-
Switching horses
Another brutal northwest wind kept recreational boaters off the river and had sailors cancelling plans Thursday. A Dann Marine tug, the Pearl Coast, came down the river with a loaded cement barge from the Lafarge plant in Ravenna, swung around into the ebb tide and dropped anchor north of the boat basin. Shortly after, another Dann tug, the Sapphire Coast, came up from the Lafarge dock in Brooklyn and, for reasons known only to Dann Marine and the crews, swapped places with the Pearl. The Pearl then headed off towards Staten Island while the Sapphire remained parked with the barge, perhaps waiting for less windy conditions before bringing the barge to whichever cement terminal awaits it.
Pearl Coast wrestles its cement barge into the ebb tide to anchor 
Pearl and Sapphire swapping positions on the barge 
Pearl leaves light after leaving its barge with Sapphire Meanwhile, the passenger terminal remains busy, with Norwegian Dawn tied up at Pier 88 this morning after arriving from the Dutch Antilles. She is scheduled to sail for Southampton England with stops in Halifax, Iceland, Ireland, Holland, Belgium and France— a two week journey.
Norwegian Dawn getting ready for a trans-Atlantic run Small tankers crossed paths in the morning, with the DEP’s Hunts Point heading up to load sewage sludge at the North River plant for dewatering at the Passaic Valley Water Commission plant in Newark passing a small bunkering tanker, the Chandra B.
DEP’s Hunts Point passing a small bunkering tanker 
Ruth Reinauer was anchored around 100th Street 
Mr. Jim came through pushing empty looking hoppers from upriver 
Sarah D pushed loaded hoppers to the Lafarge dock in Brooklyn 
A workboat from Sound Marine headed upriver -
Another windy Wednesday
Brisk northwest winds kept recreational activity to a minimum on Wednesday, but there was a fair amount of commercial traffic. The cargo ship BBC Rushmore came up the river early, arriving from Newfoundland, Canada and heading for the Port of Albany.
BBC Rushmore heading for Albany Over at the Boat Basin, a work boat from the Miller’s Launch was busy loading the mooring balls and anchors stored on the dock. With the Boat Basin shuttered, there will be no moorings in place this summer, as there would be no staff there to manage them and, more importantly, no place to park a dinghy.
Removing mooring balls and anchors stored at the Boat Basin The Mako AT/B which has been at anchor since Saturday hit the 96 hour Coast Guard limit for North River anchorages and headed out of town, currently steaming down the Jersey Shore. On the way out, she passed Janice Ann Reinauer pushing a barge loaded in Perth Amboy up to Albany.
Mako and its barge getting underway 
Mako passes Janice Ann with a heavy barge and a Port Imperial ferry The Weddell Sea arrived from Baltimore towing an empty barge towards the end of the ebb tide, an usual configuration and routing. They went on to anchor north of the Bridge.
Weddell Sea towing an empty barge 
Weddell Sea passing the Harbor Patrol 
Douglas J still working the dredge site 
Sail boat and its warmly dressed crew only needed a foresail and an ebb tide to move downriver in today’s strong winds 
The midday view from Little Island Park at Pier 55 -
Lots of action at Pier 88
The passenger ship terminal remains busy, with Norwegian cruise lines accounting for the bulk of the business. After Getaway and Gem departed Sunday for Nova Scotia and Portugal, respectively, Norwegian Escape was here Monday and is now off to Bermuda, and Norwegian Joy arriving this morning and now also heading off to Bermuda. Perhaps things are looking up for the cruise industry?
Norwegian Joy arrives at Pier 88, trailed by a bunkering barge Meanwhile, dredging continues at the terminal amidst all this activity. A large tug belonging to DonJon marine, the Douglas J, arrived from Baltimore and joined the action.
The Douglas J ready to work The Mako remains anchored north of the boat basin for a third day. After four days she will need special Coast Guard permission to remain. On the subject of long anchoring, the Teresa recently left Beaumont Texas, consistent with the court documents we reviewed that indicated she had a final cargo of asphalt to discharge there. She is currently tied up in the Sabine Pass just down the river from Beaumont on the Gulf perhaps beginning life under her new owners though we do not have any information on who they might be.
