursday Meanwhile, Monday brought more normal temperatures after the weekend swelter and winds came out of the north. The day opened with Jennifer Turecamo and the Kristin Poling still at anchor off Riverside Park. Kristin headed down to the Arthur Kill for more cargo in the afternoon but Jennifer remained into the evening hours.
Jennifer Turecamo and Kristin Poling at anchor Monday morning 
Vane Brothers’ Fells Point moved a cargo north in late afternoon 
As did Kimberly Poling 
Passing Dace Reinauer on its way back from Newburgh. Dace was built in 1968, making it one of the oldest if not the oldest Reinauer tug in the fleet 
A structure fire in West New York sent up a plume of smoke but was quickly extinguished by North Hudson Fire 
Cormorants remained hard at work 
A trio of Blackhawk helicopters passed overhead, below FlightRadar24’s radar 
An egret made a late afternoon sortie up the river 
A J80 sailboat came south on a broad reach 
A larger sailboat tacked upwind
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 copyright Daniel Katzive unless otherwise attributed. For more frequent updates, please follow northriverblog on Facebook or Instagram.
North River Notes 