Mako at anchor for a third day -
April cruising
The dredging operations at the passenger ship terminal moved aside on Sunday and were replaced by two Norwegian ships and the smaller Ocean Explorer cruise ship. The Norwegian Gem and Getaway were both in port Sunday morning, and were heading out Sunday night for Portugal and Halifax, respectively, a break from the Bermuda and Caribbean runs they have been doing all winter. The Ocean Explorer is a smaller cruise ship which was new last year and in town for the first time this year. It headed for Newport by Sunday evening.
Norwegian Getaway heading for Nova Scotia Sunday afternoon; Norwegian Gem’s stack is visible to the left above the Pier 99 transfer station A nice looking ketch was anchored north of the Boat Basin flying a French flag. There are no mooring balls in this year because the Boat Basin is closed for reconstruction, although they might not be in this early in the year anyway even in normal circumstances. In the background was the Mako with its barge, which has been anchored in the river since yesterday.
A ketch anchored north of the Boat Basin with Mako in the background “A Dock”, the recreational pier at the Boat Basin rebuilt after Hurricane Sandy, opened as usual for the season on April 1, despite the rest of the docks of the marina being closed for the next few years.
Cherry Blossoms in bloom behind the closed Boat Basin Marina A double-crested cormorant dried its wings on “dolphins” protecting A Dock 
Dann Marine’s East Coast headed back to Yonkers after refueling in Elizabeth, heading to retrieve the sugar barge it left up there yesterday 
Saint Emilion headed for Albany with what looks like a partially loaded barge -
Weekend update
Beautiful spring weather, though still chilly on the water Saturday. Activity is picking up, with more recreational boaters and dinner cruises starting up, and a steady flow of barges heading to the dredging operation at Pier 88/90.
An outrigged canoer fought the morning ebb past the remnants of a New York Central Pier A paddle boarder had an easier time of it riding the ebb past Pier i 
Mako came up the river with an empty and dropped anchor off 86th Street 
East Coast headed for the harbor after dropping a sugar barge in Yonkers 
Dredging barges moved to and from Pier 88, keeping sailors on their toes The newly commissioned cutter Clarence Suthphin, which we photographed yesterday on Pier 86 (see yesterday’s post), headed out to sea, presumably to begin her deployment.
USCGC Sutphin passing Jersey City on the way out of town 
Margaret Moran made a rare foray up the river to visit the Pier 76. We saw her assisting the old QE2 back in the 1980s at Pier 88 (see Back to the 80s) -
Sutphins happening on Pier 86
The newly commissioned Coast Guard 154’ Fast Response Cutter the Clarence Suthphin Jr. is tied up at the end of Pier 86, the pier which houses the Intrepid Museum. The Sutphin’s commissioning ceremony was apparently yesterday and it is soon heading for Bahrain, one of six such cutters which support the US Central Command in the Persian Gulf. To access Pier 86 you need a ticket from the Intrepid Museum, but a ticket to just visit the pier (a Pier Pass) is apparently free. Who knew?
The brand new USCGC Clarence Sutphin Jr. at Pier 86 The Sutphin’s 25mm deck gun and bow pennant 
The Sutphin can launch a small boat from its stern Meanwhile, dredging operations continue between Pier 88 and Pier 90.
Dredging at Pier 90 
The tug Sea Fox and a barge ready to haul away mud 
An empty barge waiting in the river for dredging duty 
Dann Marine pushes a sugar barge towards Yonkers, passing the North River Lobster Company dinner boat and a ferry leaving Port Imperial 
Daisy Mae pulls a loaded hopper barge from Coeymans heading for Baltimore -
Practice makes perfect
Coast Guard Sector New York’s four 29’ response boats were back in the river Thursday, drilling similarly to what we observed almost exactly a month ago (see Drill Baby Drill). Once again, two boats had their forward machine guns mounted. FDNY’s 140’ Marine 1 fire boat was also practicing on the river (or perhaps just showing off), running its water cannons for a sustained period near Pier 97.
USCG 29’ boats drill as the venerable Francis passes with hoppers full of stone FDNY’s Marine 1 making rain Dredging work continues at the passenger ship terminal, bringing a steady flow of barges to haul away the mud.
Dredging barges are maneuvered mid-river 
Schuylkill headed back to the harbor after anchoring off Riverdale overnight 
A 45’ NYPD boat on Thursday 
A keel boat heeling nicely as wind picked up late afternoon. -
Back to the river
Clearing skies and warmer temperatures saw activity on the river continue to pick up. The knot of tugs anchored in the river broke up, with only Stephen Reinauer remaining.
Stephen Reinauer alone at anchor Wednesday morning What looked to me like a juvenile bald eagle passed over Pier i in the early hours, being harassed by a crow. The eagle was followed a few hours later by a different kind of bird, with two pairs of Marine Osprey aircraft flying north, or the same pair making two loops. They were too low to show up on FlightRadar24.
Juvenile bald eagle over Pier i Wednesday morning 
Marine V-22 Osprey flying north The low-slung J Arnold Witte came through pushing empty hoppers towards Albany, followed by Buchanan 12 making its usual rounds and returning empties to the Clinton Point quarry. Meanwhile, DonJon Marine moved a load of paper out of Pier 99 and headed for the Pratt recycling facility in Staten Island.
J Arnold Witte heading for Albany 
Buchanan 12 surrounded by its flock 
Paper waste heading for Staten Island and recycling Empty tanker barges were heading south and loaded barges heading north as usual. A 30,000 ton cargo ship headed towards Coeymans, arriving from Veracruz, Mexico. Late in the day, a group of six buses caught fire in a parking lot off Route 3 in the Meadowlands, sending a plume of smoke over Weehawken.
Saint Emilion returning with an empty barge from Albany 
Schuylkill headed in the opposite direction with a loaded barge The Chipolbrok Sun heading for Coeymans, passing a Circle Liner 
A bus fire in the Meadowlands sent a plume of smoke over Weehawken 
A mallard took sun on top of a combine sewer overflow structure -
Windy Easter
Dropping temperatures, whipping winds, and the Easter holiday kept activity to a minimum on Sunday. Vane Brothers Wye River came through with an empty-looking barge arriving from Boston via the Cape Cod Canal and heading straight for Albany without picking up cargo in Jersey. This is a somewhat unusual movement, though perhaps the barge is still partially loaded
Wye River heading straight to Boston from Albany John Henry pushed empty hoppers north late in the day.
John Henry pushing empty hoppers north The Norwegian Getaway arrived at Pier 88 from Bermuda and will leave this evening heading back to Bermuda, with a stop in Norfolk. Dredging work continues in the cruise terminal, with a barge involved in this work visible astern of the Getaway.
Norwegian Getaway and a dredging barge -
Hello from the other side
The weekend has brought perfect spring temperatures, though with a steady wind coming in from the south keeping things choppy during ebb tides, especially on Friday. A trip to New Jersey can provide a Western perspective on the North River. Below, the Haggerty Girls pushes an empty tanker barge from Albany under the George Washington Bridge, followed by the Dean Reinauer returning from Albany.
Haggerty Girls passing under the GWB as seen from Fort Lee 
Dean Reinauer passing Fort Tryon Park 
Carolina Coast leaving Yonkers after delivering a sugar barge to the Domino plant. Nodine Hill water tower visible above 
Moran Towing’s Jennifer Turecamo at anchor off Riverdale Closer to home, recreational boaters are beginning to appear more frequently as temperatures rise. An outrigged canoer was seen fighting a flood tide heading back towards her boat house and several 24’ sailboats were on the river.
A canoer hard at work near Pier i 
Keel boat heading up river on a starboard tack 
Work boats involved in dredging the passenger ship terminal at anchor Saturday south of the Federal anchorage area
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 